WHY THE MIND SHOULD COME BEFORE THE BODY
Blog post description.
You might read that title and think to yourself “this is going to be one of those hippy dippy articles”, but I can assure you, it is anything but. The mind is a powerful tool. Even simple tasks require nearly the full functionality of the brain to be used; this includes the actions you don’t ever really pay attention to, like your breathing or telling your body what movements to do. So if you think about it, our brains do so much work without us even thinking about it, you can only imagine the impact the brain would have when we’re purposeful about what we ask it to do. You know the saying “you can accomplish anything you put your mind to”? They don’t say it for the motivation.
How does this relate to aesthetics and beauty? “Beauty” is subjective. No one in the world has the same perception of what beauty is. In a society that has become oversaturated with content on beauty standards, the expectations of what men and women should look like and diet culture, it’s not surprising that lot of us have some misconception of what beauty is. Or rather, what a normal face and body look like. There are some who have mastered the art of learning to handle all the outside noise and accept themselves. Therefore, your mind should come first. If we learn to control our mind and avoid it running astray with all the outside noise making us think we’re not perfect or we’re lacking something somewhere because of the societal pressures that have been placed on us, we would all be much happier. Now this isn’t to say that we can’t want to improve ourselves. It’s normal to want to preserve your youthful looks for as long as possible or enhance some of the features you already have. The aim is to try to avoid wanting to change ourselves so that we fit into what we are told we should look like. By constantly telling ourselves that we need to look a certain way or be a certain thing, we’re creating a space where a “normal” face and body isn’t acceptable.
If you think about it, it’s a bit silly really. You wouldn’t tell your teenager or even your best friend that their body isn’t normal, you would say the exact opposite. But it’s true that until you believe it yourself, it doesn’t matter what anyone says. We start my unlearning everything we have learned. We stop telling ourselves that we need to look a certain way. We stop the negative self-talk. Instead, we look at ourselves and tell ourselves everything that is normal about our bodies. Then we pay attention to our environment. Who do we surround ourselves with? What content do we consume? What are we looking at when we scroll through social media? If the answer to those questions are the things that perpetuate the misguided and negative content that has been put out into the world, it’s maybe time for a change. There is nothing wrong with needing to unfollow or unfriend people if they aren’t heling your mental wellbeing. Once we have a good handle on our mental view of ourselves and we’re in a place where we can deal with the societal pressures in a healthier way, we can then reintroduce some of those things. Some people may never do that, and that’s ok, because that’s what they need to take care of their mind.
The mind is just like the body; it’s only as healthy as what you put into it. Aesthetic enhancement shouldn’t be about changing yourself to fit someone else’s version of what you should look like. It should be about doing something that makes you happy and enhancing the natural features you already have. There is nothing wrong with wanting to keep those plump cheeks from your 20’s. There’s nothing wrong with fully embracing the salt and pepper hair. You can have both if you so wish. This isn’t the newest topic to discuss today. The millennials made sure of that. And they were right. When looking after our mental selves, our physical selves naturally also improve. A healthy mental state has also been linked to a physically healthier body, having more energy, and achieving more of our life goals. You’re also more fun to be around. No one wants to be around the grump person, that’s never fun. So to put it in simple steps1. Look at what content you’re consuming daily2. Pay attention to the people your surround yourself with and the environment you’re in. Do something that you genuinely enjoy every day (even if it is eating ice-cream)4. Find something you love/appreciate about yourself each day (cringy, I know, but it works)This isn’t a perfect formula, but these 4 things will play a major role in the health of your mind and your overall happiness.