Black Women and the Historical Blackness of Self Care

I didn’t know anything about Black August until I went on a trip to La Habana, Cuba when I was a student at Howard University School of Law. It was a huge eye (and mind) opener for me. If you’re not that familiar with Black August, here’s what you should know:

“This month is a time to reflect and learn about the legacies of Black revolutionaries, while we rededicate ourselves to the protracted struggles against white supremacy, colonialism, capitalism, and imperialism. We study, plan, and pledge to continue the work and fight for Black liberation.” ~Monifa Bandele

Things normally slow down in general in August, especially here in Washington DC. So it’s a good time to chill by the pool or in the nice cool house with some good books. I found this reading list appropriate for Black August.

And of course you know I was going to tie Black August in with black women’s wellness. Because.

Black women taking care of ourselves is a form of radical resistance today in the United States of America. 

We all know how historically black women have been forced to put other’s interests ahead of our own, from the time our ancestors reached these shores all the way up to today. But we don’t always talk about how these circumstances affect our feelings and habits even when we are not experiencing these situations directly. Add to this, the requirements to go way above and beyond to prove ourselves unworthy of the typical stereotypes. And, the lack of reliable healthcare resources, regardless of economic situation.

These oppressions are not accidental. They are designed to keep us down, and on the lowest point on the hierarchy of every kind of societal power structure imaginable. I could not help myself from thinking about how diet culture is in place not only to make billions of dollars but also to oppress black women. It sounds crazy but diet culture is the ultimate anti-black tool, that is used to try to destroy from within, by keeping us occupied with hating our bodies for not being white. 

And to add insult to injury, more recently the concepts of wellness and self care are also dominated by diet culture. Actual health has very little to do with the size and shape of our bodies but that’s not what the mainstream narrative says.

Did you know that the term self care originated during the civil rights movement in the medical community and then was popularized by the Black Panther party? I didn’t know this until now. Self care really was about the focus on the holistic needs of the black community. Examples of self care are mental health, medical care, food security, self defense, self esteem, education, childcare, financial services and more, without any reliance on the white patriarchal institutions. It was also a way to counteract activist burnout.

Self care is the everyday life activities that lead to wellness. Wellness is a holistic concept, and self care can be very different things to different people. To some people, self care is something you do every now and then when you get too stressed. To others it might be every little thing you do for yourself during the day to sustain wellness.

“(Practicing radical self-care) means we’re able to bring our entire selves into the movement,” she said. “It means we incorporate into our work as activists ways of acknowledging and hopefully moving beyond trauma. It means a holistic approach.” ~Angela Davis, Radical Self Care

I’ve put together a nice self care mini-guide to help you design your Black August wellness routine.

Rest

Make a conscious effort to set aside time to fully relax and make sure you’re getting plenty of sleep for the whole month. You’ll be amazed at how you’ll feel.

Hydration

You don’t need to drink a gallon of water a day. Drinking water does not clear your skin or do all the other miraculous feats people created to dictate how much water you should be drinking every day. But drinking water is key to good health, in particular, staying hydrated or not becoming dehydrated. All you have to do is pay attention and honor your thirst. Some days you might be more or less thirsty than others.

Nourishment

Intuitive eating, anyone? No diets. No moralizing food. And purge all diet culture resources, unfollow and unfriend diet-y social media accounts so you can start clean without the confusion caused by fake wellness gurus. This right here is radical because you truly must expel the hype about good and bad food and consume what your body wants at the time. It could be broccoli, it could be cookies. Only you can know.

Movement

Work out if you like, or don’t. Do something fun. It doesn’t need to be grueling or boring or extreme. Play some rope, hula hoop, hand dance, do whatever suits your fancy. And not just once, use this month to create a new habit. You absolutely do not need to wait for any “thing” to happen before you get your body moving. You don’t need to wait for a certain size or weight. Just get out and do something.

Pleasure

Happiness is the key to long lasting good health. So naturally, pleasure is not something to be avoided, but something to be valued and savored. It can be a challenge when many of us have been living in a culture that glorifies overwork and hustling as virtuous and makes pleasure seem sinful and bad. Happiness and pleasure are at the smack dab center of this wellness practice. That’s why it’s called LifeBliss. If there’s no bliss in your life, you need to change that right now. Black August is the perfect time to begin prioritizing and normalizing Black Joy as a central part of your self care practice, all year around.