Growing up, I witnessed firsthand the relentless toll that labor can take on the human body. My mother, a dedicated hair stylist, stands for over 12 hours a day, making her body a silent battlefield where every muscle and joint fights a daily war. As a result, the sight of her returning home from work, her face etched with exhaustion, is a heartbreaking reminder of the sacrifices made by those who endure physically demanding jobs.

My mother’s profession is not just about snipping, styling, and beautifying; it’s a labor of love that requires incredible physical and emotional resilience. Day in and day out, she stands on her feet, lifting, reaching, and stretching to create the perfect look for her clients. The reality is that, despite her dedication to making others look and feel beautiful, her own body has borne the brunt of this grueling work. It’s a trade-off many laborers face, whether they’re construction workers, nurses, or hairstylists.

As a child, I often watched my mother return from work with her body in a constant state of agony. Her feet swollen, her shoulders slouched, and her face etched with pain. Witnessing her struggle was difficult, and it instilled in me a deep understanding of the physical and emotional toll that labor can take. My mother’s resilience is nothing short of inspiring, but it is disheartening to see how her sacrifices have impacted her overall well-being.

This upbringing, observing the demanding nature of my mother’s job, has had a significant influence on the choices I’ve made in life, especially regarding my career path. I knew from a young age that I didn’t want to embark on a career that would subject me to the same grueling physical demands. Instead, I chose to pursue a major in Information Systems. This decision was not just about escaping the physical rigors of labor but also about harnessing the power of technology and data to make work and life more efficient and manageable.

In Information Systems, I’ve found a way to contribute to the world by streamlining processes and solving problems without subjecting my body to relentless physical strain. I’ve chosen a field that allows me to make a meaningful impact while safeguarding my own health and well-being.

While I am grateful for the lessons my mother’s labor has taught me about hard work and perseverance, I am also mindful of the importance of preserving one’s body and mental health. Watching her journey has reinforced the need to appreciate and support those who engage in physically demanding jobs.

My mother is one of the countless unsung heroes who endure the physical and emotional challenges of labor, and her story serves as a poignant reminder of the sacrifices made by millions of people worldwide. It’s essential that we recognize and appreciate the resilience and dedication of laborers, and work towards creating environments that prioritize their well-being.

As I continue my journey in Information Systems, I carry with me the profound respect and admiration for those who labor tirelessly, like my mother. Their sacrifices are the foundation upon which our society is built, and it is only fitting that we acknowledge and honor their unwavering dedication to making the world a better place, one day at a time.

Often, I am told by my parents to “spend more time on your schoolwork” or get asked “what do you spend more time on, your schoolwork or your computer games?” I’ve always understood this as a dig towards me in order to make me prioritize my schoolwork, but that’s difficult in of itself. When I get home after school or work, I’m tired from just being around so many people or having to interact with people at my job. On top of that, when I genuinely want to try and do my work, a brain fog takes over and it gets super difficult to get started on doing any work. There have been many times where I have essentially wasted 2 hours trying to get myself to start my work, only to fail and do something else like video games to see if my brain wants to cooperate then. I tried many things too; I used to listen to music, but when that didn’t worked, I listened to videos on youtube. And when that didn’t work, I even had to once play a fairly hands off game on my other monitor in order to keep progressing on my homework because I couldn’t focus otherwise. Nowadays its better, though it’s at the cost of my own motivation to attempt my school work because I enjoy doing my hobbies so much more. I feel like this may be some form of ADHD or an attention problem of mine, though because I don’t have any kind of official diagnosis to get proper help or accommodations in school.

Watching the way that labor affects people is so sad. As a kid my mother use to come home from 12 hour night shifts and I could see the exhaustion all over her face. My mother was a labor and delivery nurse at John Hopkins. In the way she spoke, the way she walked, the way she cooked, and approached life as a whole she just seemed like she was so tired. She was so tired all the time it felt. You would think she liked to sleep more than she loved to spend time with me.

But as I am older and now working my own job, I completely understand why she felt the way she felt all the time. The most I work in a week is between 20-25 hours and it my feet will continuously ache on in agony. At the end of each shift I want nothing more than to lay in my bed and recuperate from simply speaking to people all day. Labor is hard, and it all comes down to the systemic class system that is set up. The people who do the least labor get the most money and it is just simply unfair and inhumane. So many current business owners have the ideology that “money comes before the mental health of employees” and it is heartbreaking because of how much that is reflected in todays society.

