Althea Medspa and Laser Center

I've been to many med spas and cosmetic dermatologists, and Mira at Althea is one of the best at removing my sun damage. She is meticulous and caring, taking her time and genuinely interested in providing her best efforts to improve my skin.

See for yourself after one IPL visit where she treated my forearms. Can't wait to do my face next!

I had been wanting laser hair removal for years. I started here with the groupon but have kept going. Even without the special, a small area is only $99 for 3 sessions, which is way less than most spas in the area.
I have had my upper lip, under arm, and I will start another set this month. 3 sessions might not be enough to get rid of all of the hair, but it is a good start.
The drive is a little ways outside the city, and I live in Arlington. But it is so worth the trip!! Love the owner, she is the sweetest woman, so friendly and makes you really comfortable. Their hours are great cuz they are open until 9 at least most nights, which is perfect so I can avoid rush hour.
When they switched buildings, their calendar had a few issues but they always fit me in.

They are very clear about the benefits and risk of laser hair removal, which is good.

Yes, it's no frills. But for an appointment that really takes all of 8 minutes, I don't need frills, I need it to work. And I always leave in a good mood because the woman is so cheerful.

I highly recommend this place!

I Purchased 2 , TWO, . packages 6 laser hair removal treatment over 4 months ago, over $340, Paid in full for all 6 treatment and only received 2 treatments so far. They are saying that they are charging me 50 dollars for a no show fee to my appointment, however I called to cancel A day before and left a voice message, not only that, they have 8 prepaid treatments that I have not received, so technically they have money that belongs to me because i have not received the service and despite that they charge me a fee for cancelling. This is absolutely ridiculous, and I did not authorize them to charge my card.

I have done my laser hair removal and facial laser and thinking to come back doing another laser. And recommend my cousin to come to their place. Today I am trying to call them, never pick up the phone, or Chris pick up the phone and hung up, that is so rude. Why the customer service is so bad now? That's the way you keep you business like that now.

A few years ago I went through 8 and 10 sessions for my legs, brazilian and underarms. I spent a lot of money to rid myself of hair, they also used a very high setting. It seemed to work while I was getting the treatments, and for a couple months afterwards my hair grew slower. I expressed my concerns to Mira, who just tried to sell me even more sessions.

But let's just say I'm back to waxing every 4-6 weeks. The results are better and I spend a lot less money.

I don't normally review businesses I haven't actually been to, but after a strange & scary telephone convo with Althea MedSpa, I wanted to share.

I saw a BuyWithMe promotion for 3-laser hair removal sessions for $49 at Althea MedSpa in Leesburg and figured, a hundred bucks to be hair free, awesome!!!

First, I Yelped the Spa & since the reviews were great, I moved on to their website and felt like something was lacking, BIG TIME--the language was very airy, fairy, we-love-our-patients, we-give-you-hugs-- not the typical Spa pictures and very precise medical language, pics of actual patients, detailed descriptions of their training, certifications, experience, & equipment. Althea's website had none of that.

So, I emailed questions about info not on their website, like the type of laser they use, how long the technician has been practicing, who sees the patients first for an initial assessment, etc. Every other Med Spa or Derm practice website includes this info, so it seemed a little sketchy that they didn't.

Maybe they thought MY email was sketchy b/c I didn't get a response.

Feeling like I would give it one last shot, I called, hoping to get some intelligent, ready-to-help Spa staff who would allay my fears. Alas, alack, just the opposite. While the gentleman I spoke with was very nice, he really had NO clue--he even referenced my email, telling me he "wasn't sure how to respond to my email because we've never gotten one like that before." He was EXTREMELY hesitant give me details, didn't know what method of laser they used, couldn't tell me what nursing degree their tech has (as in, did she do a 6 month licensed practical nurse program at NOVA or did she get her Bachelor's Degree in Nursing, big difference, especially when you are wielding a laser beam) and generally just seemed weirded out that I wanted details like this.

When I asked who their medical director was & their board certification (so I could make sure it wasn't some random foot doc who decided on a whim to do botox and laser hair removal), the gentleman told me they didn't have one and then started saying they were within the state laws, their lawyer okayed it....whatever... BUT their website says they have a medical director.....Oh, and since they offer Botox, who does that, a certified laser specialist with no medical training?? Um, no freaking way!

Yelpers, something doesn't feel right. I am not saying they aren't within their legal rights to do spa-ish medical services, but personally, I am not comfortable getting zapped at Althea Med Spa. End of story.

This isn't your typical fancy spa.. don't expect to get cheese, wine and a pedicure here. This is a small, family-run business that gets the job done.

With that in mind, if you want friendly service, your procedure done with none of the extra fluff and at a great price, this place is for you. Mira definitely knows what she is doing and will answer any questions you have.

I too was a customer to them about two years ago when I purchased a Groupon deal for 6 laser treatments. upon arrival I was assessed and told I would probably need more than 6 treatments so I purchased 3 additional sessions for hair removal under my arms. I live in Woodbridge and Sterling is about 45 mins away WITHOUT TRAFFIC and we all know that never happens in this area. I went for my treatments with NO RESULTS! Dark black hair on light skin and my underarms still looked the same after every session and they still look the same to this day. Don't waste your money!

This has nothing to do with how this spa is run. The people are incredibly friendly and helpful.

It's the laser hair removing machine that I wasted $400 on for 6 treatments. 0 % hair reduction on my black hair/light brown skin. It seemed like it was working while I was in between treatments. But a few weeks after the last treatment everything grew back, and grew thicker because all the shaving I was doing in between, and now have to keep doing. I told them my concerns during the last treatment and the lady tried to sell me another package of treatments instead.

It's definitely the machines they use. It's 'cool touch' and relatively painless, but that's why it didn't work. I'm with another salon that uses lasers that do hurt, and results are much better.

Mira is the owner. My first visit for laser hair removal was with her. This one went amazing. Above expectations actually. She was very knowledgeable and very caring...over caring. She made sure I went home with as little worry as possible.

After my first visit, things just went down hill. I had a different technician each visit, and ended up rotating through everyone that worked that at the time. I found this a bit odd, i kinda of wish i could have the same person each time, so they could be aware of my personal treatment status.

The biggest problem was that half the techs there were from completely different industries, were given 2 weeks training and then certified to put a laser to your body. Everyone there seemed new and none seemed to have more then a few months of experience. There were techs who were HR or dental hygienists. This place did not seem professional to me, and there were times I came out with skin burns.

Every time I went, the area that i paid for changed. Each tech had there own idea of what a certain area included and didn't include. Because of this i would have areas that had more or less treatments then others.

After 6 treatments, my hair is thinner, but it is ALL still there and slowing growing back. I feel like I wasted money for treatments that don't work. Not sure if this is a technology issue or spa issue, but there should be some sort of refund if the treatments don't work.