I have been blessed, at least that’s my theory, with a level, logical head on my shoulders and hence I’ve avoided any type of therapy, which is fabulous as this leaves me with a lot more money for shoes and decorating. At a hundred plus dollars an hour, a therapist can really eat into the decorating funds and besides decorating can be a form of therapy.

It’s true, decorating is therapeutic. First of all, rearranging the furniture, cleaning the house, painting, wallpapering, organizing shelves and even making a bed all burn substantial amounts of calories, in some cases two hundred plus and hour. Staying in shape and exercising keeps us grounded and feeling good about ourselves, not to mention all those endorphins that exercise releases. I also think that decorating can make us feel young and help maintain our vitality; just think about how renovating your kitchen, updating a bathroom or completely redoing a room makes you feel. Honestly, think about how you feel when you walk into a room, perhaps its your own and see balloon shades on the window, and if you love your balloon shades that’s perfect, I’m not anti balloon shades it just that to a designer they scream ‘eighties’ keep them and enjoy them but when I see a pair of balloon shades I think ‘new drapes’ something long and sensual. Not that there is any thing wrong with the eighties but they where twenty five plus years ago, so time for a change, think twenty first century. For me, it keeps me up to date with the current fashion trends and that makes a girl feel young! Personally, when I feel young, I feel happy- I intend to fight aging or at least the effects of aging every step of the way.

Stay with me here, I’m building a solid case as to why decorating is more than just visually good for us. You can use these points when you need to convince your other half that its time to redo the house. When we decorate we can chose themes, colours and textures that soothe or energize. We can plan to decorate a room to changes our moods. Seriously, this is scientifically proven and we need to pay attention to this information when planning any space. One of the first questions we need to ask ourselves is “what do we need this room or space to do for us”?  Just look back on some of my previous columns to learn what colours do what: red to stimulate creativity, purple to curb an appetite, yellow to make us happy or brown to soothe and calm.

Similarly, when you are buying a new sofa and choose its covering, think about how the texture makes you feel. For example, distressed leather makes us feel cozy and safe, chenille is soothing, glazed leather is formal, silk is sexy and corduroy is laid back and casual. Textures are not just limited to our sofas; think about the chairs, the throw cushions, your bed coverings, towels, floor coverings and even your drapery.

We haven’t even touched on aromatherapy or light therapy. Adding more lighting to a room can not only bring a piece of wall art to life but it can also chase away your blues as can simmering some pure essential oils such as lemon grass or lavender. Design and deco is as much about shaping your life as it is about creating great visual spaces. The two go hand in hand so before you cry on a girlfriends shoulder, yell at your husband because you are in a bad mood, think about redecorating the living room to boost your spirits, makeover the bedroom to improve your love life or remodel the bathroom to create a calm oasis for those moments when you need to escape from the world.

Cheryll Gillespie is a nationally syndicated Design and Décor columnist.