The Wellness Gap Is Real-and This Emoji Nails It

By Kim Palmer

Apple just dropped a new emoji - and yeah, it hit a bit too close to home 😮‍💨 If you haven’t seen it, it’s the ‘exhausted’ emoji. At first I thought, cool, this pretty much sums us all up. But after pondering it, I’m starting to think this is a massive missed opportunity by Apple.

Hear me out. We’ve got more wellness content, products, and tools than ever. Whole aisles dedicated to calm. Entire feeds teaching “self-care.”
But ask anyone how they’re actually doing, and the answer?
Tired.
Burnt out.
On the brink - but with a nice jade roller.

We’re spending more on wellness while feeling worse. That’s the contradiction.
I call it the wellness gap - and this little ‘exhausted’ emoji? Sums it up perfectly:

Face with bags under eyes. The emoji represents exhaustion, sleep deprivation, and general burnout.
Yeah. That emoji is basically everyone I know, pretending they didn’t wake up at 3am spiraling about work, money, family stuff, or just... life in general.

But here’s a thought: instead of just reflecting how fried we are, what if emojis could actually help us feel better?

What if they became teeny tiny nudges toward actual rest, real boundaries, and a slower, more intentional life?

So, I made a set with the help of chatgpt.
Meet the Rest Revolution Emoji Set™:
A tiny toolkit for the emotionally done.

Created with chatgpt.

🐢 Slow Down Emoji

For when you're not rushing for anyone—not even yourself.

“moving slow on purpose today 🐢”
“don’t @ me, i’m in low power mode 🐢”
“cancelled my plans to stare at the ceiling 🐢”
“not rushing. not stressing. not my problem 🐢”

✋😌 Boundaries Emoji

Soft stop. Kind no. Energy? Protected.

“love u, but i’m not leaving the house tonight ✋😌”
“this is me not replying to work emails after 6 ✋😌”
“hard pass on chaos today ✋😌”
“if it’s not restful or joyful, it’s a no ✋😌”

😴💫Power Nap Emoji

Naps aren’t lazy. They’re survival.

“brb power napping my way to emotional stability 😴💫”
“just closed my eyes for 8 mins and became a better person 😴💫”
“napping so i don’t lose the plot 😴💫”
“life’s a lot. nap first, deal later 😴💫”

📵 Digital Detox Emoji

The phone’s off. The peace is on.

“turning my phone off and pretending it's 1997 📵”
“catch me in do-not-disturb until further notice 📵”
“log off. go outside. touch grass. 📵”
“i’m not ignoring you, i’m just offline and thriving 📵”

Maybe this is what real wellness looks like.
Not more products. Not another sleep tracker.
Just tiny moments that actually help. A nap. A boundary. A “not today.”

It doesn’t take much—just a few small shifts.
One emoji-sized reminder at a time.

So here’s an idea:
Let’s start a Rest Revolution.
Let’s call on Apple (and everyone else) to stop designing for hustle culture - and start designing for healing culture.
Give us emojis that don’t just reflect our burnout…
Give us ones that inspire our boundaries, naps, and soft no’s.

Because small things can be powerful.
Even tiny icons on a screen.

And maybe - just maybe - that’s how we close the wellness gap:
Not by doing more. But by caring more. For ourselves. For real.