Did you know that the way you dress can actually affect your emotional state? Learn 5 ways that dressing well can improve your mental health.
“Dress the part” is something our mother might tell us when were are seeking out a new job. But, could dressing the part also apply to mental health?
Mental health conditions are common in America. From anxiety to depression, mental health is an important topic many people are interested in.
Many medical professionals are also interested in this topic. From therapists to doctors, mental health can be treated in a variety of ways.
People suffering from mental health issues are also deeply committed to improving their condition. While there are many ways to treat mental health, many people seek out lifestyle changes to improve their well-being.
One such lifestyle change is altering the way you dress. We all know that dressing well can help us to feel our best. For people without mental health conditions, this common wisdom rings true.
Dressing well can help to curb our insecurities and improve our confidence. But, can dressing well and taking action to do so also affect mental health? If so, how does dressing well actually improve mental health?
Read on to find out 5 ways that dressing well can improve your mental health.
How Mental Health Is Improved by Dressing Well
Mental illness is a problem experienced by people in all walks of life. Mental illnesses range in severity, but anxiety and depression are some of the most commonly diagnosed. And, these conditions often occur simultaneously.
Symptoms of an anxiety disorder vary. Anxiety as an emotional response includes rapid heartbeat, sweating, and distressing thoughts and feelings.
Depression symptoms also occur on a continuum. Some symptoms of depression include fatigue, hopelessness, and weight loss and weight gain.
Both of these conditions can seriously impact a person’s life. If you are experiencing either of these conditions, then it’s important to seek medical help in conjunction with other treatment options. This will help you to find relief and support which is also important in healing from these conditions.
Explore the following ways how dressing well can affect and improve mental health.
- Embodiment
When you dress the part, you embody the characteristics of the part you’re playing more readily.
An example of this embodiment is a business owner. A business owner may feel more business-savvy when wearing a suit than when if they are wearing jeans. A suit helps them to embody these characteristics seamlessly.
By dressing the part, they can more readily play the part.
The same embodiment logic can be applied to your mental health. How do you envision someone with poor mental health dressing? Sweatpants, a dirty t-shirt, unkempt hair may come to mind.
So, what does a mentally well version of yourself look like? Aim to dress that way to help embody characteristics of a healthy mind.
- Creativity
Creativity can help us to focus, relax, and feel engaged. By dressing well, you’re also allowing yourself to be creative. Except, you are the ultimate work of art!
This type of creativity can help you to align with your best self. It can also give you a goal and vision to work towards which can help to improve your mental health.
- A Vision for Success
Goals and a vision for success can help people with mental health conditions to have hope. By having a vision for success, we may start to believe that we can embody and become that vision. This also gets our brains working in a productive way instead of focusing on distressing thoughts.
A vision and goal can give us hope. And, many people with mental health problems need just that.
Find out more about creating a vision for success by selecting clothes that make you feel successful.
- Distraction
A brain with mental health problems is more inclined to overthinking and rumination. The person who engages in this thinking habit may incessantly think about the future and the past in a negative way.
Dressing well, however, can help to focus your thoughts on the present moment. It can also help you to view the future in a positive light as you begin to see yourself more positively.
Shopping and searching for nice clothes to wear is also a distraction. Instead of thinking “I know this date is going to be a bust and I’m never going to find love” you may start to think, “Yes, I should definitely wear that cute belt!”
This is a present-focused thought that can disrupt overthinking and rumination through distraction.
- Influence
Whether we like it or not social conditioning can play a big role in our lives. The way we dress can influence how we feel about ourselves and how we feel about others. For better or for worse, when we look our best we tend to feel our best, too.
And, when we feel our best, we feel like we have more influence and control over the situations in our lives. Others may also respond to us in a more positive way as a result. This can boost our confidence and help us to feel more connected.
Dressing Well for Your Mental Health
Dressing well can be one way that you aim to improve your mental health. If you’re convinced that dressing well can help your mental health, then you may be excited to purchase new clothing items.
Remember, that getting help from a health provider is always recommended. A mental health professional will be able to assist you in managing your condition. They will also be able to suggest treatment options and other lifestyle changes that could help you to improve your mental health.
Want to learn more about coping strategies for stress and anxiety? Check out our blog post to learn more.
A professional writer with over a decade of incessant writing skills. Her topics of interest and expertise range from health, nutrition and psychology.