Carson City spa renovates, offers T-Shock anti-aging treatment

Firm Cryo Spa owner and Cryoskin professional Debbie Billings has been running her air purifiers 24 hours a day recently with all the smoke to keep her Breathe Room a little healthier.

The plants and trees to provide an ample supply of oxygen, and her humidifier gives an extra boost, which has been especially appealing as of late with the lingering smoke from the recent fires from Northern California and its effects in the region.

“When Earth was formed, we had about 35% oxygen,” she said. “In Carson City, we have about 17.5% oxygen. We have an air purifier here that we’ve been running about 24/7 with all the smoke. … And people have said they really like sitting in here breathing the fresh air. The colors, with people detoxing here, have shifted to dark gray and black, from the pores coming out of people’s feet because of the smoke they’re breathing.”

The Firm Cryo Spa at 602 N. Curry St., the first of its kind in Carson City and in Northern Nevada, moved in February from its previous location in the Fitness for Life gym at 195 E. Winnie Lane. Since then, Billings said she, her family and staff have been renovating their Curry location, a Civil War-era house originally built before at least 1862 with photos documenting its history hanging on their walls.

Upstairs, among the most recently completed transformations, the Firm can now accommodate small private parties and gatherings with its first guests taking advantage of the fresh new scene last week.

Downstairs, where clients come to enjoy the spa and pay for treatments, the staff welcome them into a decorated environment into the Himalayan Salt Room, the Detox Lounge, the Far Infrared Sauna or the Breathe Room for massages, facials or other packages.

The Cryo T-Shock machine, however, is the pinnacle of Billings’ wellness center, offering fat reduction, facials, pain management, anti-aging, toning and face lift services, among others. Billings said she’s especially proud of the facial treatments they offer, which incorporate a fat freezing process. The cryolipolysis device uses a number of settings based on a timer and incorporates a handheld wand that applies thermal shock. This warms up fat cells and instantly drops the body temperature quickly to the point that the cell walls burst because they can’t change that fast.

“It works best on pockets of fat,” she said. “After that, you flush out the fat cells, you have to exercise, you drink your water and you do your part to flush out the cells we just ruptured, and it also smooths out cellulite.”

June Chrzanowski, 64, of Carson City started treatments more than a year ago at Billings’ former location. She previously tried other methods of reducing fat around her back and arms but said the Cryo Spa’s T-Shock machine is noninvasive and more effective.

“I’ve had liposuction, I’ve had tummy tucks and I feel, for my lifestyle, this is much better,” she said. “You come in, you go home, you drink a gallon of water. I’ve started to do some facials. I really feel it’s a good option that doesn’t require surgery, and I’ve had it all.”

On Wednesday, Chrzanowski went in for a facial appointment with Billings, where she demonstrated the use of her Cryo T-Shock machine. Billings used the Pagani therapy device that alternates warm and cold on the skin to stimulate collagen and elastin, smooth out wrinkles, reduce cellulite and produce healthier looking skin. Billings removed Chrzanowski’s makeup, applied a gel to protect the skin and prevent it from freezing process. The facial itself is completed in a half-and-half manner, and, with certain timed settings, the T-Shock machine ultimately helped to raise her cheeks and create a more natural glow after Billings spent time applying the wand to both sides of her face one at a time. Billings covered Chrzanowski’s forehead, eyebrows, cheeks, lips and chin thoroughly, and she said it felt “like an ice bath, only it’s smoother.”

Billings said the machine’s pain management feature, however, is one of the latest clients are taking advantage of for shoulder, knee, hip or other muscle discomfort.

“If you have something your doctors have told you to put heat and ice on, if you have an ankle or knee or shoulder or something that’s swollen, I can do that, too,” she said. “We all had to train with a trainer and get certified, and they (Pagani the manufacturer) wouldn’t give you a machine until we got certified.”

Elsewhere, Missy Rogers of Gardnerville decided to surprise her oldest son Tucker Deines with a different kind of gift this year for his 17th birthday and brought him to the Firm Cryo Spa for a detox. She said it was an easy process to book the appointment through Facebook and liked that the business was friendly to customers of any age.

On Wednesday, the mother and son spent their morning in a 30-minute ionic foot soak, cleansing the toxins from the pores of their feet.

“It’s fantastic,” Rogers said. “It’s kind of gross looking at it, but you feel fantastic afterward, and you have lots of energy, and then you can go onto the other room and do the oxygen or sauna and it pushes you on through the week. It’s a 30-minute process, so it’s really quick.”

Deines, a skateboarder, said he enjoyed the “science” of the process and said it was relaxing.

“My feet are being cleaned and detoxified,” he said. “I’m just watching the colors. It’s pretty cool. It’s really relaxing. I’ve never been to a spa before.”

Carmen Carlevato, a resident of south Reno, makes the trip every couple of weeks into Carson City for a cryotherapy package.

“I can’t wait for COVID to be over with and, you know, maybe bring some girlfriends and enjoy the whole spa environment,” she said. “I think it’s beautiful. I’m real excited about it. It’s the cryotherapy, the tightening, the shrinkage. … I just moved this last year, but I still come down here quite a bit.”

Billings said even with the pandemic going on, not much has changed about they run their business since she and her staff moved into the new location.

“We have to wear the masks and put signs up and do the thermometer,” she said, adding they originally allowed their detox clients to flow through as they wished, but now it’s by appointment to ensure distancing requirements.

Massages also are done by appointments.

“We’re just so excited to be here,” Billings said.

For information or to contact the Firm Cryo Spa for a consultation or appointments, call 775-315-9080 or visit www.thefirmcryospa.com.