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All of us know her. She is a beautiful lady with a well-toned body and glowing
skin, fashionably dressed and perfectly groomed — yet, the first thing
you notice about her is an expanse of scalp shining through her thinning hair.
“Hair loss in women is an embarrassing dilemma that has many causes and
many cures,” says Trichologist Veralucia (Vetta) Thompson, founder of the
new National Center of Trichology (the study of hair and scalp disorders). The
center opened this month on Southside Blvd.
One of only eight certified trichologists in the United States, Vetta Thompson
of Alpha Beauty Clinic traveled to Sydney, Australia, last year to study with
David Salinger, Executive Director of the International Association of Trichologists
and the world’s leading authority on hair loss and scalp disorders. “After
years of seeing so many people, both men and women, experience the trauma of
approaching baldness, I knew it was time to address the problem with dramatic
boldness,” says Vetta. “The National Center of Trichology offers practical,
in-depth, medically-approved and completely individualized approaches to preventing
hair loss and rejuvenating the scalp for new hair growth. More than that, it
offers the same nurturing atmosphere and results-oriented approach that is synonymous
with Alpha Beauty Clinic.”
Founder of Alpha Beauty Clinic and Day Spa, Vetta has spent the past seventeen
years traveling the world to provide her clients with the finest of ancient
and modern skin care and body massage therapies. “I’ve been a regular
at Alpha for ten years and I wouldn’t go anywhere else,” says Sandi
Muhich, an insurance agent with Erwin Insurance Agency, Inc. of Jacksonville
who travels from her home in Amelia Island once a month for her facial at Alpha
Beauty Clinic. “Vetta is cutting edge,” says Sandi. “She’s
magical when it comes to giving a facial. She so thoroughly researches everything
she offers her clients that I wouldn’t let anyone else touch my skin.”
Although Sandi has a thick, luxurious head of blonde hair, she knows many women
who are greatly stressed over thinning hair. “If thinning hair were a problem
for me, I’d be knocking down the door at Vetta’s new clinic,”
she says. “She’s so thorough and ethical in all of her dealings.”
An Internationally Board Certified Medical Electrologist as well as an Internationally
Certified Cidesco Diplomate (the highest degree in the world for estheticians),
Vetta is recognized worldwide as a leader in the field of professional skin
care and esthetics. “My goal has always been to give my clients the finest
natural paths to beauty and wellness for both body and spirit,” says Vetta.
“I’ve listened to their needs and responded by searching the globe
for treatments that met those needs. This new clinic addresses, with the latest
technology available, the causes and cures for hair loss — so long a secret
concern for so many women.”
It was a natural progression for Vetta Thompson to travel to Australia on behalf
of her clients to study trichology. She also studied in New York with Dr. Kingsley,
another international hair loss authority, and assisted in the successful opening
of a skin care and trichology clinic in India called Harmonix. The National
Center of Trichology is her next step in a lifetime dedicated to whole-body
wellness.
Born in Brazil, Vetta spent much of her childhood at the side of her beloved
grandmother, Maria, who was widely respected as “the root lady,” a
woman who knew the value of herbs and natural remedies, delivered babies and
dispensed herbal medicines to the local villagers. “We would go to the
fields and my grandmother would say, ‘This plant is good for indigestion;
that is good for insomnia. This one will make your skin glow, and that one will
increase your energy,’” remembers Vetta. “As a child, I didn’t
realize the immense knowledge she was imparting, but she awakened a passion
in me for discovering natural remedies that heal the body and soul.”
Today, Vetta Thompson’s field of discovery stretches from one end of the
globe to the other. She travels the world in search of ancient natural treatments
and the latest in international techniques for skin care and body, aroma and
massage therapies, bringing them home to her Alpha Beauty Clinic and Day Spa.
From the Japanese Pearl Facial to the Lomi-Lomi Massage from Hawaii and from
the Jasmine Oil of India Ayurvedic Royal treatment to the Swedish Kur, clients
find themselves transported into an exotic, tranquil sanctuary of ancient and
modern healing modalities at Alpha.
Although her study of natural cures and wellness has been a lifelong pursuit,
Vetta waited until her two daughters were in well along in school before she
followed her dream of opening a beauty clinic where she could share her healing
knowledge with others. “I took out a $5,000 loan to open Alpha Beauty Clinic
in 1987,” she recalls. “My husband and I had two kids in private schools
and no extra money to spare. I had no business training — only my gift
of knowledge from childhood, years of intense study and a deep trust in God.
In fact, the name Alpha came to me with the logo of a beautiful mermaid in the
A,” she says. “Alpha represents the best, the first, the beginning
and the end.”
Celebrate Success. Eat Dessert First. Belly Laugh. Make a Difference. These
are the words emblazoned on the gold-leaf frame of a tiny square mirror in Vetta’s
facial therapy room at Alpha Beauty Clinic and Day Spa. “The mirror belonged
to my sweetheart friend, Melany Greenwald,” says Vetta, “She taught
me so much in the years before she died of cancer. She saw something in me that
I didn’t know existed — a power to change things, to really make a
lasting difference in many lives.”
