Who needs to understand your self-care?
The answer is simple! You! (and only you). Everyone else is a wonderful bonus or someone to not worry about.
Just like people are different (and their values are different) self-care is different. There are a million ways to engage in self-care, based on our own unique values, needs, and disposition.
There is no one “correct” way to do self-care. It’s a “you do you” situation. (It is, however, a nice bonus if you can learn to set appropriate and respectful boundaries around your self-care so as to also care for others, but that’s another post).
Last week at my weekly (online) movie night we watched Hannah Gadsby’s new show Something Special. It was hilarious (as always) and sent me down a minor rabbit hole reading all things Hannah Gadsby online (also as always).
I came across this article where Gadsby describes wearing exclusively blue clothes because they feel comfortable that way. What a wonderful act of self-care!
Would wearing only blue clothes be self-care for everyone? Of course not. Does everyone understand why wearing only blue clothes is an act of self-care? No. But do they have to? Also no.
Just like Hannah Gadsby, you might make self-care choices that other people might or might not understand. And that’s okay – the only person who needs to understand is you.
In self-care solidarity,