Philosophy Class: What is Self-Care?

Self-care is everywhere. We are told that eating chocolate can be an act of self-care, as can working out, building our bodies, spending time away from our children, cancelling plans at short notice, setting boundaries, standing our ground, putting our own needs first, taking a mental-health day, deleting social media, going on a digital detox, journaling, meditating, going to therapy, protecting our energy, cutting “toxic” people out of our lives, or simply learning to say no. Around this idea, an enormous market has emerged. Books, podcasts, retreats, coaching programs, wellness products, meditation apps and online courses promise to teach us how to take better care of ourselves. But what exactly are we being offered here? Some of these practices may genuinely help us live better lives. Others seem suspiciously close to the old imperative of self-optimization in a new guise: become calmer, healthier, more resilient, more productive, more efficient — so that you can continue functioning within a society already organized around performance and achievement. If we want a more substantial answer to the question of self-care, we therefore need to begin somewhere more fundamental: What is this “self” that we are supposed to care for? And what would it actually mean to care for it well? These questions are much older than the contemporary wellness industry. They belong to the very beginnings of Western philosophy. In this three-part course, we will use ancient philosophy to examine what self-care might mean beyond comfort, consumption and self-optimization. At the center will be a question that started with Plato and remains strikingly contemporary: What kind of relationship should we have with ourselves? Workshops @CHAPEL Raum für Stadtkultur Heidelberg. 💻 Online participation possible (hybrid) – write me a message! 💶This is a paid event. Cost: €15–30 (pay what you choose, cash at the event) Session 3 — The Stoic Alternative: Is Inner Independence Enough? The final session turns to Stoicism, with selected passages from Epictetus’ Enchiridion and Discourses. The Stoics offer a simple answer to the problem of self-care. Epictetus begins from a radical distinction: some things are under our control, while others are not. Our judgments, attitudes and responses belong to us; our bodies, possessions, reputation, social status and ultimately the actions of other people do not. The promise: if we learn to withdraw our happiness from everything outside our control, we can become inwardly free and largely invulnerable to fortune. This sounds remarkably close to many contemporary ideals of self-care: protecting our peace, becoming emotionally independent, setting boundaries, refusing to let other people determine our well-being. And it is certainly no coincidence that Stoic philosophy is so popular today. But does this solution work? We will examine the Stoic proposal critically and compare it with Plato’s. Where do the two traditions agree? Where do they fundamentally diverge? And what might be lost if self-care comes to mean making ourselves independent of everything and everyone that can hurt us? The course ends by returning to our original question: What would it mean to care for ourselves in a way that does not merely make us feel better or function better, but actually helps us become more unified within ourselves? Whether you are new to philosophy or already interested in big questions, this workshop offers an opportunity to think deeply, share your views, and learn from others. Anna will conduct the workshop in an interactive way, making sure to make it engaging for everyone while also providing some inspiring input. After the workshop we will be able to discuss further and socialise at our brunch at Café Reno. About the host: Classes: https://linktr.ee/_inspiration_philosophie_ Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/_inspiration_philosophie_/ Blog: https://substack.com/@inspirationphilosophy Research: https://maxrohstock.academia.edu/ Anna Maria Lambertz-Rohstock is a doctoral researcher at the Department of Philosophy at Heidelberg University. She is currently completing her Ph.D. with a dissertation on the fulfilled moment in the Neoplatonic tradition and the existential philosophy of Søren Kierkegaard, supported by a scholarship from the German Academic Scholarship Foundation (Studienstiftung des deutschen Volkes). In 2023, she founded the initiative Inspiration Philosophy, for which she received one of the German Academic Scholarship Foundation's Civic Engagement Awards in 2024. Group: Heidelberg Philosophical Society Going: 1 / 40 spots Group members: 1,641 Official listing: https://www.meetup.com/heidelberg-philosophical-society/events/316058528/