Real Self-Care: A Transformative Program for Redefining Wellness (Crystals, Cleanses, and BubbleBaths Not Included)

ISBN: 0593489721

Author: Lakshmin MD, Pooja

Condition: New

National Bestseller featured by Good Morning America, NPR's Code Switch, The New York Times, and The GuardianNPR's "Books We Love for 2023"Forbes' "Greatest Self-Help Books of All Time""Realistic and trustworthy" -- InStyle"This isn?t just another self-help book. It gives us a clear-eyed look at the way social systems drain our energy, and a concrete set of principles to rely on as we declare independence from these systems." -Martha Beck, New York Times bestselling author of The Way of Integrity"This book is for anyone who?s ever removed a 'relaxing' sheet mask only to realize it hasn?t transformed you so much as your trash can.? -Jessica DeFino, The UnpublishableFrom women?s mental health specialist and New York Times contributor Pooja Lakshmin, MD, comes a long-overdue reckoning with the contradictions of the wellness industry and a paradigm-shifting program for practicing real self-care that will empower, uplift, and maybe even start a revolution.You may have noticed that it?s nearly impossible to go even a couple days without coming across the term self-care. A word that encompasses any number of lifestyle choices and products-from juice cleanses to yoga workshops to luxury bamboo sheets-self-care has exploded in our collective consciousness as a panacea for practically all of women?s problems.Board-certified psychiatrist Dr. Pooja Lakshmin finds this cultural embrace of self-care incomplete at best and manipulative at worst. Fixing your troubles isn?t simple as buying a new day planner or signing up for a meditation class. These faux self-care practices keep us looking outward-comparing ourselves with others or striving for a certain type of perfection. Even worse, they exonerate an oppressive social system that has betrayed women and minorities.Real self-care, in contrast, is an internal, self-reflective process that involves making difficult decisions in line with our values, and when we practice it, we shift our relationships, our workplaces, and even our broken systems.In Real Self-Care, Lakshmin helps readers understand what a real practice of caring for yourself could-and does-look like. Using case studies from her practice, clinical research, and the down-to-earth style that she's become known for, Lakshmin provides a step-by-step program for real and sustainable change and solace. Packed with actionable strategies to deal with common problems, Real Self-Care is a complete roadmap for women to set boundaries and move past guilt, treat themselves with compassion, get closer to themselves, and assert their power. The result-having ownership over one?s own life- is nothing less than a personal and social revolution.