Chronic Couture: Living Well With Chronic Illness

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As a girl who loves fashion becoming chronically ill during my teenage years, a time when you really start exploring and figuring out your own style, was really rough. I wasn't always able to participate in some of the silly beauty rituals being young can afford you. It felt like I was up against a road block that made even the simplest of things suddenly inaccessible. There is also added pressure from society that makes you feel as if you don't deserve to do these things for yourself because you are sick. This is something I've struggled with mentally, and honestly, I think that's bullshit. The better I take care of myself and the better I express myself through beauty and fashion the better I feel. When I feel better I can pass on positivity easier. There's nothing wrong with treating yourself well. I love fashion as an art form and a life style and I don't think I should feel forced into giving that up.

Becoming chronically ill has changed what I am capable of doing for myself in terms of beauty and sometimes even more basic personal care. Some days I'm too tired or in too much pain to do things that used to be part of my daily routine. A shower can easily eat up all my energy for the day. Over the years I have come up with some shortcuts that lighten the load so to speak. The most important thing is finding ways to use my time as efficiently as possible and to remember that every little bit helps. Making a few small changes can sometimes make a world of difference. There will still always be days where nothing is going to help but managing the days I can salvage gives me some sense of normalcy and control over my mostly chaotic life.

I haven't been able to find many resources on the internet about this specific issue so that's why I'm going to start posting articles here on my blog and also on my Tumblr (Chronic Couture) about beauty and fashion for those of us who are chronically ill. I'll be updating the Tumblr with interesting articles and things from other sources as well as the original content that I'll crosspost here on my blog.

Obviously the tips I've come up with wont work for everyone's specific needs but hopefully they can help out a few other people who are dealing with similar issues as myself. If you have your own tips please feel free to submit them to the Tumblr (Chronic Couture). I think it'd be great if we could get tips from all kinds of different perspectives gathered in one place.