If there’s anything that can bring you right back down to earth, it’s meeting people who are in the middle of a significant, challenging, life-changing and potentially life-threatening experience.
This morning, I was lucky enough to attend the Look Good, Feel Better workshop as a volunteer. Held at the Chris O’Brien Lifehouse in Sydney, this program invites women who are experiencing the appearance-related side effects of cancer treatment to learn how to look better on the outside to ultimately feel better on the inside.
The patients were taken through an entire daily beauty routine, including applying skin care, concealing uneven skin tone, nailing an everyday make-up look and maintaining their wigs. Each patient was provided with an enviable collection of beauty products, all donated by beauty brands.
We were joined by the incredibly generous and outrageously funny Kerri-Anne Kennerley, who has been a Patron of the Cancer Patients Foundation since 2009. Having battled a breast cancer diagnosis in 2012, Kerri-Anne offered advice to the patients about her own experience and definitely genuinely connected with them.
My role was to offer help when needed. As someone who is fortunate enough to have never been closely touched by the impact of cancer, it was truly amazing to see the smiles on these women’s faces grow throughout the day.
And as a person who writes about the benefits of all things beauty for a living, and being spoilt for choice when it comes to beauty products (and – admittedly – taking it for granted at times), it was humbling to watch the effect that simply applying a lipstick can have on someone going through an unimaginably hard time. My experience showed me that beauty products aren’t just about helping us to look better, but giving us the confidence to know we can conquer anything, even if that’s just to get through the day ahead.
Have you ever volunteered a Look Good, Feel Better workshop or a cause that’s similar?
