When Life Be Life-ing: 4 Ways Stress Shows Up in Your Style

You ever had those times in life when life just feels like a lot?  You are quoting mantras to yourself to get through the day.  ‘This too shall pass,’  ‘Jesus take the Wheel’  ‘I can do hard things’ play on a repeat loop in your mind. This is the logical part of your brain trying to help push you past the chaos.  The other half of your brain is screaming dirty words at logic. It is also encouraging you to run away to a tropical island, start a new life and never look back.  While a tropical island free of deadlines, never ending to-do lists and competing work and family responsibilities sounds great, logic usually wins out and we remember we can’t run away, and we must face the mayhem.

“Your style tells the truth about how you’re managing life, even when you don’t say a word.”

This is the season of life I like to call “life be life-ing” and we all experience it at some point. Most of us experience it lots of time in our lives. For some of us, we are moving on autopilot and don’t even recognize we are in the eye of the storm. Often, others can see the effects of the storm on us before we stop to see it. When the pace, pressure, and unpredictability of life happens, there are visible signs of it that show up around us.

How does this relate to your image and your appearance you might ask. Your visual appearance isn’t just about fashion, it’s a reflection of how you’re navigating life. Here are four ways life’s chaos can quietly (or loudly) affect how you look, and tips on how to keep your style and image working for you, not against you.

1.      Your Outfit Choices Become More About Survival Than Style

When your brain is full of competing demands and to dos, the last thing you want to add to your overloaded brain are wardrobe decisions. When your brain is on overload, your wardrobe choices can easily boil down to what is clean and what can I get away with wearing to work instead of what’s stylish and cute to wear. Do you find yourself rotating the same two or three outfits because they require the least amount of effort or thought?

Visual Effect TIP: During high stress, high demand times, set aside 20-30 minutes of your weekend to plan out your outfits for the upcoming week. When you can start your morning having already planned out your look for the day, you can show up polished without the extra effort.

2.      You allow your grooming and polish to slip

When life is hectic, a ponytail becomes our go to, nails appointments become non-existent and makeup routines shrink from a 10-minute face beat to chapstick and a smile. I’m not saying you are leaving the house looking a mess, I am simply saying the overall polish that once was your signature, has softened. It starts to not hold the same level of importance it once did and when this happens, it could be a sign that amid the chaos, you’ve stopped making time for yourself, stopped making yourself a priority.

Visual Effect TIP: Schedule time in your calendar to setup grooming and maintenance appointments. If it is built into your calendar, it’s no longer an extra “to-do,” it’s already a part of your agenda.

3.    Posture & Body Language Tell on You

Stress doesn’t just live in your head, it shows in how you carry yourself. Even for those who handle their stress well, there can still be tell-tale signs you are carrying a heavy load. You may not notice that your normal smile has become non-existent. Another way stress shows up is in the way your shoulders slump and your lack of eye contact. Your patience with others is also shorter than normal. Even friends who usually check in may hesitate; your body language says “proceed with caution”

Visual Effect TIP: Be intentional about smiling and making eye contact with those around you. Not only will it help the busyness happening in brain to not show on your face, but it will also let others know its ok keep their usual check-ins with and on you.

4.    Accessories & Details Disappear

When you’re overwhelmed, you focus on the must-dos and not the want-to-dos. Must-dos look like finding a top and bottom. The fun, extras like earrings or scarves get forgotten. You don’t find joy in adding these things, that bring personality, to your look anymore.

Visual Effect TIP: If you don’t feel like doing all the normal extras you would typically do, take the time to include one; add a colorful scarf or statement piece of jewelry. Not only will it elevate your look, but a bright color can also help to improve your mood.

The Bottom Line

While it doesn’t feel like it right now, life will return to a manageable normal. When life starts life-ing, your visual appearance can take a hit, but it doesn’t have to. Small, intentional habits can help you look as capable, confident, and vibrant as you truly are, even in life’s busiest seasons. Your style is more than clothes, it’s the energy of your soul made visible to those around you. And when the outside matches the best version of the inside, you not only look better… you feel better.

With Style and Grace

-Bianca