“Went for the most dramatic corner shop run,” wrote the playwright Travis Alabanza, “to feel something.”
Many folks – starting from the well-known, to your next-door-neighbor – have taken to social media to speak about dressing as much as ‘feel something’ below the pandemic. Because our normal strategies of pleasure – assembly with teams of associates, going to dinner or the theatre – have sashayed out of existence.
So, does carrying a elaborate new outfit actually make you happier? And is it attainable to don new garments and get a contemporary perspective? “I 100% would say yes,” says Dr. Audrey Tang, psychologist and member of the British Psychological Society. “What I love about people saying, ‘You know what, I’m choosing to dress up just to feel good,’ is that that’s a little win, and that’s brilliant.”
Tang says once we gown up, we stroll taller – and that change in our posture has an enormous impact psychologically on our brains. The message is easy: by no means undervalue the easy issues.
“Even just sitting up standing up straight, standing tall and putting on something that you love that makes you feel good – that’s going to have an effect on our brains,” confirms Tang. The trick is just providing our brains one thing novel – that approach, “the brain gets quite excited”.
It’s no surprise some folks have donned their finest fashions to ring in the big moment of getting vaccinated, provides Dr. Sandra Wheatley, a psychologist.
“Getting a vaccine against a potentially life-threatening illness may not be a reason to have a party, but it’s certainly a reason to feel a little bit glad, and people are out there seeking positive reinforcement,” she says.
“People haven’t got that much in the way of going out and celebrating, but they have the frocks, they still want to be seen to be looking nice, if they don’t go out very often, this is a way of helping them return to a little bit of normality.”
There are loads of methods we can provide our day by day lives small uplifts; one other is perhaps to smile at passers-by, as smiles are proven to enhance our moods.
“Research has shown if you put your finger horizontally between your teeth and you smile, your brain doesn’t know the difference between whether you’re smiling properly or whether it’s because you have your finger between your teeth,” says Tang, talking about how we are able to trick our brains into triggering feelings. “That, in itself, changes how you feel.”
Dressing up is probably not for you, so no matter your escape methodology, the way in which to realize that endorphin rush might merely be discovering time and vitality to include somewhat change in your day. “We don’t have to depend on outside stimuli for our happiness in order to feel good,” provides Tang. “If you know you can make yourself feel good, then you’ve won.”
