E21: Upgrade your self-care belief system – part 5

When you think about why self-care is hard, what comes to mind? Maybe not enough time, or feeling guilty, or just forgetting until you’re completely burned out. The dominant story says: if you can’t manage your self-care, you’re not disciplined enough. You’re not resilient enough. Maybe you’re just not cut out for this work.

But here’s the twist: what if these struggles aren’t actually personal failings at all? What if they’re the result of how we’ve been socialized — shaped by gender expectations and professional norms — in ways that make self-care feel unnatural, even wrong? This really important point, and how we can counter it, is what we are diving into in this episode.

Episode Highlights:

• Self-care belief system upgrade #5: Self-care challenges are shaped by gender and professional socialization – NOT personal failings!
• Why the old view doesn't serve us: It turns self-care into a moral failing, so then we blame ourselves for struggling.
• The new view: Gender norms and professional socialization are powerful forces working against our self-care. When we recognize this we can release the shame and reclaim our agency.
• Self-care experiments