Categories of Care

Eight ways people can show up for each other. Each one is a real, specific kind of care, not a synonym for the others.

1 OF 8

Expressive & Emotional Care

Showing someone that their feelings and their state are seen, not managed around. This is the care that lets someone feel understood before anything gets fixed.

2 OF 8

Respectful & Relational Care

Treating someone's dignity, attention, and voice as real. This is care that shows up in how closely you listen and how much weight you give someone's preference, not just in what you do for them.

3 OF 8

Behavioral & Altruistic Care

Acting on someone's behalf, sometimes at real cost to yourself. This is care that costs the giver something: time, comfort, standing, or safety.

4 OF 8

Practical & Instrumental Care

Doing the actual, tangible work someone needs done. This is care measured in outcomes: the thing got fixed, the meal got made, the skill got passed on.

5 OF 8

Communicative & Informational Care

Passing along the truth, the update, or the warning someone needs, especially before they ask for it. This is care that runs through what you choose to say and when.

6 OF 8

Physical & Bodily Care

Tending to someone's body directly: comfort, touch, rest, presence during something hard. This is care that happens in the same room, not at a distance.

7 OF 8

Anticipatory & Preventive Care

Seeing a need coming and acting before it arrives. This is care that shows up as preparation, not response.

8 OF 8

Systemic & Collective Care ("Caring With")

Building the conditions that let a whole group, not just one relationship, hold up under pressure. This is care aimed at a system rather than a person.

Explore the specific acts inside each category on Kinds of Care.