To me, it means "do something you love, but do infrequently," spoil yourself. Go the extra mile for extra comfort.

Could be anything! Ordering yourself an entire chocolate cake and proceeding to make decisions you'll regret (but... I mean... chocolate cake!), going for a spa day if you can afford it, getting yourself some of those expensive cigarettes you love but avoid buying, going out and buying yourself a nice shirt/dress you've been eyeing for a while, organising a special day out with good company, visiting that place you wanted to visit but kept putting off, etc.

I think you're the rarer case of someone who doesn't have a lot of heavy responsibilities. And that's not bad, but I understand why that saying wouldn't make much sense for you in that context.

Often we have others to care for--kids, parents, other kinds of dependents. And those responsibilities are different from a job. When I leave work, I can forget about it. But my kids don't stop existing when I leave for the office. If I don't do my responsibilities at my job, I might have to find another job. If I don't take care of my kids, they could literally die.

When you have those responsibilities, it's easy to forget to take of yourself, and even easier to forget to do something that you enjoy. There's sometimes guilt associated with it too--spending money on something for me means there's less to spend on my family. And we need to be reminded that it's okay to take care of ourselves too.

In addition, some folks struggle to see themselves in a positive light. There are plenty of reasons, but the result is the same--they neglect themselves. Doing "something nice" for themselves is a way to affirm that they are worth loving, worth being nice to. Even if they have the resources, they might not do the things they like because they don't feel they deserve it. And if they also have heavy responsibilities, it can be a really tough place to be.

That's not to say you can't do something nice for yourself or that it's only limited to those people. Maybe try to think of yourself as a separate person--what would they think is nice? What would make them smile, or otherwise make their day? You may think of something outside of your usual routine that you'd really enjoy. Or maybe it's just reminding yourself that you're great and worth loving.

And if nothing else, when someone tells you to do something nice for yourself, you can say, "thanks, I try to do that every day!"

For me: barrel of red vines, taffy, chocolate cake or ice cream, a good movie or series, some nice fresh juice (preferably any combination of mango/peach/apple/orange), and the will to choose not to think about how bad my tummy will feel later. That's my 'burnt-out and in need of simple comfort' recipe, at least.

My 'fine but wanna treat myself anyway' recipe is basically spending an afternoon (or sometimes a night) cooking up a big complicated meal and then eating it. Preferably with company, but that's not always an option for now. Might get some bubbly or a couple Blue Moons if I'm feeling especially celebratory.

Then there's also the smaller stuff like laying around with my cats awhile, taking a long hot shower, napping, hiking, a slightly pricier than it should purchase, etc.

Whatever makes you feel comfortable or a little more joyful; that is treating yourself. Within reason ofc.

When I think of that phrase I generally take it to mean something beyond your usual routine. So if you normally eat whatever you want, eating what you want doesn't count anymore because it's part of your baseline. Maybe going out for a special meal that's a bit fancier and you wouldn't do all the time could be considered treating yourself. Or just going for a walk in nice weather if it's not something you normally do. The main criteria in my mind is that you enjoy it and it's something you do for yourself beyond your usual life routine.