The Mind Body Connection That Impacts Your Skin
After the last two years of the COVID crisis, I felt it was more important than ever to talk about and celebrate October being Mental Health Awareness Month. Yes, I said celebrate, because we need to start talking about this stuff folks! People are struggling and if we don’t make it ok to talk about mental health and ok to get help, the cycle will continue.
So, you’re probably thinking “Erica, you’re an Esti, not a therapist, why are YOU talking about mental health?” Valid question. Here’s my answer.
My Personal Battle With Mental Health
In the past, I’ve struggled with anxiety. I developed bad self-care habits and lacked the proper coping skills to handle stress in a healthy way. While I struggled with these mental health issues, my skin took a beating.
For many years I personally struggled with acne, eczema, skin allergies and dermatitis. This really impacted my self-esteem. Once I put the pieces to the puzzle together and made the connection that stress, diet and lifestyle choices play were playing a role in how I felt AND looked, I was able to implement changes that made a HUGE difference in my skin and my life. After going through this myself, I knew I wanted to help others do the same and this led me to a career in Esthetics.
My personal experience with mental health and struggling with low self-esteem due to the skin issues made me pursue the career that I did. It gave me the courage to open my business, so I had a vehicle to help others feel the way I felt when I was finally able to connect the dots and solve my skin issues. The process fueled my passion for taking a holistic approach to skin and helping clients understand that there is more to skin care than products.
So, when I’m talk about mental health, I’m not giving advice as a therapist would, I’m speaking from experience and sharing my story and the connection mental health has to our skin.
My Approach to Improving Your Skin
Some people view going for a facial as a form of self-care. The relaxation side of a facial definitely gives you some “me-time” but the truth is, there is way more to it than relaxation. We’re working on your self-esteem, how you feel about yourself and how you feel when you look in the mirror each day. What I do goes beyond the surface of the skin and impacts people on many levels.
When I work with a client, I take a holistic approach to skin care. If you’re stressed, we’re going to talk about it. If you’re not eating right, we’re going to talk about it. If you’re still smoking (yikes!!) or abusing your body in anyway, we’re going to talk about it, because the truth is, what I do will only be effective if you change your habits and take a whole-body approach to skin care.
These conversations won’t be fun, but they are important part of moving past what’s holding you back. Once we get things sorted out, we can get to work on improving your skin and your confidence with one of my Pro-Aging programs. These programs work to target specific skin issues and improve them through targeted therapies.
The subtle signs of aging creep up without warning and they can have a tremendous impact on a person’s self-esteem if they aren’t addressed. Aging can really take a toll on how we feel about ourselves.
How to Start
If you’re feeling a little bummed about your outward appearance or you’ve been struggling with some mental health challenges, I encourage you to start doing some digging. There are two resources available on my website to help get you started. One is my How to Live an Intuitive Life Guide.
The guide is a 22-page instant download that explains how to live an intuitive lifestyle by taking control of your life, doing away with arbitrary rules, control, and restrictions and instead listening to your intuition. Doing some of the work mentioned in this guide can really help you identify areas of your life that you can work on to better yourself as a whole.
Go download these items, dig in and figure out what, if any, mental health challenges you’re struggling with and then, come see me so I can help you put the pieces to your puzzle together!
* The contents of Luxe Skin Care website, such as text, graphics, images, and other material contained on the Luxe Skin Care site (“Content”) are for informational purposes only. The Content is not intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment.
