Caring for myself is not self-indulgence.

It is self-preservation, and that is an act of political warfare.

Audre Lorde

This was a quote that I received recently and it was a good reminder for me of the importance of self-care.

For those working daily to advance anti-racism, challenge systemic injustices, and create more equity, making space for self-care is indeed necessary to maintain the ability to continue the struggle. As Audre Lorde notes, making this space is a critical act of self-preservation.

Recently, we have seen both Naomi Osaka and Simone Biles make the difficult decisions to withdraw from competitions that they have dedicated so many years of their lives preparing for.  Both of these impressive athletes withdrew from these competitions to safeguard their mental health. Even with all the pressure they would have been feeling to compete and sacrifice their own mental and physical well-being, they chose to take a stand, withdraw from high profile events, and engage in radical acts of self-care.

As a former professional athlete, I can empathize with how difficult these decisions would have been for these athletes. Years of training and preparation went into getting these athletes to those competitions.  Given this, the decisions to withdraw from those competitions must have been heart-wrenching.  I applaud both Naomi Osaka and Simone Biles’ commitment to themselves and to not succumbing to the pressure and expectations of others.

It is important to note that both these athletes are racialized women who have spoken out about the injustice of police brutality against Black people in the United States.  In addition, therefore, to dealing with the enormous pressures of performing at the professional level in their respective sports, both Naomi Osaka and Simone Biles must deal with negative stereotypes about racialized athletes, as well as the racial trauma and collective grief that Black people and communities have been living through as a result of on-going systemic anti-Black racism and violence. When considering the larger context within which each of these women put their own well-being first, their decisions were indeed radical acts of self-care and self-preservation.

Creating space to take care of ourselves can be hard, particularly for women. It can be hard not to feel like making space and taking time for ourselves is selfish, especially when we have children and others to care for. But these acts of self-care are in fact radical acts of resistance.

For people who are deeply committed to anti-oppression work and are members of racialized, Indigenous or other communities subject to systemic injustice, this resistance is essential to forwarding the struggle for equity and justice. Every act of self-care is indeed an act of political warfare against oppressive systems, pressures, and institutions.  Every act of self-care is an act of self-preservation against powerful systems that have the effect of chipping away at our mental, physical, emotional and spiritual well-being.

So let’s applaud and actively engage in these radical acts of self-preservation and resistance. Let’s thank Naomi Osaka and Simone Biles for reminding us how important it is to stand up for ourselves even when the costs are great for doing so. And let’s remember that every act of self-care is radical. Every act of self-care is resistance. Every act of self care is an act of self-preservation.

We would love to hear your thoughts on this in the comments section below.  And look for next week’s article that further explores this idea of self-care as an radical act of resistance.

Photo by Tasha Jolley on Unsplash

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