I realised quickly after my first burnout that one part of self-care for myself needed to include staying away social media, email and the internet. To refresh. I didn’t understand it as an act of self-care at the time, and it certainly wasn’t the buzzword it has become today. I just knew that the simple act of unplugging myself for a day did wonders for my mental, emotional and psychological well-being.
Fast forward to over half a decade later. Ironically, the most poignant and real discussion I have ever been part of on setting boundaries for oneself was at a feminist tech gathering. A few months prior to this gathering I had begun to examine what I needed to be whole and well, especially in the context of my work. This conversation with passionate, smart and fierce feminists from all over the world has since become the catalyst for the difficult work to examine, unravel and practise self-care and its politics in both my life and the movements I am a part of or engage with.
Continue reading at GenderIT.org.