Great post on the importance of self-care that you should read over at Feministe.
I am a person with value too. Even as a person with an enormous amount of privilege (and FSM knows I’ve been on both sides of that wall), I have the right to prioritize my own wellbeing. I have a right to self-care.
That’s not an easy thing to say. Not as a survivor of childhood neglect. Not as an escapee of that ridiculous fundamentalist Christian Sect. Not as a woman. Not as a person who cares deeply about social justice and her community.
I know other feminists and activists struggle with this same issue. IRL, we’ve talked about burn out, how to avoid it, how to say no and how it ultimately undermines the organizations that require our time and energy to sustain them. We’ve talked about managing the work load, the stress, and the failures. But still, sometimes it seems we drop like flies. I know many of you do activism in your own lives outside of the organizational structure that often impedes more than it helps. You too need to know this.
You have the right to prioritize your own wellbeing. You have a right to self care.
Adamant Eve 