I am what is considered a rainbow baby. For people who don’t know what that is a rainbow baby is a child born after a miscarriage, stillbirth, or neonatal death. When I was first informed of this I didn’t have much of an opinion. I felt bad for my mother but when I was told I was young and didn’t understand what that meant for my mom. After watching Aftershock there was a thought in my head.

Was my mom properly cared for by her doctors?  I hate that I have to question this but it doesn’t help that I was also a C-Section baby. Since C-Sections are more likely to be given to black women I question was necessary or if was it just simpler for them. For my mom having a child was difficult and it could’ve been more difficult based on her race. The idea of midwifery is prominent throughout Aftershock and I think about how it might’ve changed my birth.

Even thinking of other children I think about the difficulties many people go through. Aftershock really opened my eyes to a problem that goes hidden. It ties heavily into other ideas we talk about in class such as black people getting worse treatment from doctors in general but the concept of women is slightly different. The idea of them having a higher pain tolerance comes from nothing but is still currently believed in the medical field and that worries me. There have been times when I have complained to a doctor of pain and them asking multiple times if the pain was really that bad because I seemed to be fine but I felt that I needed to present being fine. Learning the ideas of the medial field are based on old practices based on racism is genuinely scary

Living under capitalism is ass, not just because of inflation or the 1% but because it makes life and people so unempathetic. Everything is based on how you can use your body for capital instead of compassion. There is no consideration for others because trying to get through the day in one piece takes up all your mental energy. There is no accessibility because in a capitalist society what is the need to help people with disabilities if they cannot work with maximum efficiency? Dehumanizing people according to their ability to work is disgusting and shameful, but I am not surprised when it happens. On the flip side, people are dehumanized because they are made to work efficiently like black people. No matter what side of physical capability you are on, you get dehumanized; when you are in the middle it only gets a little better. You are seen as human but not really, you are seen as a cog in a machine that will only help the wealthy elites. If everyone is not seen as people- and seen as worthy of human rights-, why would people stand up for others to fight against capitalism? Standing and fighting together is hard when you do not see other people as worthy allies. The normalization of people being treated as less than human perpetuates capitalism because you always think there is someone below you who will protect you from the mistreatment, but there is not.

Emotional labor is everywhere and it’s important to think about who is engaging in this work. As discussed in class, emotional labor is the management and/or suppression of emotions while performing paid labor. Because of this definition, it is implied that emotional labor refers to domestic, sex, and service work, among other things. Essentially, emotional labor is tied to jobs that require an emotional appeal to others while maintaining one’s own composure. 

But who is most likely to engage in this form of labor? Lower class women of color. These are the women who have to take up intimate labor jobs such as maidwork and food service. These jobs are hard enough, especially having to deal with rude customers who treat workers like they are undeserving of human respect. Women of color may face racism, classism, and xenophobia while simply doing their jobs. On top of that, workers must put on a smile and just dreadfully make it through their shift. They must feed into a capitalist system and be compliant to protect their jobs even when they are being treated unfairly. For lower class women of color, emotional labor is not only required for their jobs, it is necessary for their lives. Their bodies are used to create profit, and they must operate like perfect machines, else they be easily replaced by someone more obedient. 

I also wonder about the emotional labor that disabled workers must face. For disabled people working in intimate labor jobs, their bodies are made to be spectacles. Those with physical disabilities may be infantilized or treated poorly. The worker must manage the anger and frustration and anxiety that comes with this treatment. Those with hidden disabilities may have to work much harder to be a productive and fast worker, likely without accommodations. Of course, there is a layer of exhaustion that comes with this constant overextension of the body without rest. 

In both cases, the worker is displayed as a capitalist object whose only purpose is to contribute to mass production and consumerism. Their bodies are strategically put into low wage positions and are then made to be scrutinized. The exhaustion and anxiety that comes with this must be managed by the individual. It is unfortunately their own responsibility to handle the emotions that come with systemic racism, classism, sexism, and ableism. 

