Self Care Is Not Optional

From the Quarantine Chronicles

There was a moment during quarantine when I had to reckon with the fact that the way I cared for myself had been disrupted. The salon was closed. My hairstylist was unavailable. The nail shops were closed. The massage spa was closed. All the places I had come to rely on for care, maintenance and a little pampering were suddenly gone.

It was a hard version of normal to give up. But it also reminded me of something I have always believed: every woman and girl should know how to care for herself.

Over the years, I had taken the time to learn how to do my own manicure, style my hair and create small spa moments at home. I taught my daughter some of those same things, not because professional services do not matter, but because there is power in knowing how to tend to yourself when the usual systems are unavailable.

That lesson still feels relevant.

We may not be in quarantine anymore, but the world is still volatile, noisy and unpredictable. Work can be too. Leadership can be demanding.

Schedules shift.

Priorities change.

People need answers.

Problems arrive uninvited.

There are seasons when so much around us feels outside of our control. That is why self-care cannot be treated like an occasional reward. It has to become a regime.

Not a rigid checklist.

Not a performance.

Not another standard to fail at.

But a rhythm that reminds you that your well-being is not separate from your ability to lead, think, decide and show up fully.

Steal a spa moment each week for a mental reset.

There is comfort in maintaining some control when everything else feels unpredictable. There is also confidence in knowing that care does not always have to be outsourced.

Sometimes it is in the weekly reset.

The evening routine.

The Sunday prep.

The walk.

The water.

The appointment you keep with yourself.

As leaders, we often talk about discipline in terms of work. We admire consistency, preparation and follow-through. But those same principles matter in how we care for ourselves.

A regime is not about vanity. It is about sustainability. It is about building enough steadiness within yourself to meet the demands outside of you.

And if quarantine taught me anything, it is that self-care is not just about looking pulled together when the world is normal. It is about knowing how to take care of yourself when it is not.