Susie TaaffeChief of Staff, RAMMP · Chief of Staff & Strategic Operator | AI-First | RAMMP | Building What Doesn’t Exist Yet

Self-Care Is Not the Spa Day. Here's What It Actually Is | Susie on the Sofa with Cass

5 Jun 2026 · 3 min

Watch on YouTube

2:48

In this informal segment of the "Susie on the Sofa with Cass" series, Susie Taaffe reframes self‑care away from stereotypical spa‑day imagery toward everyday micro‑moments that give permission to feel good. She argues that self‑care is essentially gifting yourself pockets of time to engage in activities that light you up—what she calls the "wiggle"—whether that’s mowing the lawn, tidying the house, cooking, or any personal pleasure. By deliberately choosing these moments, you regulate your nervous system and boost wellbeing. Susie also advises a pragmatic balance: when you’re in flow, fully engage; when you’re not, do the bare minimum. For busy parents, she suggests protecting small blocks of time (e.g., leaving 20 minutes early to sit in a car park) to create a safe space for breathing, music, journaling, or other calming practices. The overall message is a supportive, actionable guide to integrating self‑care into daily life through intentional, personalized, and protected micro‑breaks.

Chapters

So tapping into those. So that's, that's the goal. I said we're not giving homework and all I've done is dish out homework left, right, and center. Maybe I should have been a teacher. Definitely not. Um, but just like micro moments and gifting yourself permission to do things to make— like, that's what I think self-care is. Self-care is not the eye mask. It's not the spa day. It's not the it's not the thing. It's the gifting yourself the space and the time to do something that makes you feel good. Yeah, and by making yourself feel good, you regulate your nervous system. Exactly. So that is not bad homework. No, I don't think like I am literally your homework is to find yourself pockets of space. to gift yourself the time to make yourself feel good. Yeah. However that is, it doesn't matter. Yours is good. Like, you might love to mow the lawn. Yeah. Not me. It might— like, the smell of fresh-cut grass. You might put some music on and like dance around and mow the lawn. Like, if that makes you feel good, go and do it. Like, I actually— it's really funny because sometimes what is going to make me feel good is the tidy house, and I'll put on the music and it will make— like, I get— I gift myself the time to get the house all nice and tidy and sparkly. Yeah. But I'm coming from a place of that's What is going to light me up? I really want to do it at the time, and it's not all the time. I can promise you my house is a mess half the time because at the time I think the thought of tidying it up is like, "Uh, I can't be bothered." Like, are you getting an uh feeling or are you getting a yeah? I can't wait. This is going to be so yeah. The wiggle. The wiggle. Is it giving you uh or is it giving you wiggle? That's that's your homework. Is it giving you uh? Is it giving you wiggle? And as I said, like I love cooking as a meditation, but Sometimes we eat toast. Often we eat pretty basic. Like, I have to be in the flow. And as I said, I'll cook 8 dishes at once for one person because my kids won't eat any of it. But when you're in the flow, do it. And when you're not, if it feels, uh, or if it's a must-do, do the bare minimum. Yeah. And buy yourself some time around it for things that give you the wiggle or the release, the breath, the physical body side. Like, as— and also as like a busy mum, sometimes like leave 20 minutes early and buy yourself 20 minutes in the car park waiting to pick the kids up from school. Like, you are sort of safeguarding that 20 minutes, and maybe you close your eyes, maybe you put some music on, maybe you— who knows what— like journal in Notes, video journal.