The term self-care is having a moment but is it the right one?
When it's not being sold to us in the form of candles or fuzzy pyjamas via Instagram ads, self-care is taking over our TikTok FYP with "everything shower" routines. It's become something of an excuse for our every indulgence. Happy hour after a terrible day at work? That's self-care. Brunch, followed by a Euphoria-inspired mani? Self-care, baby! Splurging on a luxurious island holiday after the hell we've been through these past two years? Self. Hyphen. Care.
But how much we seem to be focusing on self-care online doesn't actually align with reality. Forty per cent of South African women surveyed in the Deloitte report Women @ Work 2022: A Global Outlook said they felt burnt out, while 51 percent felt their stress levels were higher than a year ago. In another study, 43 percent of South African women rated their mental health as poor to extremely poor and admitted to relying on unhealthy habits to get through the past few years.
Stats like these raise this question: If the "treat yourself" approach to self-care is working, why are we still so frazzled and worn out? Well, according to experts, we're all somewhat missing the point. "Self-care is really about taking time to understand your true needs beyond your impulses," says Dr Chloe Carmichael, a psychologist and author of Nervous Energy: Harness the Power of Your Anxiety. "It's about looking at yourself on a deeper level."
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