Stop immediately. Don't finish the section you're on, don't "see how it settles" — stop, and remove the product.
If it's localised — redness, itching, stinging where the product touched:
- Remove every trace of product with cool water or the manufacturer's recommended remover. No wipes with fragrance or alcohol.
- Apply a cool compress. Don't apply another product on top to "calm it" — you can't know what they're reacting to yet.
- Keep the client with you for 20–30 minutes. Reactions escalate; the first ten minutes don't tell you the final severity.
If it's spreading or systemic — hives beyond the treatment area, facial or lip swelling, wheezing, tight throat, dizziness — call 999. That's anaphylaxis territory and it moves fast. If the client carries an adrenaline pen, help them use it. Never put someone showing breathing symptoms in a taxi to "get checked out."
Afterwards, record everything: the product and batch number, where it was applied, timing of onset, what the reaction looked like, what you did, and when. Advise the client in writing to see their GP or pharmacist before any future treatment, and flag their record so no one in your salon uses that product family on them again.
Every client, remembered — safely.
SAY-OS keeps each client's contraindications, allergies and history in one place, and flags them at booking — so the right call happens before they're in the chair.
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