Self-Care Beyond the Buzzword

"Self-care" has become one of the most overused and under-understood terms in the wellness lexicon. Somewhere between bubble baths and productivity hacks, the original, clinically meaningful idea got lost. Real self-care — the kind that actually sustains us through hard seasons — looks quite different from what appears in a social media feed.

The Origins of Self-Care

The concept of self-care originates in medicine and public health, where it referred to practices that individuals could undertake to maintain their own health and prevent illness. It was extended into mental health contexts by activists and practitioners who recognised that marginalised communities — particularly those in high-demand caring roles — could not afford to ignore their own needs.

Audre Lorde, poet and activist, wrote: "Caring for myself is not self-indulgence. It is self-preservation, and that is an act of political warfare." The original spirit of self-care was radical, not decorative.

What Self-Care Is Not

• It is not a reward you earn after suffering enough.
• It is not only pleasurable activities — sometimes it means making the appointment you have been avoiding.
• It is not a solution to structural problems like overwork, inadequate pay, or systemic burnout.
• It is not selfish — though you may have been taught to feel that way about it.
• It is not the same for everyone, and it should not be performed for an audience.

Domains of Genuine Self-Care

• Physical: Sleep, movement, nourishment, medical appointments you keep postponing.
• Emotional: Naming your feelings, processing rather than suppressing, setting limits on emotional labour.
• Mental: Intellectual stimulation, reducing information overload, protecting your attention.
• Social: Investing in relationships that restore rather than deplete you.
• Spiritual: Practices that connect you to meaning, purpose, or something larger than yourself — regardless of religious tradition.
• Professional: Maintaining boundaries, seeking supervision or mentorship, not taking every shift offered.

A Practical Starting Point

Rather than building an elaborate self-care routine you will abandon within a week, start with one question: What do I consistently neglect about my own needs? Your honest answer to that question points directly to where your self-care practice most needs to begin. Start there. Not with the aesthetically pleasing version of wellness. With the honest one.