When I saw the Japanese Head Spa going viral on TikTok and learned that it offers a range of health benefits, I was intrigued and wanted to find out more.
So when the owner of Flawless Advanced Skin & Beauty Clinic, Dawn Page, invited me to her salon in Blairgowrie to review it, I was more than happy to go along and try the popular head and scalp treatment for myself.
When I first saw photos of the Japanese Head Spa, I thought it looked like something out of a sci-fi movie.
But while it looked a bit daunting, everything I read about it was saying how amazing the treatment is as well as being incredibly relaxing!
In recent years, the Japanese Head Spa has been gaining traction all over the world thanks to social media.
And now it has come to Tayside with the Blairgowrie salon among the first in the region to offer the treatment.
But the question was – did it live up to the hype? And would I recommend it? I was ready to find out.
What is a Japanese Head Spa?
The Japanese head spa originally comes from Japan and head massage has been a part of the Japanese culture for centuries.
The basic treatment time can vary in length.
But generally the basic head spa lasts an hour or up to an hour-and-a-half.
The process starts with a head cleanse and exfoliation to remove impurities and dead skin.
And this is followed by a deep cleansing shampoo and conditioner to refresh the hair and scalp.
The benefits
Dawn says the benefits of the Japanese Head Spa include: repairing and strengthening the hair follicles, stimulating blood flow (which can encourage hair re-growth) and giving the hair and scalp a thorough cleanse.
She also says it helps to ease headaches and tension.
The treatment process
Flawless Advanced Skin and Beauty offers three Japanese Head Spa ritual packages – silver (lasting one hour costing £89), gold (lasting an hour-and-a-half costing £125) and platinum (lasting two hours costing £155).
I was given the platinum package.
This package includes: the scalp analysis, hair and scalp oiling, massaging using various hair tools, a scalp, neck and shoulder massage, hair cleanse, scalp exfoliation, hair mask and steam, Dermalogica facial, hair condition and waterfall experience.
Scalp analysis
After a consultation, Dawn took me through to the treatment room for the scalp analysis.
For me, this was the most interesting part of the treatment.
Dawn brought out a small microscope attached to an iPad so she could get a closer look at my scalp.
The microscope was placed on my head and projected what was on my scalp on to the iPad.
While it was fascinating to see how my scalp looks, it was also a bit disturbing.
Dawn proceeded to point out all my dead skin cells and revealed how oily my scalp was with some clogged follicles due to hair products.
It also showed some parts of my scalp which were red.
She said this was most likely due to tension being caused when I tie my hair up.
But the best part of the analysis was when Dawn, 35, told me I had no hair loss.
So with that good news, I was ready to move on to the next part of the treatment.
Massage and cleanse
I lay down comfortably on the treatment bed, which had the spa at the end of it, and Dawn gave me a neck and shoulder massage.
This was followed by a facial using Dermologica products.
Hair and scalp massage
The hair and scalp massage was one of my favourite parts of the process.
First Dawn put an eye mask over my eyes.
Then she used some oils on my hair and scalp and massaged them using various tools.
This included a scalp massager to stimulate blood flow, encouraging hair growth.
I could have just lain there all afternoon, it felt so nice!
Dawn then shampooed my hair twice and it smelled amazing.
After that, she put on a scalp exfoliator, containing sea-salt, which helps to clean out any sensitive areas and ease any irritated parts of the scalp.
Hair mask and steam
While I had the scalp exfoliator on, I became aware of a screen coming over my head and then suddenly steam came out on to my hair.
Some may find this claustrophobic but it didn’t bother me. I enjoyed the steaming process which lasted around 10 minutes.
Dawn explained why steam is used as part of the spa.
She said: “The steam is used to open up the follicles and break down any dry, dead skin cells and get rid of them.
“Any natural oils are also released.”
Waterfall experience
The last part of the treatment was the best bit and one of the most relaxing experiences I have ever had.
Dawn conditioned my hair before the conditioner was washed out using the head spa.
The water from the spa ran over my head from the front to the back in a regular flowing waterfall-like motion.
It was so gentle and relaxing I could have easily drifted off!
At the end of the treatment you can either blow dry your hair or leave the salon with a hair mask treatment on.
I chose to leave the hair mask on and wash it out myself.
Afterwards Dawn did another skin analysis and I couldn’t believe the difference.
All the dead skin cells had gone and my scalp looked so healthy – there was also no redness at all.
My verdict
I have to say that the Japanese Head Spa is amazing and it definitely lived up to the hype.
I couldn’t believe how soft and healthy my hair felt afterwards.
You feel incredibly relaxed and chilled after the Japanese Head Spa.
And with these wellbeing benefits, I can see why it is proving to be incredibly popular.
While the platinum package I had – priced at £155 – is expensive, there are other lower-priced packages available at £89 and £125.
So if you are looking to treat yourself to a relaxing pampering session, I would highly recommend trying the Japanese Head Spa.
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