Inner Beauty
Ever feel like you are a vibrant young spirit trapped in an older body? This is kind of how I feel sometimes. Sometimes the body just does not do what we want it to do, or feel how we want it to feel.I have had Astigmatism my entire life and in recent years I have been seeing a lot of these little floaters in my vision. A couple of summers ago it was more than normal and very bothersome. I went back to my eye doctor and he assured me nothing serious was wrong and "It's just normal as you get older!" Wait, I'm not old, not even close. Last year I thought I was losing my hearing. I had symptoms of an ear infection, but no pain. For months I put up with this almost constant background static and sometimes ringing. I was extremely sensitive to loud noises and it was horrible! I could not sleep at night due to all of these mysterious ailments. After a few months my ear drum did break and to my surprise, it was relieving. I did not have any pain or drainage at all, I did not even know when my ear drum broke, I felt nothing! After it broke I just felt like half of my head was under water all the time. I still have no idea what exactly happened. A few months later I started feeling the same way, hearing static and ringing so I went to an ENT doctor. I took a hearing test and I have perfect hearing. Again I was told "these things just happen as we age!" Again, "Doc I'm not old, I'm in my early 30's"! These things shouldn't happen until I'm at least 40, right? Anyway the ENT doctor gave me some ideas as to what might have caused my issue, ear wax build up. I also have J shaped ear canals as opposed to the normal S shaped canals most people have, which makes it harder to clean my ears and easier for wax to build up and irritation to occur.
I think these two incidences were types of freak accidents that had nothing to do with my aging. Is it standard procedure to tell the patient "Its normal when you get older" when they are not sure what your problem is? They just blame it on age without defining "old". Yeah, I think so!
I have always felt pretty young, on the inside. I remember my teenage years like they were yesterday, maybe that's why I feel like a teenager sometimes. It is hard to accept aging when you get to a certain point. I think I have finally started looking my age, maybe. I just remember that not that long ago, people from my home town would tell me I still looked like I was in High School, or that I hadn't aged since High School. In the past few months I have dedicated a lot of time and money to improve my hair and skin and have tried some new things! I have never really put a lot of thought into taking care of my hair and skin. I have permed my hair for a good chunk of my life and decided to stop a few years ago. That is when I started noticing how damaged my hair was, and now just deciding to do something about it. My skin has also changed, I will probably need to start an anti-aging regimen. I saw this meme on Facebook a few weeks ago. Not only did that meme make me laugh, but it also made me think, "yeah that's probably true".
One thing that is true: The more money you have the nicer you can look or the younger you can look. I don't mean that in a bad way or to sound like a snob, but it's true. Really good hair care, skin care, and cosmetic products are expensive. "You get what you pay for" applies here a great deal! I have tried many cheaper products and many more expensive products lately and for some there is no contest. The more expensive one gives better results. Not to say the cheaper products don't work at all, but again you get what you pay for. For instance, I have used Mary Kay cosmetic products for years and I love them, but I have more recently been using MAC Cosmetics and MAC is a little more expensive, and yes there is definitely a difference. In my opinion MAC Cosmetics is the superior product.
DO LOOKS MATTER!?
I do take pride in the way I look. Not in a snobbish kind of way, I hope, but I do enjoy pampering myself and getting dolled up. I like to look nice no matter where I go. For me, it's about me, not about what other people think. I care about the way I look. As a kid I remember trying to hurry my mom along to go to the store or get to a movie on time. I always said "no one cares how you look, c'mon mom hurry!" She always responded "I care how I look"! I have always remembered that and it has had a great impact on me. I really do care how I look too. The way you look is something that is all yours, it's for you! You choose how you present yourself! Your outward appearance is a reflection of what is on the inside. If people don't know you, or don't have time to get to know you, you can still leave an impression of happiness or beauty by what you present outwardly. I used to think that when someone spent a lot of time in front of the mirror primping or making themselves look nice, they usually did it for someone else like a date or to compete with other women. Yes sometimes it is for other people, but it's also something you do for yourself. It's not always about other people. My husband does not even notice when I wear make up versus when I don't. It makes no difference to him, he does not care. I, on the other hand , have found I quite enjoy wearing makeup and yes it does make me look younger, or older, or nicer, or different!
I have always believed that appearance has a great impact on behavior. If you look nice you act with more confidence, you have more self esteem, you have more motivation, you might even speak more intelligently. When I get up in the morning and decide to wear my pajamas all day I am usually more likely to eat food that will make me feel sick, I will be less likely to go to the gym or get other things done around the house, and I will be more likely to binge watch something. I might even have feelings of self doubt or be more likely to feel depressed about something. Let's be honest though, we all need a day in the pjs, binge watching something and not thinking about anything! This article explains much better what I am talking about here, it's a great read!https://www.inc.com/molly-reynolds/research-shows-that-the-clothes-you-wear-actually-change-the-way-you-perform.html
So, we know that good health is priceless and it can be expensive to keep ourselves healthy. We know that it is pricey to improve our looks or replenish the beauty of our outer shell. What about the inner shell? Inner beauty is something we might not think about often, but it too is priceless. On the inside you are the only you out there, you are incredibly unique. Nothing can rob you of your talents, thoughts, and beliefs, not even time. These things are not subject to the "fade with age" scenario. The core of who you are will be with you always. The interesting thing about inner beauty is that it does not have to cost much if anything. Maybe some of your talents were developed through years of lessons that you paid for, but many of them just cost you time. Time and hard work is usually the currency for inner beauty. To expand your mind, to be open minded, or to gain new skill you have put in ample amounts of time thinking, pondering, reading, asking, feeling, and experiencing!
How many times were you attracted to someone until you had a conversation? How many times were you attracted to someone AFTER you had a conversation? This is one of the great things about inner beauty that fascinates me. You could be unattracted to someone at first, but their physical appearance literally becomes more attractive to you once you get to know the person. Someone you are automatically drawn to and could be head-over-heels for according to looks can actually become less attractive to you physically as you get to know them. That's inner beauty! Scientifically, part of all of this is more about smell than looks, but that's another topic for another day!
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I think if we work on the inner beauty first we can keep ourselves safe from becoming obsessed about the outer beauty. If a high self esteem already exists, then you will be less likely to spend fortunes on or waste time worrying about the outer appearance. If you feel that you must look good in order to gain self esteem, then you could be in danger. Yes, looking good can help our self esteem, but lasting self esteem comes from more than outer beauty. If you are beautiful on the inside it will show on the outside without the help of makeup, or fancy hairdos, or expensive products or procedures. I think a lot of the outer beauty also comes from just simply respecting your body and taking care of it. If you care about your inner beauty first you will in turn care about the outer to what ever extent you want. After all, beauty is only skin deep!
Don't get too obsessed with looks, but take care of yourself and be healthy!
Empower yourself by improving something on the inside and the outside this week!
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