Beauty and Disability: Why Don't We Consider Makeup in Occupational Therapy?
"This research exists now because the disability rights and lived-experience movement has pushed disability into public view, and because we're finally starting to treat accessibility as a design and market reality, not a charity add-on." – Storm, ByStorm Founder
What this article covers:
- Why makeup is still being overlooked in occupational therapy and Activities of Daily Living (ADLs) and why that needs to change
- ByStorm Beauty's world-first research study into the therapeutic application of makeup, led by Occupational Therapy students Sarah and Jaymee
- How makeup connects to identity, routine, confidence and community participation for people with disability
- What occupational therapists and allied health professionals are (and aren't) currently doing when it comes to accessible beauty
- How you can be part of the research, whether you're an OT, allied health professional, or someone with lived experience
Disability has historically been left out of mainstream research priorities, especially in categories written off as "lifestyle" rather than "health." And nowhere is that more obvious than in the space where beauty and healthcare meet.
For many people with diverse physical, sensory, and cognitive needs, makeup routines are still treated as unimportant. Beauty gets dismissed as trivial, a vanity project, something to sort out after the real stuff. But for a lot of people, makeup isn't about vanity at all. It's about routine, self-expression, creativity and feeling like yourself. It's about showing up in the world feeling like yourself.
Within functional assessments and Activities of Daily Living (ADLs), makeup and beauty is still so often overlooked, or quietly minimised, and that’s if it gets mentioned at all.
That's what this research is here to change.
Groundbreaking research on makeup in Occupational Therapy
Occupational therapy students Sarah and Jaymee are partnering with ByStorm on the first study of its kind: formal research into accessible beauty and the therapeutic application of makeup within occupational therapy practice.
The question at the heart of it is one that rarely gets asked in healthcare settings: what if makeup isn't just cosmetic, but a meaningful daily occupation? One that supports participation, identity, and functional independence?
Meet Sarah and Jaymee
Sarah and Jaymee are occupational therapy students from the Gold Coast in Queensland, who found each other through social media, connecting over a shared passion for their chosen careers, universal design, accessibility, and meaningful independence. They both love makeup too.
Sarah is a fourth-year OT student at Griffith University, in her final year of study. Jaymee is a third-year OT student at Southern Cross University. Together, they're leading this research into accessible beauty and the role makeup can play in occupational therapy practice.
About the Research
The study starts with a global survey for occupational therapists and allied health professionals. It asks how makeup is approached in clinical practice, whether it's treated as part of ADLs or meaningful daily activity, and how confident professionals feel assessing it. There are no right or wrong answers.
The goal is to understand professional perspectives and start mapping the gap between lived experience and clinical frameworks.
The findings will help shape future assessment approaches, adaptive design conversations and industry standards. They may also shift how allied health education and beauty brands think about access, autonomy and participation.
This research is supported by a small co-funded grant, with ByStorm contributing 50% and government funding covering the other half.
Q&A with the team behind the research
Q: Why do you think this kind of research has never been done?
A: Storm: For a long time, people with disability were spoken about, not spoken with. The focus was on deficits, not dignity, identity, or participation. That legacy shows up in what gets measured, funded, and published.
And bluntly: beauty has been designed around a narrow idea of who “counts” as a consumer. If the industry doesn’t expect disabled people to be visible, stylish, professional, dating, working, or showing up in public the same way others do, then it doesn’t invest in research that would force it to redesign the tools.
A: Jaymee: I think makeup has quietly existed in a grey area that research hasn’t quite known what to do with. It’s often dismissed as cosmetic or superficial, so it hasn’t been considered “serious enough” to study. But from an occupational perspective, that’s exactly what makes it interesting. Occupations don’t have to be essential for survival to be meaningful. I think research is only just starting to expand beyond function and independence, and into identity, expression and lived experience, and makeup sits right at that intersection.
A: Sarah: I think we are only just starting to recognise that occupations like this [makeup and beauty] deserve to be explored more deeply.
Q: Why do you think makeup is forgotten or overlooked in terms of grooming and ADLs?
