No pain, no gain but do we need to be so mean to ourselves anyway?

Yesterday I took the day off work for my 4th back tattoo session...

This means that I took a day without earning any money to almost puke and faint on a tattoo parlour table from sheer pain.🥴😅

Why do we push ourselves so hard anyway?

Talking to my daughter in the evening, I realised physical and mental pain is part of my daily life, as it is for most women. I made a list of the most excruciating types of pain I've experienced in my life.

Two things stand out: it's a long list and most of it is self-inflicted, meaning it's the consequence of a conscious choice.

Where am I going with this?

Well, since we already spend so much time putting ourselves through painful ordeals such as tattoos, hair removal, plastic surgery and aesthetic procedures, diets, pregnancy, giving birth, cardio exercise, weight lifting, flexibility and mobility training, sports in general, injuries, etc. etc.

Not to mention what our minds have to go through day in and day out...

... Why not give ourselves a physical and mental break at least some of the time?

We're only human after all and our bodies and brains are subject to enough pain as it is... 😉

This is a reminder to be a bit kinder to ourselves... sometimes...