FAIRFIELD – Melissa Mahon needed an outlet to make people feel well.

Mahon works as an anesthesiologist. Since her job requires her to treat people in pain or going through a tough time, she wanted something completely different to do after work. Plus, Mahon lost her father three years ago, and for the following year she looked for opportunities to get more joy out of life.

“I wanted to spend some time being happy,” she said. “I wanted to do something that made people feel well and beautiful.”

Mahon lives in Keosauqua, and before that she lived in Orlando, Florida. She’s always felt that there’s no reason small towns can’t have the nice things that big towns have, too. Mahon noticed that Fairfield lacked a place for people to get intravenous vitamins, a service that has become very popular in recent years.

“I thought, ‘Why am I having to travel an hour to get these things?’” Mahon said. “I would travel to Burlington or Iowa City and I said, ‘This isn’t right. I could do this and provide it to my friends.’”

Intravenous vitamins are administered to a person to help them recover from an illness or to hydrate them if they’ve not been able to eat or drink much.

“We’re skipping the stomach and getting straight to your system,” Mahon said. “We see pregnant moms who come in first trimester and [get fluids] rather than going to the hospital. And giving anesthesia, I do IVs all day, every day, so I’m very good at them.”

Mahon started her business Pura Vida Med Spa near the end of 2022. The phrase “pura vida” means “pure life” and is the unofficial motto of Costa Rica. Mahon was inspired to use that as the name of her spa after a vacation to the country.

After a year of seeing clients inside a salon, Mahon realized she needed a larger salon to accommodate her growing business. Thrilled by the opportunity, she found an ideal opportunity on the bustling town square, which would allow her to better reach those in need of her services. The new space represented more than just a vacant buiding; it embodied her dream to support her community. On April 1, Mahon fulfilled that dream by relocating to the west side of the Fairfield square.

Last June, Mahon hired registered nurse Audrey Galusha to complement her practice. The two of them had been seeing clients three days per week, and expanded to four days per week (Monday, Tuesday, Thursday and Friday) in early June. Mahon said they’re also trying to do community outreach.

“We’ve gone to some bridal expos, and we’re doing the First Fridays,” Mahon said. “Audrey has a really great relationship with clients. Last Friday, she went to Mt. Pleasant for a career expo at the high school to talk about another side of nursing to work in.”

Galusha said she enjoys her day job as a nurse and her job with Pura Vida Med Spa. She spoke about what products like Botox can do for a person’s confidence, making them feel better about themselves without anyone else knowing.

“For me as a woman, if I’m going to do something like that, I don’t want the judgment of other people,” Galusha said. “It progressively softens after two weeks so it looks natural. For females, when you can do a small thing like that, it makes you feel good.”

Botox is typically injected into the lips, forehead, eyebrows and nose. According to the Mayo Clinic, Botox injections use a toxin that prevents the muscles from moving for a short time, which smooths wrinkles on the face. Galusha said that Pura Vida Med Spa’s treatments look smooth and nice, while still allowing for movement. Mahon said Botox appeals to people young and old, and they have some clients in their late 20s who are getting injections as a preventive measure.

Mahon said her spa offers treatments to help her clients lose weight. A drug that has become popular in the last couple of years is a weight-loss injection called Ozempic. Galusha said certain celebrities have been outspoken about their use of the drug, and this has given some people the false impression that losing weight is simple.

Mahon said, “We talk about their diet and hydration.”

“We talk about eating lean proteins and vegetables,” Galusha added. “It’s not an overnight thing. I think a lot of the stigma comes from famous people who talk about losing weight, and the public is just seeing them lose all this weight all of a sudden. People think they’re going to drop 30 pounds in a month. That’s not how it works. You’re going to have to make some modifications.”

Galusha said a more realistic goal is losing two pounds per week.

“You didn’t put it on overnight, so it’s going to be a long process,” she said. “I’m right there with you. I’m doing it, too.”

Mahon said their goal is to make people look “as young as they feel.”

“We want what they feel on the inside to project on the outside,” she said.

The spa’s newest service is Scarlet radiofrequency microneedling, which it just added in January.

“That was our first big device purchase,” Mahon said. “The needle punctures are mainly to the face so you’re stimulating collagen production to get a more youthful and tight appearance again.”

Mahon and Galusha are both working at Pura Vida Med Spa as their second job. Mahon has a third job, too, as the mayor of Keosauqua, a position she’s held for the last three years.

“All I know is pouring my heart into everything I do,” Mahon said.