I’m not lower class or disabled, but in sharing a bit of my own experience as a woman of color, when I worked in a local boutique, this responsibility fell on me. We had a very close-knit and small staff, and while diverse, I felt like I was constantly dealing with microaggressions. This was back in 2020 while the elections were going on, and so you can imagine my fear, confusion, and overall frustration when I found out my seemingly cool boss with a dyed pixie cut was a Trump supporter. Suddenly I began reexamining the way she had been treating me. Every time she would come into work she pretended like she didn’t know I was working that day and she would constantly ignore me in conversations with other staff members. She successfully made me feel like I didn’t belong there. I became increasingly uncomfortable but I still had to maintain my composure and make sure that I wasn’t showing my emotions. I had to suppress my anxiety and fear because I wanted to keep my job and I didn’t want to make my work environment any more uncomfortable than it already was. I thought the more I tried to manage my own emotions while putting on a smile and just working, the better my boss would treat me. Then I ended up quitting because I realized that it should not be my responsibility to put on a good face when I’m being treated poorly…amongst other reasons. But for many lower class women of color and disabled folk quitting is not an option. So what is the answer to this problem? Do we have to just endure and cope? Is there a solution to the harms of emotional labor?

The title of this post is a lie, most of the time. Usually I’m happy to write more open-ended things; dealing in the land of theory and abstract. I enjoy the many little things, as many creatives do, and want to make sense of all that life has to offer. I make use of myself to help others see things; holding up mirrors and windows for people to look out in and in. This past week though, I am continually reminded that we aren’t taught what to do when we see ourselves in the mirror; facing the you inside of you, our underneath truths surfacing in the expressions of our faces.

I didn’t want to write this blog post because I could not bear to face my grandma. Her life was cut short by the very industry she gave it too; years worked as a nurse in the same hospital, only to pass there too. Helping black women and children through years of health, and yet she could not help herself. Working constantly by the condition of her upbringing; she avoided the aches in her body, the tiredness in her face, her hands battered by years, her mind overwhelmed with worries. She was alone in her struggles; I was still too young to help nor understand when she went. I am thinking of her voice when I hear the way the medical complex treats black women and I sigh a deep sigh, one I’m sure I share with ancestors long past my time .

I didn’t want to write this blog post because I could not bear to face my mother. Her aspirations were dimmed with my birth; she worked herself so hard inside and outside the home to provide for her kids, resulting in a myriad of medical issues she left undiagnosed until now. The worry she has when getting new doctors, praying the next one will believe her and continue her medicine. Glossing over minor hiccups because what other choice could she have? Health hinders progress; A lesson she’s finally beginning to reverse.

I didn’t want to write this post because I couldn’t bear to face myself; a culmination of the experiences of the women before me. How much have I learned? I avoid the horrors of reproductive thoughts, only to fall into the trap of overwork again. “Health does not hinder progress!” I say. But I know that if I go to the hospital for that ache, how much of my life will I lose? If I so choose to start a family, how much of the work will fall on me?

(artwork by Joel Gehmen)

Is my body broken if its shattered pieces are held together by flesh colored adhesive that is merely my own mental salve?

Do I suffer from pain if the constant ache in my bones is an echo of the violent histories passed down for generations? 

Is it illness if the markers are not physical, the symptoms not visible, and there is no possible diagnosis in western medicine to comprehend this malaise? 

How does one treat such dysfunction? With brave smiles and silent resolve? With quiet tears and chronic despair? Or with hordes of medication that sedate and suppress but fail to inhabit the exact synapse of cellular transmission communicating to the brain that all will be well and that peace can be found?

Where is wholeness to be found if no one can see all the broken pieces? 

Yet I know my pain, I know my illness, I know my suffering. None can take that knowing from me. Because if they could, I would let them.

Labor can mean different things to different people.  Especially women.  Women go into labor at the end of pregnancy but it doesn’t end there.  Two words for you, laboring mothers.  For much of the twentieth century, it was more or less unheard of for a woman to be out in the workforce.  Young girls were brought up to be young ladies, to marry and bear children.  Caring for children and doing house work can be challenging too.  On top of that, she was expected to have a warm meal ready for her husband when he got home from bringing home the bacon as it were.  Apart from teachers, nurses, and secretaries, women stayed home until a little after the second half of the twentieth century or so.  

