On the dressing for church-- I can very much see lotusbiosm and kaypendragon's points, that what you're wearing can change how you feel. And, if your formal clothes match your own understanding of "this is myself at my best and my most serious," then dressing up in them would help you reach that state of reverence and awe. Of course, if your clothes feel more to you like "I am expressing a gender which isn't mine" or "I look ugly in this" or "I am ridiculous," then it's not going to work very well.
I think the trick is coming up with some form of "best clothes" which make you feel actually your best. I've been working hard, on and off, on my best "therapist outfits"-- clothes which will express my professional self, the me with the compassion and wisdom and good sense and strong backbone and intelligence and sense of humor and perserverence and knowledge of the DSM-- without being actively not-me. I'm much more comfortable in jeans and a tight tank top, but that doesn't help me get into the right head-space the same way.
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On the dressing for church-- I can very much see
I think the trick is coming up with some form of "best clothes" which make you feel actually your best. I've been working hard, on and off, on my best "therapist outfits"-- clothes which will express my professional self, the me with the compassion and wisdom and good sense and strong backbone and intelligence and sense of humor and perserverence and knowledge of the DSM-- without being actively not-me. I'm much more comfortable in jeans and a tight tank top, but that doesn't help me get into the right head-space the same way.