Black women, and rest: Why it’s time for you to go on a women’s retreat?

Dr. Ciera Graham
4 min readSep 8, 2024

We live in a world that is in complete opposition to personal wellness. The daily grind and hustle, coupled with the second shift for women, inflation, racism, and patriarchy are all the antithesis to rest, rejuvenation, and most importantly, the centering of self love, choice and community. As a Black woman, I have always had a contentious relationship with wellness — much of the wellness media that we see centers the needs and experiences of white women. Wellness is a reported $4.5 trillion dollar industry from the $100 lululemon yoga pants, and the imagery of slender blonde, white woman taking her daily Pilates class — it’s hard for women who look like me to find themselves in the wellness space.

Black women, and other women of color are either forced to live a life devoid of wellness or self-care, or to contort themselves in order to fit into the predominately white spaces. I felt a sense of immense gratitude and validation when the Liberate app was developed — a mediation app designed for the Black community which covers topics from anger, depression, and anxiety — topics that are often part of the Black experience emotional lexicon — topics that we often don’t see addressed in white wellness spaces in culturally inclusive ways. Black women in particular have to manage daily stressors from the intersections of racism and sexism, high maternal mortality rates, and less viable options for mental health care — and these stressors are often complicated and more pronounced for Black queer…

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Dr. Ciera Graham

I’m a writer and higher education administrator. A doctor of sociology with a love for writing topics on race, intersectionality, and women’s career issues.