Wellness, Self-Care, and the Need for Real Structural Change | Op-Ed
Op-Ed: Why true wellness goes beyond yoga mats and meditation apps and must address systemic issues like inequality, wages, and access to care!
By: Jamila Gomez
Wellness is everywhere. It’s in the apps on our phones, the aisles of our grocery stores, the curated corners of social media urging us to “breathe, reset, and find balance.” It’s sold through yoga mats, green juices, therapy-inspired journals, and weekend retreats designed to make us forget the weight of our daily lives. The message is consistent: if you invest in yourself—your body, your mindset, your routine—you can create calm no matter what chaos surrounds you.
But here’s the problem: the chaos isn’t always of our own making, and no amount of lavender oil or positive affirmations can erase it. The wellness industry has built an empire on personal solutions to systemic problems. It tells people to “self-care harder” while ignoring the fact that much of what keeps them unwell—low wages, unaffordable housing, unsafe workplaces, systemic racism—cannot be fixed by buying another product or waking up at 5 a.m. for meditation.
This disconnect is more than frustrating—it’s dangerous. When wellness ignores structural harm, it subtly shifts the blame onto the individual. If you’re burned out, you must have skipped your morning routine. If you’re anxious, maybe you didn’t manifest the right mindset. Struggle becomes evidence of failure, rather than a natural response to being overworked, underpaid, or constantly on guard. The very people most in need of care end up feeling like they’re not doing enough to “heal.”
And who exactly does wellness center? The glossy branding usually assumes a person with disposable income, flexible time, and access to safe environments. But for the single parent working double shifts, the caregiver who cannot clock out, or the essential worker living paycheck to paycheck, “just slow down” is not advice—it’s mockery. Those who need relief most are often the least able to access what’s being sold.
None of this means that wellness practices are useless. Many people find genuine comfort in meditation, journaling, or movement. The problem isn’t the practices themselves; it’s the narrative that these rituals alone can undo what society has broken. Wellness without justice is incomplete.
If the industry really wants to live up to its promise, it has to start telling the truth: personal rituals cannot replace structural change. True wellness is collective. It’s affordable housing, safe workplaces, accessible healthcare, and communities where survival isn’t mistaken for thriving. Without that, the industry is just selling candles for a house still on fire.
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The Power of a Pamper Day
Learn the importance of taking a guilt-free pamper day to recharge, boost productivity, and improve your overall well-being. We discuss it here!
Photo Credit: Dimensions via iStockPhoto.com
By: Jamila Gomez
A high-powered job and a tight schedule are what you are working for. The positive effects of hard work are visible to you. You’re a busy, busy bee. You feel fine, and you have a lot of energy to keep going. But now you’re being recommended for a day off.
A pamper day. “What on earth is that?” you think to yourself, and “Why should I take a day off just to pamper myself?” Or perhaps you want to take a pamper day, but you keep pushing it back. Pampering yourself is whatever pampering yourself means to you. Caring for yourself doesn’t mean treating yourself to luxuries you don’t need.
It could be a day where you play video games, watch YouTube videos, hop on a streaming service, drink some wine, draw a bath, light some candles, take it easy, and relax—a day where you put your happiness first.
This concept might sound foreign to you, especially if you are someone who struggles to make yourself rest.
Consider these powerful reasons to take a pamper day
1. You get to plan your ideal day. Choose a day. Mark it on your calendar. That day is your day. Your pamper day. Spend quality time with yourself doing something you enjoy. Spend that day enjoying and exploring, relaxing, and learning more about yourself.
Giving yourself time off is important. It’s also important not to feel guilty for taking time off. So, take a break from your normal day-to-day. You’ll return revitalized and happy.
2. It’s invaluable for your physical and mental health. Rest is as vital to your health as good nutrition and exercise. Occasional pamper days save you a bunch of health problems. You get to take a breather when no one else is taking a breather.
Most of your pamper day methods cost nothing but are excellent for your mental health. Your body benefits when you take a break. Rest is essential. If you don’t let your body rest once in a while, you’ll get overwhelmed by fatigue, eventually.
3. Take a step away from all the stress. The effects of stress on our bodies have been well-documented - from its impact on our skin to our hearts. If you don’t have fun once in a while, you will have no alternative to a stressful life.
You’ll take days off to rest, not when you want to or because you want to, but because you’re forced to.
Compare that to getting a massage to take the pressure off. You’ll come out of it feeling energetic and refreshed. It will make you feel better and have more energy.
You also recover from emotional stress. You reduce your risk of burnout. Reduce your stress level by taking a relaxing break from the grind.
4. Gives you something to look forward to. What’s the point of working so hard if you don’t get to enjoy the fruits of your labor? You won’t feel bad about doing something nice for yourself if you plan for it. You are motivated to work harder when looking forward to a day of relaxation.
The opportunity to recharge and do something nice for yourself because you deserve it works as a morale boost. It’s a way of appreciating and encouraging yourself. It also sets you up in a positive cycle as you develop a healthier relationship with your work.
5. You make wiser decisions. Relaxed people make better decisions regarding their well-being, work, and even relationships. With the stress taken away, you can examine matters more carefully. Decisions are well thought through and balanced.
6. You have more positive relationships with others. When you return after taking a day off, your mood improves drastically. When we are stressed, we snap at others, and things get ugly fast.
After a pamper day, you help others genuinely and not out of a place of resentment. Self-care and self-love are important because if you don’t show them to yourself, you can’t sincerely show them to others.
7. You are more productive. When working out, actual gains occur during recovery. That applies to working. Rest heightens your productivity. The productivity momentum is not broken when you rest, and it is balanced. Let your body rest to recover from the work you put it through.
When you take a day off, it is essential to do so in a guilt-free way. Do something that is recharging. Don’t waste your pamper day stressing and beating yourself up for being unproductive. Letting your mind and body rest is part of being productive.
Taking a day off when you’ve planned to and can enjoy it is much better than taking a day off because your body is broken and fatigued. Resting seriously makes a huge difference. You will come back massively refreshed and able to boost your productivity. Rest is critical to progress.
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