A: Sarah: When we talk about grooming and ADLs, we often default to the essentials like showering, dressing etc. Those are obviously very important, so they take priority, however that doesn't make makeup less important. For many people, it is tied to routine, identity and creativity.
A: Jaymee: Makeup doesn’t always fit neatly into the framework, so it gets excluded. But for many people, it’s embedded in their routine in the same way brushing their hair or choosing clothes is. I think it’s overlooked because it’s seen as optional, yet for some individuals (like me!!), it plays a significant role in confidence, participation, social engagement and even emotional regulation. That complexity doesn’t always get acknowledged.
A: Storm: And underneath that is ableism, even if it’s unintentional: a low expectation that disabled women should, want to, or deserve to engage in beauty with the same freedom and standards as everyone else.
Q: What do you hope to learn from the first survey responses?
A: Storm: Survey 1 helps us map the current landscape, the gaps, and the appetite for change.
We’re looking to understand three things clearly:
-
How makeup is currently being used in clinical contexts
Are clinicians discussing it? Avoiding it? Using it informally? Not touching it at all? -
Whether makeup has a legitimate therapeutic role
Not as “vanity”, but as a practical activity that can involve fine motor control, grip, coordination, fatigue management, sequencing, and adaptive strategies. -
The wellbeing and participation impact
We’re really interested to understand what we know anecdotally: when people feel more like themselves, they’re more likely to leave the house, socialise, show up to work, re-engage with community, and build confidence - the social and wellbeing impacts of using makeup.
A: Jaymee: I’m really hoping to see the diversity of experiences. Not just whether people wear makeup, but what it means to them. I want to understand the barriers, the rituals, the emotional connections, the sensory experiences etc. I’m especially curious about responses that challenge our assumptions. The survey is about listening before interpreting, and I think there’s so much we haven’t considered yet.
A: Sarah: I think the responses will highlight insights we may not have even thought to ask about yet.
Q: What comes next after analysing the data from survey 1?
A: Storm: Next, we take the themes and pressure-test them with the people who matter most: people with lived experience.
A: Sarah: After analysing the data, the goal will be to identify key themes, gaps, and emerging patterns. That will guide the direction of the next phase and help ensure we are asking more targeted, meaningful questions moving forward in the focus group.
A: Jaymee: I think the most important step is slowing down and really sitting with what participants are telling us. From there, we can refine our questions and identify areas that need deeper exploration. The focus groups will allow us to unpack nuance, context, personal stories, and contradictions.
Q: The first survey is for OT’s and Allied Health Professionals, is there another survey for people with lived experience?
Yes! Our lived experience survey is available now, and ready for your submission, here.
Q: How will the next phase of the research build on these findings?
A: Storm: Phase 2 will build from “what’s missing” to “what works”.
If the findings support it, the long-term path is to develop a rigorous research program that could evolve into higher-level academic work (including a PhD) focused on whether makeup can be recognised as a legitimate therapeutic modality in occupational therapy, particularly in areas like rehab, psychosocial wellbeing, and community participation.
The goal isn’t to medicalise makeup. It’s to validate that it can be a powerful, functional, evidence-based activity for some people, and to give clinicians the tools and language to support it appropriately.
A: Sarah: The survey helps us identify key themes and patterns. The focus groups will allow us to explore those in more depth and understand the “why” behind people’s responses.
A: Jaymee: The first survey gives us breadth, the next phase will give us depth. It allows us to move from patterns to personal meaning. We’ll be able to explore why certain themes emerged and how makeup interacts with participation, wellbeing and identity in more complex ways.
Are you an OT or Allied Health Professional? Join us in this world-first research project. Lend your voice & expertise here.
About ByStorm
ByStorm is an Australian accessible beauty brand designing makeup tools that work with all bodies. We create makeup tools for people with disability, chronic illness, arthritis, tremors, injury, ageing hands, and anyone who struggles with grip, twisting, fatigue or control.
Our grip tools make everyday beauty routines easier and more comfortable, without compromising aesthetics or joy.
Want to get to know ByStorm better? Get the lowdown here!
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