Looking great and feeling better

Its important to take moments to feel good about yourself.

Five people with mental health issues have enjoyed an ego-boosting makeover and a photo modelling session, thanks to a collaborative effort by NorthTec and Northland District Health Board.

NorthTec nursing tutor Joanna Davison was approached by Liz Denton, community mental health nurse for Te Roopu Whitiora (Mori mental health team), and Jane Simperingham, Professional Nurse Leader for mental health services for Northland DHB.

The nurses had been inspired by a recent mental health nursing conference presentation which featured a woman with a mental illness who had always wanted to be a bride. The client was given a "bridal makeover" with a professional photoshoot and was delighted with the results.

It was proposed that a similar trial project could be undertaken with NorthTec and Te Roopu Whitiora.

Four female clients and one male went to NorthTec's Raumanga campus, where they were treated to a styling session with student hairdressers. The women were also professionally made up, before modelling for a photography student. All received professional photos of themselves post-makeover.

One makeover recipient, Rachel (not her real name), said she and her two friends had been excited about the makeover. She had her hair washed and styled - only the second time her hair had been professionally straightened - before moving on to the beauty salon for a makeup session.

Rachel said the experience was "awesome" and had inspired her to do something similar with her friends monthly.

She thought she might put the photos of herself on her mirror, so she would always be reminded of what she looked like at her best.

"It's about making you feel good about yourself. When you have a bad day you can look at the photo and say 'that's me'," she said.

Joanna Davison said: "The primary goal was to create positive representations for the clients to have around their homes, to help improve their self-esteem and help develop a positive self-image.

It's also about promoting a sense of social inclusion - one client said she had never been to a salon before.

"A second goal was about destigmatising mental illness, as stigma and prejudice are often the biggest issue, and people with mental illness can feel really isolated.

"So the students were not aware that they were working on people with mental health issues and were only told afterwards."