Nurse practitioner opens Anew You Medspa on Grand Island

Story and Photos by Alice Gerard

Senior Contributing Writer

Anew You Medspa was designed to be a place where clients could feel comfortable and relaxed, said owner Laura Lewis Mason.

Mason, a nurse practitioner with 16 years of critical care nursing experience, purchased the building at 1990 Whitehaven Road prior to opening her business.

She said, “I feel very comfortable providing services. Pretty much, it’s watching when everybody leaves. They’re happy and always looking forward to the next treatment or looking for something else that they can do as a treatment.”

Mason’s experience includes 19 years as a nurse practitioner in neurosurgery, with five of those years as a first assist in the operating room with the neurosurgeon. A few years ago, Mason took a course in botox. She said she felt this offered new opportunities, and, while working full-time for UB Neurosurgery as a nurse practitioner, she got into aesthetic medicine as a side job. In February, she opened Anew You.

“I’m highly skilled. I’ve done injectables and joint injections in the past,” Mason said. “I have another business called Renew You, which is in Orchard Park. I have extensive surgical skills, and I’ve done 16 years of critical care nursing, so I know all the ins and outs of any therapies, things like that.

Mason’s business is focused on aesthetic medicine, as well as weight loss.

“For people who need to lose weight, part of our wellness/weight management program is my tenant, Tricia Sauer. She’s with Buffalo Nutrition & Dietetics. She and I work together and synergistically. She works in the functional part of nutrition,” Mason said. “I do semaglutide injections, follow them weekly, take their blood pressure, make sure they’re tolerating the side effects, weigh them. That could be a three-to-nine-week process.”

According to a press release from the Food and Drug Administration (June 4, 2021), “Today’s approval (of semaglutide injections) offers adults with obesity or overweight a beneficial new treatment option to incorporate into a weight management program,” said John Sharretts, M.D., deputy director of the division of diabetes, lipid disorders, and obesity in the FDA’s Center for Drug Evaluation and Research.

Mason offers a variety of therapies under the category of aesthetic medicine. These include help with sleep issues, as well as things such as laser hair removal, and more.

“A lot of the things I have, you can mix together,” Mason said. “I can create packages based on the client’s needs. I cater to all individuals and ages. I can’t do it for teenagers unless their parents give consent. I have had people all the way up into their 80s come in here to get treatments and things of that nature. The goal is to keep them relaxing and to make them feel comfortable.”

Mason said she is grateful for the support she has received in starting her business.

“There’s a lot of people to thank,” she said. “My husband, John, has been amazingly supportive. We’ve done this all by ourselves. Our pastor at our church (Trinity Church: Kevin Slough) has helped. We’ve had a lot of support. My UB Neurosurgery family has also been supportive.”

Services offered by Anew You Medspa include IV injectables and hydration, functional and regenerative medicine, as well as the aesthetics component.

For more information on Anew You, check out its website at https://anewyougi.com/.

Laura Lewis Mason shows her treatment space.