The connection between how we look and how we feel is undeniable. Its power and positive impact can be seen in any number of reality shows focusing on homes, wardrobes, and weight loss. Right here in Chattanooga, and indeed across the country, the concept of improving appearance as a means of increasing well being is put into practice with “Look Good…Feel Better,” a free, non-medical, brand-neutral program offered through the American Cancer Society.
The Start of Something Big
In 1989, a physician looking for a way to get a make-over for a woman in cancer treatment sparked the idea that became Look Good…Feel Better. He recognized that not only was her look transformed but so was her outlook. Today, sponsoring organizations for Look Good…Feel Better (LGFB) include The Cosmetic, Toiletry, and Fragrance Association, The National Cosmetology Association, and The Personal Care Products Council Foundation. Council-member cosmetics companies, such as Avon, Chanel Inc., The Estee Lauder Companies, Inc., L’Oreal USA, Inc., Mary Kay, Inc, and OPI Products, Inc., donate over one million individual products, valued at $10 million, and raise more than $2 million for LGFB every single year.
How It Works
Look Good…Feel Better has been available for over 20 years in the Chattanooga area, and while it most often focuses on women currently undergoing treatment for cancer, it is also available to teens and men. In a ninety-minute session, a pair of licensed aestheticians and/or cosmetologists teach women how to apply make-up and to style wigs in order to restore the confidence that appearance-related side effects of chemotherapy and radiation often take away. Each participant receives $350 of make-up from the sponsoring companies. In addition, free wigs, scarves, and hats are available through the local chapter of the American Cancer Society.
Brenda McQuaid of Dayton, who is currently undergoing treatment for cancer, thinks the program is a good idea. “I want to go back to work looking and feeling normal. I want to take my life back,” she explains.
A Talent for Volunteering
As with many efforts of this kind, volunteers make it happen. Steven Crawford, owner of Steven’s Salon and a volunteer with Look Good…Feel Better, considers himself blessed to be able to do this work. He said that often women who come in to the session quiet and withdrawn call their husbands as they are leaving to suggest going out to dinner, simply because they feel so much better about their appearance. “You can’t buy that,” Steven says. “We all have problems,” he continues, “and some are more challenging than others, but if I can meet a need or help with a problem, then that’s what it’s all about.”
This is not Steven’s only volunteer effort. He also lends his services for Cut Up for Life, a fund raiser for Chattanooga Cares. “Sharing is my gift,” he explains. Steven offers his talents to the Chattanooga Theatre Center for its productions, as well as working with traveling theatre companies such as Ragtime and Beauty and the Beast. “The beauty industry itself allows me to venture into other industries,” he adds.
One’s time and talent are welcome commodities at The American Cancer Society. Volunteers are needed to set up the room prior to LGFB sessions, to assist the clients and professionals, to make request calls, and to spread the word. Most of all, licensed aestheticians and stylists are needed to facilitate the sessions. A call to the Mid-South Division of ACS, located in Chattanooga, can help get you involved. To volunteer, call 423-267-8613.
A Need Met
Cancer treatments, while they cure disease and lengthen lives, also come with side effects that take their toll on patients. Change in the skin’s appearance and the loss of hair create great anxiety, especially for women, and come at a time when the patient’s emotional resources are low. Look Good …Feel Better is the “heart of the mission,” according to Ashley Tinson, Health Initiatives Representative for the American Cancer Society. For her it is an opportunity to see face-to-face the positive impact of the ACS in our community. “There was a nurse who was undergoing treatment and who came to one of our sessions. After her make-up was applied and she put on a styled wig, she went out to her station. Moments later, she came back into the room laughing because no one recognized her at first,” relates Tinson. This kind of emotional boost and confidence building is the goal of the program. “And it’s a free program!” Tinson emphasizes.
Changing the Look
and the Outlook
Information about the Look Good…Feel Better program and the instructional sessions themselves are offered at Erlanger’s Cancer Resource Center, the Center for Cancer Support at Memorial Hospital, and the Sarah Cannon Cancer Center at Parkridge Medical Center, as well as in Bradley County at Blue Ridge Oncology. Additional sessions may be made available at churches or community locations where there is a need.
Women who feel reluctant to participate may bring a guest for support. Tinson suggests signing up and then determining how you feel on that day. “It’s often quiet at the beginning of the session,” she recalls, “but by the end people are laughing and sharing their stories.” The bonding among patients is powerful, and the improvement in the participants goes beyond the physical changes.
Participants have these words to say about their own experience with Look Good…Feel Better:
“The Look Good…Feel Better program has given me an immeasurable gift…It made me feel special and beautiful, gave me back my confidence, and made me feel feminine again.”
“Help with looking good during and after treatment is a blessing to me. I must continue to work in public and the help, tips, and quality free products have been a great comfort.”
It Works Both Ways
Look Good…Feel Better is a program of sharing that offers rewards to all those involved. From the volunteering professionals to the participating cancer patients, each finds that feeling better comes from helping others look good and that looking good helps you feel much better.
Pamela Boaz earned her undergraduate degree from the University of North Florida and her Masters in Education from UTC. Twenty-four of her thirty years as an English teacher were spent at Red Bank High School, where she was a faculty advisor for the student newspaper and a lead teacher for the Teaching Academy. Currently, Pam serves as Professor-in Residence for UTC, supervising student teachers. Pam works as Assistant Editor for CityScope and HealthScope magazines.