You grab the closest jacket and pair of jeans you can find before heading out the door. Outside, it’s frigid and pouring, the sky a gloomy gray you’ve grown tired of noticing. Especially having the creeping sense that today will blur into many more days just like it.
We’ve all been there.
It’s easy to retreat into dark-colored hoodies that bring the comfort of anonymity when the weather turns cold and the stress of the new semester falls upon us. After all, it’s true that the extended darkness from winter break can decrease our serotonin levels and with them, our mood.
Equally true is that our mood can influence our clothing choices, and vice versa. During back to school season, I’m inclined to remain hidden beneath my gray sweaters and black puffer jacket.
But hiding inside a bleak wardrobe only keeps our attitudes just as bleak. In order to face the new school term with confidence and ease, transform your style from bleak to bold with the fashion psychology trend referred to as dopamine dressing.
Dopamine is a neurochemical that plays a role in pleasure and reward. It makes us feel good and motivated. That’s where dopamine dressing gets its name.
Dopamine dressing is a term popularized by fashion psychologist Dr. Dawnn Karen. She drew from the subject of color psychology, which suggests that certain colors make us feel certain ways; for example, yellow makes us feel optimistic and cheerful while red makes us feel energized and confident.
By this logic, wearing a yellow dress, for instance, would promote feelings of optimism and wearing a red shirt would make us feel confident.
There have been many different definitions of dopamine dressing circulating the internet. Some say it’s the antithesis of minimalism, in the sense that it involves vivid colors, varied textures, interesting patterns, and layers upon layers of accessories to create loud, maximalist outfits.
In my opinion, it’s less about what you wear and more about how and why you wear it.
Dopamine dressing involves all things joyful. It involves dressing intentionally and authentically. It gives us a reason to wake up and show up wherever we need to be. It simultaneously sparks excitement and comfort knowing that we’re expressing ourselves exactly how we want to, without regard to trends or expectations.
The clothes that bring this joy might be different for everyone.
It might be a leather jacket plastered with DIY-ed button pins and sewn-on patches. It might be a tie-dye band tee featuring your favorite album. It might be the very specific combination of socks and shoes you’re wearing.
It might be the sparkliest, shiniest, glitteriest eye makeup you can achieve; conversely, it might be a simple black hoodie.
And if wearing that black hoodie is a form of self-expression that brings you excitement and confidence every time you see your reflection, then by all means, ignore everything I said at the beginning of this article and embrace it!
Dopamine dressing doesn’t have to push the boundaries of your confidence or be experimental, it just has to elevate your mood and embrace honest self-expression.
For me, I spent a while thinking I was happiest wearing whatever I had in my closet: anything to help me blend in with the crowd and remain unnoticed.
This meant I avoided the elements of style I actually truly love: warm colors, tons of jewelry, fun makeup, new hairstyles, spots and stripes and funky knits and silky fabrics and more.
In toning down my style, I was toning down myself. Trying hard to not be “too much.”
The truth is, dressing to hide just made me content with being unseen. It reinforced an idea that expressing myself wasn’t worth it, that exploring my individuality wasn’t worth it. It did not necessarily ruin my self-image, but it didn’t uplift it either.
When I decided that my clothing choices were just reinforcing my “content but not happy” attitude, I decided to donate clothes I wasn’t happy wearing but still held onto longer than I needed, and purchase a few items of clothing I had always wanted but never imagined I could be confident enough to wear.
My friends and family didn’t necessarily understand the appeal of certain clothes I bought; it wasn’t something they themselves would’ve purchased. But they were clothes I personally really loved and felt most “myself” in.
Every time I put them on, my mood brightened and I felt more comfortable in my own skin.
At the end of the day, that’s the core idea of dopamine dressing: wearing what you like, regardless of the opinions of others.
So how does one start dressing for dopamine?
Ask yourself: what colors do I enjoy wearing, not because I look good to others but because they feel joyful to me? What textures feel good on my skin? What patterns spark happiness, what silhouettes, what makeup (if any), what accessories?
Have I held back on wearing something because I thought it wouldn’t look good on me? Or because I was afraid someone would say it looked bad? Or because I was afraid to stand out in a crowd?
Do I currently wear something that I feel like I need to wear, for whatever reason, but honestly would rather not?
What could I wear today that would brighten a boring appointment at the dentist? Or a stressful afternoon taking an exam? Or a routine day of getting the groceries?
What aspects of my wardrobe dampen my mood? What aspects elevate my mood?
It’s easy to fall into patterns of purposeless dressing when we’re tired, complacent, and unmotivated in our lives. But dressing with purpose could help you feel energized and motivated.
Rewrite the unspoken narrative in your mind that gloomy days warrant boring outfits. Don’t wait for sunny days to wear your favorite skirt or shoes. Being alive today is a good enough reason to dress the way you love.
What are you wearing this back to school season to dress for dopamine? Let us know at @HerCampusSJSU!