Dump your matcha and have a cigarette, bitch
Surprising observations from one of the world's blue zones
I'm currently on an island in Greece, one of the world's Blue Zones, and so far, I can tell that people here are doing the exact opposite of what modern health coaches advise — they're drinking wine and coffee (with raw milk, not oatly duh), smoking cigarettes, eating carbs and sitting in the sun. The self proclaimed spiritual coaches hiding their insecurities under a beige Instagram feed could NEVER which leaves me to think: What if, maybe, just maybe we don’t need more self-discipline; we simply need to live in community and not take life so damn seriously? What if our health depends less on the nutrition we provide our bodies and more on the nourishment we provide our minds?
It’s 2024. We’re all stressed—badly, overwhelmingly stressed and exhausted from the daily grind. Not only are we stressed, but we’re also isolated, and some of us are even married. If that’s not a recipe for disaster, I don’t know what is. Since we’re stressed under capitalism, the good news is that we at least have money to pay for stress relief, usually in the form of alcohol, cigarettes, or parties to numb our minds from obsessing over our stress. However, as I embarked on my own healing journey (excuse this annoyingly overused phrase, but what else to call it?), I realized that this escape mechanism isn’t the only dangerous trend in our society. There’s a billion-dollar industry built on spirituality and wellness, trying really hard to make us fear caffeine, carbs, and, well, basically everything that's fun??
Hi, I’m Sarah! I write about not taking life too seriously and finding a middle ground between my wellness era and my party girl era. Come join the madness!!
This industry preys on our insecurities and our desire to feel in control when everything else seems chaotic. It offers solutions in the form of overpriced supplements, detox programs, and rigid diets, promising that if we just follow their advice, we’ll become THAT girl. But what they don’t tell us is that this pursuit of “wellness” can become just another form of stress. We start obsessing over every bite of food, every sip of coffee, and every thought that crosses our minds, convinced that we’re one misstep away from failure. It’s a trap, really—a new kind of prison where we’re still chasing an unattainable ideal, but now under the guise of self-care and personal growth.
In this world, balance becomes elusive. We’re so focused on “fixing” ourselves that we forget to actually live. We substitute genuine connection with others for Instagram posts about our morning routines and mindfulness practices. We trade spontaneous joy for the strict schedules of our meditation apps and yoga classes. What’s ironic is that while we’re all striving for wellness, we’re missing out on the very things that truly nourish us: community, laughter, and the freedom to simply be without constant self-improvement. The pursuit of perfection leaves us exhausted and disconnected, far from the peace we’re seeking.
Maybe the real challenge is learning to navigate the middle ground, where we can go feral from time to time or have a sip of wine in the sun without guilt and take care of ourselves without obsession. Because in the end, health is less about what we put in our bodies or how disciplined we are—it's more about how we live, how we connect, and how we find joy in the everyday moments.
Ikarians, who are said to be some of the longest-living people on our planet (and that’s although no one here has ever heard of matcha, supplements, or hot yoga), seem to have it figured out. As I observed their behavior while shamelessly adding more sugar to my cappuccino freddo and lighting another cigarette, I noticed they simply live a healthy life very naturally (very demure, very cutesy). No one here worries about eating carbs at night or having another glass of wine, even if it’s 7 a.m. on a Monday. No one cares about forced exercise or scheduled yoga classes.
While we consume coffee to counteract our sleep deprivation from too much work and wine to quiet our minds from obsessing over our miserable lives, they consume these so-called dangerous substances simply for the pleasure of it. Exercise is integrated into their normal routine by swimming in the sea and walking from one village to another. Napping is an essential part of their day, and the food is not only locally produced but also usually consumed in community.
Take that as your sign to invite the group chat over for a dinner party, pour some wine, and live as carefree as the Ikarians do for a few hours. Don’t worry about your Google Calendar—it will be there waiting for you once you’ve recovered from your hangover.
Pic via Instagram @mignonettetakespictures
Being forced to work 40+ hours a week, which doesn’t include commuting time, is truly what’s making us unwell. They can tell us we just need more discipline or to do this or that thing, but what really needs to happen is our work weeks being drastically shorter and the expansion of the social safety net in the U.S. This is why for me, if your wellness agenda doesn’t include indicting capitalism and the culture of urgency and hyper-productivity, I don’t trust you.
In his book Drunk, Edward Slingerland distinguishes between "northern" and "southern" drinking cultures.
In northern drinking culture (America, Canada, the UK, Scandinavia, etc.), there is an emphasis on working hard all week and then getting completely hammered one day or night on the weekend.
In southern drinking culture (Italy, Greece, Spain, etc.), people work at a less intense pace and might have one or two glasses of wine each day throughout the week, but they never get knockout drunk.
Northern drinking culture also encourages men to "go out with the boys" (or women to party with their girlfriends) and bond through drunken shenanigans.
Southern drinking culture features extended families getting together (grandparents, aunties, uncles, cousins, children, etc.) and everyone drinking a little, but no one getting sloshed to the gills.
Being noticeably wasted is looked down on in southern drinking culture, while participants in northern drinking culture brag about how much they consumed the night prior ("I put down 13 pints and a couple shots of Jack last night...").
I can't remember the exact reasons for these two different drinking cultures (it might have to do with climate), but it sounds like you were witnessing a southern drinking culture firsthand!