I totally get the train of thought behind smoking before coming in for your first wax! You think it's going to alleviate both your anxiety and the pain level. The problem is that sometimes smoking will actually cause an increase in paranoia and the pain is intensified!
I've seen it happen way too often, and I would be negligent if I didn't let you know what a bad idea it is! Once the client realizes that the anxiety is actually getting worse, they spiral super fast, and it makes the experience completely different than what it would've been had they not smoked.
The best thing to do is to just follow the before waxing prep that I have outlined here in the Before and After Waxing page. Make sure that your skin is exfoliated and you have the proper hair length, those are the two biggest things. You should also make sure that you have as little caffeine in your system as possible so that you don't walk in with sensitized skin. These simple steps really go a long way to make the experience as pain free as possible.
The second wax experience is always surprisingly pain free, remember that by the second visit, you know what to expect & you're also coming in with less than half of what you'd typically have for regrowth. These two things are huge. Throw in a little over the counter pain reliever and you seriously are good to go. I tell new clients all the time, that if Brazilians felt the way they did the first time everytime, nobody would come back every 4-5 weeks. So remember to follow the prep, avoid smoking, and I'll see you on the table soon!