5 Beautiful Reasons How Makeup Helps You Cope with Toxic Parents
Sometimes the arguments, the name-calling, and the emotional abuse get too much to bear. If you’re keeping all that hurt inside, don’t. You wouldn’t believe what kept me going.
My saving grace was makeup.
Makeup was my hobby, my outlet, and my addiction. It can be torture if you don’t have a diversion to express yourself. Makeup was my salvation. In a world of anger, sadness, and depression, makeup was my savior.
It’s crazy, right? Let me explain…
#1 – Makeup is fun
Oh yeah. When I explore my makeup collection each morning, it’s always so much fun to figure out what colors to wear that day.
From eye shadow to blush and lipstick to bronzer, you call the shots. One morning you can go with your nude colors to keep it professional. Another morning you can pop on a purple eyeliner and amp up your colors.
#2 – Makeup is a time-out from the craziness
Applying makeup takes concentration. If you can find a quiet place or close the door to your room, you can put on your makeup in peace. You can just focus on yourself, apply your lipstick, and breathe.
#3 – Makeup allows you to relax
Maybe not makeup in the strict sense of the word, but applying a soothing face mask always relaxes me. Whether you use your fingers or a brush to apply the mask, or maybe you’re using a sheet mask, after applying it you can grab a book or hop into bed and lay down for the 10-20 minutes the mask needs in order to do its thing. It’s basically quality time with yourself.
#4 – Makeup allows you to express yourself
If I want to feel confident, I’ll pop on some red lips. If I’m feeling sexy, I’ll go with a nude lipstick and a jewel-toned eye shadow color that’ll give me dramatic, smoky eyes.
It depends on how I feel that day, but makeup helps me express myself using different colors, textures, hues, and saturations. For those precious moments, I’m an artist and my face is my canvas.
#5 – Makeup helps build self-esteem
Got some redness on your cheeks? Makeup can help. Dark circles under your eyes? Makeup can help. Acne scars? Makeup can help that too!
By taking away my imperfections, if only for a short while, I’m slowly boosting my self-esteem. With makeup, I’m not as ugly as I thought I was anymore. I’m attractive and beautiful.
As I continue to use makeup and build my self-esteem, I might get to a point when I don’t need it everyday because my self-esteem will be right where I want it. Until that time, I’ll continue to pray to the makeup gods.
Makeup is my way of coping. You need to have an escape too. How do you deal with the toxic person in your life? Let me know by leaving a comment below.
If you found this article helpful and want more, grab a copy of my book, “Grounded Girl’s Guide to Dealing With Difficult People and Saving Your Sanity.”