Self-Care: Is It Selfish or Just Smart?

Self care isn’t selfish, it’s maintenance. A few minutes for yourself keeps you calmer, sharper, and ready to show up fully.

Self-care comes in many forms from lifting weights, beauty appointment, meditating, doing yoga, reading a book, even just having some time alone in your room to decompress before heading back downstairs into the chaos of home. Basically, anything that gives you a moment to recharge and feel like you again.

Now, here’s the awkward bit. At what point does self-care tip into selfish? Because yes, technically if you were to swan off every weekend for a spa break while your kids survive on air-fried nuggets and your partner hasn’t seen you since Christmas, that’s not balance, that’s escapism. But that’s the exception, not the rule.

Most of the time, people (especially women) aren’t anywhere near that territory. In fact, most women are operating from the other end of the spectrum: giving every ounce of themselves to everyone else until they’re burnt out, resentful, and wondering why life feels like Groundhog Day. That’s not noble, that’s just unsustainable. You can’t pour from an empty cup, and if you try, you’ll end up snapping at your kids for breathing too loudly or crying over burnt toast! We’ve all been there!

So, should you feel guilty for carving out time for self-care? Absolutely not! Let’s just call out the elephant in the room: a huge chunk of women’s work isn’t even paid. Running a household, remembering birthdays, managing kids’ schedules, and keeping the fridge stocked with more than just yoghurt and ketchup. These invisible jobs keep everything afloat. If women collectively went on strike tomorrow, most households would collapse faster than a house of cards in a wind tunnel. That’s the level of contribution we’re talking about.

Before the men breathe a sigh of relief, this applies to you too. Men might not always carry the same mental load that women do, but plenty still grind themselves down with work, financial pressure, or the belief they always must “provide”. The result is the same: burnout, irritability, and showing up as half the person they could be.

The truth is, both sides are carrying loads, just different ones. Finding that balance between the two isn’t about keeping score, it’s about working it out and figuring out what keeps the household (and the people in it) running smoothly.

Self care = maintenance. It’s like servicing a car: ignore it for too long and don’t be shocked when the engine light comes on. Taking time for yourself isn’t indulgent, it’s what makes you a better parent, partner, friend, colleague, human. You’re calmer, more patient, sharper, and capable of enjoying life instead of just enduring it.

The next time that guilt creeps in, remind yourself: everyone benefits when you’re recharged. You’re not “taking away” from your family by taking time for yourself, you’re giving them the best version of you.

Because trust me, no one’s winning when you’re running on fumes!

Are you ready to invest in yourself? Your nutrition, your lifestyle, your energy? Book a call today and let’s make it happen.

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