Nowadays, it isn’t at all uncommon for both parents to be in the workforce but don’t let that fool you into thinking that women get paid the same or treated the same as men.  Of course not, that would be absurd! (sarcasm)  If that isn’t enough, there is also the problem of having to worry about sexual harassment in the workplace.  It’s not fair but for some reason, society just accepts it as if it were some kind of right of passage.  When women are sexually harassed in the workplace, we are supposed to take it in stride or even take it as a COMPLIMENT?? If we say something, we are made out to be bitches who “can’t take a joke”.  This is something that happens more than one might think because most women don’t report because we decide it’s not worth it or because we have seen other women crucified for speaking up.  

Gloria Allred was a single mother for most of her daughter’s life.  She maintained a career and raised a daughter all without a man and she is one of, if not the most respected women’s rights activists.  But not without struggles.  For example, everything she did was scrutinized by men because she was a female lawyer in a man’s world.  She is just one example of how amazing and capable women are.  We can do more than play the role of the 1950’s housewife.  

In recent years, I have noticed many women don’t want to have children.  I am one of those women.  You know those people who really shouldn’t be parents but are?  I’m one of the ones that should not be a parent but I am aware of it.  I don’t want to be a mother, I shouldn’t be a mother.  No child should have to grow up knowing they weren’t wanted.  I always say the biggest favor I could do a child is not be its mother.   I am too selfish and I know and accept this.  To be a good parent, one must be selfless and be willing to sacrifice a great deal.  I would rather put my energy into a career and only have to worry about taking care of myself.  That’s another thing– I can’t cook.  The kid would starve to death.  I am in awe of all women who make something of themselves, mothers or not. 

I don’t know if it’s just me but whenever I see families playing with their kids on the swings, or kids running around on the playground goofing off just being kids, I am constantly reminded that ‘I’ as a female and socially and ‘biologically’ obliged to give birth to the next generation because only female can give birth (I think it’s obvious…). Now don’t get me wrong, kids are great; they’re lovable, cute, and small and I’ve been told that being a parent is very rewarding (If you can’t tell already, I’m giving anyone who told me that a side-eye). But, I don’t think our generation (GenZ) was meant to birth future generations, at least, not when our parents hoped we would.

Now, this is all coming from a 2nd gen who’s family came from India on a work visa so my parents and my grandparents all grew up on a very traditional standard, which isn’t a bad thing but it’s difficult to explain to your parents why you don’t want to get married at an early age and start a family. I’m still a sophomore in college but I still feel the looks and the indirect pressure that my mom and dad’s side of the family give to not only me but my other female cousins as well. My parents and my grandparents grew up in an era where the cost of college tuition was cheap (most of the time, females didn’t even go to college), and finding a home was never the problem (in a traditional Indian home, the wife usually lives with the husband’s family and cares for his parents and lives with them and in American, housing was pretty affordable). People were more dependent on their own family and raising one rather than exploring careers and making money to pay rent and food for the week. I get looked down upon when I tell my grandparents especially, that I do not want to depend on my husband/wife/significant other (if I ever get one that is) and want to simply enjoy my life and my career without the distractions of looking after my family. It’s not that I don’t want a family (and I’ll look after my parents when they get old) but I don’t want to make the choice between my career and my family, I simply wouldn’t be able to make that sacrifice for either.

I’m a bit too young to start a family, in my opinion, because I have mouths to feed (yes, plural all for me), tuition (doesn’t help that I don’t work at all during the school semester), and I’m too afraid to even have intercourse. Birth control pills, protection, hospital bills, a literal child first- off, everything costs money (and frankly, I’m not even old enough to get my tubes tied). The whole idea of pregnancy just scares me and it’s not something I want to go through. I’m not saying it’s a horrible experience as it’s quite the opposite but personally, I don’t want to give birth and have kids even if I’m financially (and mentally) stable. I’m sure most people, if not all listen to the news about what happened with Roe v Wade; even though it was overturned, as a female, I am appalled and frightened of what could possibly happen to me if I get pregnant and don’t want a kid. Not only that, I get treated differently based on my skin, my gender, my age and, how I present myself. If I can’t put my full faith into society and expect them to help me in times of need, that’s a toxic relationship I don’t want to be in. And thankfully people are recognizing that there needs to be a change in the way we treat each other because at the end of the day, we are all still human. At this point in time, what I do with my body and my persona, isn’t even up to me. It’s “My” body.