I have a brief window in which to soak all my troubles away. The rosemary bath salts are in, a candle has been lit and I am hoping to blot out all conscious thought. But something isn’t right. The water is too hot, the herby scent cloying. And what about all the jobs left undone – the bills not paid, the trains not booked?
This probably sounds familiar. If you have ever got out of a bath or left a yoga class more stressed than you were beforehand, you will intuitively understand the concept of faux self-care. In the Goop era in which we live, everything from journals to air purifiers, crystal jewellery to “poop stools” can be packaged up and sold as the answer to stress, burnout and depression, a way for women – because all this is by and large targeted at women – to become their best selves. But, all too often, this is making us feel worse, not better.
