Women are living lives that ask too much, too often, in ways we were never meant to sustain.

We are mothers, business owners, partners, friends, daughters, sisters, caregivers, earners, and so much more… We’re expected to carry these roles seamlessly, to do it all and do it well, without cracking under the weight.

And while we may rise to meet these expectations, the cost is enormous—because the lives we’re living are fundamentally out of alignment with who we are meant to be.

Brianna Wiest’s essay, This Is What Self-Care Really Means, Because It’s Not All Salt Baths and Chocolate Cake, resonates deeply with me, both as a therapist and as a person. Her words cut through the noise of curated wellness trends and strike at the heart of what self-care truly is: the work no one sees, the choices no one applauds, and the transformations that happen quietly, over time.