Wellness, Discipline, and the Making of the Neoliberal Self

Abstract

This paper examines how the neoliberal body is shaped by ideas of self-discipline and wellness. It shows how neoliberal ideology enters bodily practices, wellness talk, and digital tools. Using critical theories of biopower, surveillance, and capitalist subjectivity, the study shows how the body is treated as something that must always improve, guided by market rules and health duties. Wellness was once seen as shared and whole. Now it is turned into a product and treated as a personal matter. This change hides social inequality behind ideas of personal duty. The essay looks at how discipline is taken in through digital self-tracking tools and wellness buying. It also looks at the effects on personal choice, identity, and ways of care. The paper also examines new forms of resistance, such as body neutrality, disability justice, and shared healing. These practices question neoliberal rules and suggest other ways of living with the body.