:What's the Point?:
The Power of Clothes On Your Outlook
Let me start by saying I’m going to do everything in my power to avoid phrases like “these unprecedented times” and “new normal”. We all get it. Although to varying degrees, things suck for everyone. I hope it goes without saying that I wish you all well and I encourage you to cope in whatever way serves you right now.
But if you’re here reading this, then you must be just a little curious about my perspective on how clothes impact your mental health. Let’s start with data.
In 2012, the Journal of Experimental Social Psychology published a report on a Northwestern University study of “the systematic influence that clothes have on the wearer's psychological processes”, dubbed enclothed cognition. Based on the researchers’ findings, both the symbolic meaning and the physical experience of wearing clothes have a psychological impact on the wearer. For example, identifying a lab coat as a doctor’s coat assigns a certain level of intelligence or prestige to the wearer. Actually putting that lab coat on was shown to positively effect the wearer’s sustained attention. Hooray research!
Quite a few folks on social media have shared their disinterest in putting on anything but sweats or athleisure. They ooze seamlessly out of their nighttime jammies into their daytime jammies and back again, day after day. Given the constant reminders of distress and sadness all over the world, I completely understand the urge to find comfort in any little thing we possibly can. What we wear is completely within our control so let’s make that as comfortable as possible at all times.
And besides, what’s the point in getting dressed up? We’re not going anywhere.
You’re right. I can’t argue with you about that. None of us are going anywhere and that’s the way it should be. But in my experience, getting up every day, implementing my regular routine and putting on the same clothes I would have worn to the office or to a happy hour or wherever gives me a real sense of normalcy. That exercise is a comfort to me, even as my emotional discomfort continues to hum just below the surface.
When I take this a step further, I am reminded that the way I dress has always been for me first. I don’t get dressed up for CJ or for other women or my mom (although I love when people appreciate what I’m wearing). My attitude always starts with how my clothes make me feel. Getting dressed in real clothes fills me with purpose, focus, direction, excitement. I’ve been booking virtual time with friends to give myself an extra excuse to dip into the clothes I would typically wear for a night out. Instead of asking myself, “What’s the point?”, I’m asking myself, “Why not?”
Please don’t misunderstand me. I feel what’s happening to our community in every interaction and every move throughout my day. CJ said it’s as though we’re all coated in pollen. Even if things are relatively ok for us, this experience is stuck to everything and everyone. I can’t wash that knowledge off. But I can control how clearly I see myself right now. I’m a fashion lover and I believe deeply that investing in myself a little each day by getting dressed has real power over my outlook. We might not be going anywhere, but I still have someplace to be. Just like any other normal day, I want to look my best while I’m here.
