A List of 'Self-Care for Otaku' During Periods When You Can't See Your Oshi

There are no events for my oshi!!!!

What do you do during the periods when you can't see your oshi?
I'm an otaku for a 2.5D stage actor, and right now I'm in a two-month dry spell without any events, and I can barely take it anymore.
I want a supply of new 3D images of my oshi soon.

But, on the flip side, I feel like this is a chance (I have to think that way to keep going).

My oshi is always my top priority, and I come second.
Now is the only time I can make myself the top priority.
I want to be a more wonderful version of myself than I was before the next time I see my oshi!

To my fellow otaku who are trembling (an old-fashioned term) because they want to see their oshi, I'd like to propose an "Otaku Self-Care List" 🍀
Let's polish ourselves and get through this period without any supplies from our oshi~!

Otaku's Self-Care List ❤

1. Self-care to pamper your body🛀

● Put effort into your bathing

Baths are the best, after all!卍
Even busy otaku who tend to just take showers should fill up the tub and take a long bath during this period when there are no events and you have some free time.

A bath additive I've used and liked is BARTH, though it's a bit cliché.
It's expensive, but I sleep soundly on the days I use BARTH.
I usually use Bub, and on days when I think, 'I'm really tired today,' I treat myself to BARTH.

Going to a hot spring facility with a large public bath is also nice!
I heard there's a hot spring facility near Sunshine City in Ikebukuro, and I'm thinking I want to go during this self-care period.
If anyone has been there, please tell me what it's like!

● Just sleep

Otaku!! Go to sleep!!!
Sleep is the source of all health.
If you're still in your teens or twenties, you can push yourself.
But once you pass 30, lack of sleep shows on your face and shortens your life. I'm not joking.

Treating yourself to that BARTH I mentioned earlier is good, or you could burn some incense.
Snuggling into your futon with an imaginary cat is also nice.
I sleep with a real cat (flex).

Anyway, let's relax and get plenty of sleep.

2. Self-care to calm your heart📖

● Write reports on your Oshi's events

Event reports pile up so quickly, don't they...
A self-care period is a great time to catch up on writing them!

What I do is print out the photos I've taken on my phone using a mini printer called an inspic, stick them into a Rollbahn notebook, and write down my memories.
You can buy an inspic on Mercari, but be careful because you can't print without photo paper.

The inspic prints with a slightly emotional, sepia-toned feel.
Since it's for personal use, it's okay to print and stick in selfies or group photos of your Oshi!

I'm a hardcore otaku, so I basically can only write "amazing," but even so, when I look back at it later, I can vividly remember what my Oshi looked like at the time.
I can immerse myself in feelings like "That was so fun" or "I loved that scene so much," and it helps me reaffirm my feelings for my Oshi.

Reading other people's reports is also fun!
There are many people on note who are active in their fandoms.
Even if it's a different genre, I just love reports from otaku who are giving their all for their Oshi.

If you publish your fandom activity reports on note, I'll come read them☺

● Engage with the original work of the projects your Oshi appears in

If your Oshi is a 2.5D stage actor, their projects usually have an original source material.
But when your Oshi's events overlap and you're busy, you often can't study them properly.
During your self-care period, let's engage with the original works you missed or the ones coming up!

You could buy a bunch of comics in digital format or hole up in a manga cafe.
If it's a project based on an app game, it takes time to progress through the story, so a self-care period is perfect for that.
For anime, you can watch at double speed, which is efficient (I'm an impatient otaku, so I can't watch at normal speed).

When you discover, "Oh, so that scene was recreated this accurately...!", your trust in your Oshi and your expectations for the next time grow.
My Oshi really is the best~!You can feel that way, so I recommend studying the original work.

3. Self-care to warm up your feelings for your Oshi💌

● Write a letter to your Oshi

Honestly, I think this is the best thing to do.
Convey your feelings for your Oshi directly!!

If there are events, you can sometimes hand over letters at the venue, but during periods without events, you have to send them to the agency.
Doesn't sending a letter all the way to the agency make you look like a serious otaku??


When sending to the agency, I think it's better to use a double envelope.
Put the letter itself in your usual cute envelope, then put that inside another white envelope, and write the agency's address and your own name.

Back when I was an otaku for the AKB group.
I was told that staff members would look through the letters first, and aggressive parts or personal information would be blacked out.

I don't know about stage actors, but if it's the same, wouldn't it be awful if the envelope that reaches your Oshi is all blacked out...?
Even if it's not blacked out, it's awkward to have your address kept by your Oshi.
So, I think it's better to double-envelope it so the outer envelope with your address can be thrown away.

● Review your satisfaction with your fandom spending

Fandom activity always requires a balance with money.
It's surprisingly a harsh world.

During your calm self-care period, try to grasp "how much you spent on which event" once!
And try to honestly rate "how satisfied you were."

You tend to compare yourself with others regarding the amount of merchandise or the number of times you go to events.
Sometimes you might feel anxious seeing photos posted by followers of them fanning out a bunch of tickets, thinking, "I have to try harder."

But is that really what "you" want to do?
If you think about it carefully, you might just be wanting "likes."
How much does the satisfaction level really change between an event you went to 7 times versus 5 times?

If you are pushing yourself to match others.
Maybe it's okay to rethink your pace a little.

To find your own pace, I think it's okay to try going to every single show, or conversely, skipping every event.
You won't know until you experience it.

I've also taken tons of time off work to go on weekday afternoons, and conversely, there have been productions I didn't go to even once.
After experiencing various things, I've now settled on a pace of 'up to 3 times per production'.
(Though Tenimyu is an exception. I lift the 60% limiter and go as much as I can.)

For me, going to a lot of events for a single production wasn't that important.
More than that, making it last so I can 'support them for a lifetime'—I realized that was more important.
Supporting them at your own pace.


Supporting them at your own pace.
To do that, you adjust your own pace.
I think that is the best 'self-care' an otaku can do.

Even during periods when I can't see my oshi, I am 'the me who supports [Name]♡'

Otaku can't live without their oshi.
Even during periods when there is no content from my oshi, I am living as 'the one who supports [Name]'.

Therefore, the self-care period is preparation time to support my oshi with all my might.
When I can see my oshi next, it would be great if I could say, 'Thanks to you, I've become this much better'.

For that reason, fellow otaku,
let's take care of ourselves!!