A longtime client of Thompson’s clinic, Greenwald was a single working
woman who treated herself regularly to the luxury of a facial, manicure and
pedicure by Alpha’s skilled, caring staff. “Even though she struggled
with cancer for many years, Melany was always smiling and happy,” remembers
Vetta. “She was an inspiration to all of us at Alpha, a woman of such courage
and persistence that she never quit working and she never lost her spirit of
giving. When she knew the end was near, she approached me and said, “I
want to give something to the ladies in my office — a one-day spa party.’”
When Vetta discovered there were 27 ladies in Melany’s office, she was
stunned. “I told her I couldn’t possibly handle that many people at
once. She just laughed and said, ‘Of course you can.’”
The ladies arrived in limousines on the appointed day and Vetta’s staff
was lined up, ready and waiting to give each of them three of the exotic treatments.
“It was an incredible day,” recalls Vetta. “It was the day I
realized our full potential. Melany taught me that anything is possible.”
Since then, all-day spa parties for large groups have become a regular occurrence
at Alpha, and after seventeen years in business, the popular beauty clinic’s
roster of dedicated regulars has grown to over 5,000 people, both men and women.
“I began with ten clients and a receptionist,” she laughs. “Today
I have a marvelous international staff of thirteen — all highly trained
experts in their fields.” Alpha’s brochure lists languages spoken:
Pycckuu (Russian), Espanol, Portugues, Hindi, Punjabi, Tagalog, Italian, English
and Texan (see Allen). “Allen Summerfort is our ‘man around the house,’”
jokes Vetta. “He is a very caring massage therapist who really helps us
to keep balanced.” Vetta’s voice softens at the memory of Allen going
to Melany Greenwald’s home and massaging her swollen legs and feet when
she could no longer come to the clinic.
Serenity surrounds you when you walk into Alpha Beauty Clinic. With soft music,
elegant simplicity and an atmosphere of genuine caring, a sense of spiritual
healing prevails. “This is my mission,” says Vetta. “To give
my clients the appearance as well as the feeling of wellness and reawakening.
Sometimes when a person lies on the bed in my facial room, my hands can feel
their tremendous stress. When that occurs, I change my ritual completely. Instead
of wrinkles, I focus on their state of mind and proceed with much deeper massage.
When that person arises and tells me it was a wonderful facial, I feel fulfilled.
The human touch is so desperately needed in today’s distant bottom-line
world.”
That same hopeful healing atmosphere is evident at Vetta’s new National
Center of Trichology. “Unlike a hair salon, where the constant buzz of
conversation permeates and distracts, our center offers a private, soothing
environment that focuses, first and foremost, on the individual and the underlying
cause for that person’s hair loss or scalp problem,” declares Vetta.
Getting to the “root” of the problem definitely requires the vast
knowledge and experience of a certified Trichologist.
“Although genetic predisposition to hair loss affects both men and women,”
notes Vetta, “some of the other common causes for diffuse hair loss (excessive
hair loss from the entire scalp) are high fever, weight loss, surgery, giving
birth, stopping or changing oral contraceptives, vitamin and mineral deficiencies,
unhealthy diet and stress, to name a few.” The autoimmune hair and scalp
conditions of Alopecia Areata and Psoriasis can be triggered by viral infections,
vaccinations, trauma to the skin, stress, food substances, medications and “new”
molecules experienced by an individual. In fact, autoimmune problems tend to
worsen with increases in estrogen (female hormones). Hair loss can also occur
from something as simple as excessively tight braiding.
According to studies conducted by the International Association of Trichologists,
an alarming number of women in their twenties and thirties are experiencing
Androgenetic Alopecia, characterized by a thinning of hair in the top/front
of the scalp, as a result of “hidden” male hormones or similar molecules
in our food and drinking water.
Trichologist David Salinger, in his book, Guide to Hair Loss, states that hair
is a thermometer of health. “Take care of the body and the hair will take
care of itself,” he states, pointing out that the most common causes of
diffuse hair loss are mineral deficiencies, anemia and hormonal imbalances,
all of which can be alleviated with proper treatment. “We have several
private treatment rooms at our new clinic, each one geared to provide our clients
with the specific therapies required for their hair or scalp condition,”
notes Vetta. “Many of our treatments are also preventive in nature, enabling
those who are not yet experiencing hair loss to ensure the health of their hair.”
From the latest laser therapy to herbal and mineral supplements in combination
with deep scalp massage, from nutritional and medical analysis to Vetta’s
own highly potent Center Cocktail (a mixture of natural ingredients geared to
hair growth), the National Center of Trichology is the new hair loss solution
in Jacksonville.
Working in conjunction with medical consultants and hairdressers from the local
community, Vetta is combining her trichology training with their expertise to
form a strong coalition of experts to address hair loss and unhealthy scalp
problems as a team. “When it is determined that an individual’s hair
loss is the result of a medical condition, I advise her to see her doctor or
call in one of our medical consultants,” she says. “When a hairdresser
refers her client to me, I will do everything in my power to return that client
to the hairdresser with a full head of hair.”
Veralucia Thompson gazes with pride at the bold lettering on her new center’s
sign. The shining “N” in National Center of Trichology is formed by
the strong vibrant bodies of a young man and woman, both blessed with shining
tresses of healthy hair. “I know that my grandmother, “the root lady
of Brazil,” is smiling down from heaven,” says Vetta in her soft Latin
lilt. “Her gifts in the field of natural healing have held me in good stead
all my life. Now, my grandchildren will inherit those same gifts from “the
root lady of Jacksonville.”