Yes. Black Girl Day Off is a thing. Like an actual unrecognized day in the United States that dates back to 2020 post pandemic where sources said it was founded and observed in certain communities for Black women. Although I don’t know if the momentum on it has quite picked up the way I think it should, as I’m only recently learning about this phenomenon of a day but I wanted to do my own due diligence to hopefully push this concept out there more.
So this day ( October 11th) is to encourage us as Black Women to intentionally prioritize mental health awareness and physical health by taking the day completely off from work to solely focus on our own well being. I thought this was the perfect inclusion for the “solo season” I have been sharing my thoughts on for quite sometime because your solo season is exactly what Black Girl Day Off represents. The intentional focus on making sure we are good.
It got me to thinking why such a day had to be created for us and it forced me to think of myself.
I had to think of how I constantly would push myself without those breaks in between and how doing everything else that I considered a priority except for my own self care would always take precedence.
Not to take away from any other race of women or to compare the work ethic of anyone, because in all honesty WOMEN in general are extremely hard working individuals, it’s somehow just in our DNA to get things done!
But I speak from the only experience that I have which is from the perspective of a Black Woman and I know that over the years through real life experience it was as if we had something extra to prove. Now to actually deep dive into the “why” of that would take way more than a single post in my column to dig into history and statistics but historically black women have been charted to be the least likely to seek out mental health resources and that is because we just find ourselves dealing with and handling things… Olivia Pope style.
But I want to keep my thoughts on how great I think this day is for us and share some of my ideas on how we can fully take advantage.
PTO=Prepare The Others
First off, take the day off. Actually do it. Step away from the laptop. Be intentional about it. If you work for a company and you have PTO, take this day off. Make it your thing. No matter what job you find yourself at make sure that when the time comes you join in the effort to hold yourself accountable for prioritizing your mental health. Whether you work from home or work from an office. Do yourself this huge favor and take the day. You deserve it.
Somewhere along the way, it was as if women using their PTO wasn’t something that was done often unless it was taking time off to do something for SOMEONE else. The kids have appointments, the hubby needed something handled, a friend may have needed a favor. But taking the day off for “my own mental health” was not something that we would actually submit as time needed off. Why is that?
If we can take off for being sick, or we can take off for the needs of others, why wouldn’t we take off for our own mental health & well being?
Through social media, travel and vacation has become way more glorified and more people are getting their sky miles accumulated simply because gathering content highlighting luxury about travel is aesthetically appealing to an audience, but where is more of the content about taking time off from work for mental health?
Black Girl Day Off should encourage you to finally prioritize the things you have been wanting to do for yourself that you always seem to have a reason to put off. And these things should not include the needs of anyone else. Make it about you. Or think of it this way, you have to assure that before you can be what you need to be for other people you have to be and do what you need to do for yourself.
What does Black Girl Day Off look like…
This is the fun part because your off day can be whatever you want it to be. Whether you are simply taking the time to lounge in bed and around the house all day, you get out for a nice and sunny walk, or you get in to see some of the doctors you have been putting off, your off day should provide you with a sense of peace of mind that you were actually able to get something you needed done for yourself.
Even though seeing doctors may not sound as appealing as getting into a Pilates class or doing some shopping, sometimes there are important doctors that women have been putting off for their own reasons and while mental health is important, so is physical health. That one body you have has to last you your whole lifetime so you have to make sure that you are keeping it in the best shape possible. Make those scary appointments you’ve been putting off and get all those lingering questions you’ve had answered. It is never too early or too late to address any health concerns you have and this may be just the day to do so when nothing else is of your concern for the day.
As you take this day, remind yourself of all the things you deserve. Remind yourself that you have needs. Remember the intention behind this day and make sure that you are constantly affirming yourself throughout this day.
Affirmations you say?
Affirmations are a highly effective way to practice shifting your mindset which can definitely play a role in improving mental health awareness. How we are thinking about things and how we are feeling can be directly influenced by the things we are telling ourselves. Negative self talk is way more common than we think and we may not even be fully aware of just how much we speak against ourselves vs. how often we are affirming ourselves. We remove our own ability to speak positively to self because we are hyper focused on all that is going wrong and all the things we are worried about that are not going the way we feel we need them to go. Affirmations have been a way to get my day started before I even step out of the bed and definitely helps with the positive shift my days have going forward by shaping my mindset to focus on what I can have, what I do deserve, what is going good in my life and what I desire an abundance of. I think of just how great each day that I get to wake up is.
Spa-Ish Days…
If you are able to spend your off day somewhere laid back in a dark rain forest themed room in some perfect spa, by all means indulge! But if you can’t…if that’s not quite in your budget or not something that is achievable then you could always experience the spa at home. Create your own custom spa day and try to enjoy doing all your personal self care routines such as a facial with some new products, waxing, mani/pedi combo, or wash day for the natural tresses and do it all in a comfy robe with your favorite hot tea.
Some Sun…
Get some sun girl…if you can. There’s nothing like soaking up some of that good old natural vitamin D by letting your little corner of the sun warm you up while you take a walk, get to lay out on a beach, or you can just simply sit on your deck at home and soak it up.
Therapy…of some sort.
The key to therapy is to find what form works best for you and at what points of your life you need them. There’s retail therapy, aromatherapy, physical therapy, therapy-THERAPY. What do you need TODAY? If taking your off day means to go to your favorite store to stock up on a few girly things you need or even if you just want to splurge for once and finally get a new home fragrances you’ve been longing for and you go get 12 different three wick candles for the fall season from the Bath & Body Works sale, you have the control. Choose what you need this day off to look like as long as it consists of you doing something that contributes to the betterment of your mental health. The form of therapy you decide you need is in your hands. Use this day to really own your personal time off.
Yogi Girl Life
Yoga is a lifestyle…a mood…a vibe. And it happens to be a very calming, grounding and very effective practice that is hands down one of my favorite ways to ease anxiety and lighten the load of the stress being carried for the week. Paired with some intentional meditation techniques, incorporating yoga into your off day will certainly make a difference for the better. You may find that stretching your body to new limits is exactly what you needed to cut through the tension and all of it’s properties.
Workin’ it Out
And if yoga isn’t your thing, find something else that is. Whatever ways you can find to actively keep working your body out and keep movement in your limbs going is necessary. Pilates workout is becoming more of the “it girl” thing to do and there are some amazing home workout channels that YouTube university has as well.
You can find some of my favorite self care items here in this Amazon list I put together and also update regularly my whole storefront with new lists and new finds >> Self Care Is The Best Care
However you choose to spend your off day is really up to you but self care and mental health awareness are what we need to prioritize as we are living our lives, going through the daily struggles and just trying to make it. It’s so important someone thoughtfully decided we needed to make a day of it and I think that is because we so often try to be the fixers of everything else that we forget about number one.
What was that thing they said about helping yourself before others on a plane that is crashing…
As humans we deal with a lot of different emotions and therefore we have a lot of different ways to cope, some being not so good at times so I just want to encourage the person that may be reading this to actively take full advantage of all the different ways you can prioritize your mental health and well being and never lose sight of how important it is.
So even if this is something that you have to officially start joining in on the next October 11th, don’t wait until then to begin to include and make yourself THE priority in your life. Get out of bed each morning and choose that this day will be a day to prioritize yourself and even in small gestures, do little things for yourself that bring you joy.
Until next time my Lovelies.
Peace & Blessings
La’Ray Renee
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