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This qualitative study explored MSW students' perceived facilitators and barriers to self-care. Research suggests MSW students experience high stress from heavy course workloads, internship, and exposure to human suffering. MSW students report difficulty engaging in self-care, even when provided by their programs. Hence, it is important to gain insights into what promotes and prohibits MSW student self-care. MSW students participated in four semi-structured focus groups (N = 27, x- age = 27.8 years, 85.2% female, 55.6% white, 44.4% students of color). Analysis followed a combination of constant comparison and template analysis. Five themes underscore barriers and facilitators to self-care. Findings suggest importance of fostering a culture of self-care in MSW programs and assisting students to alter cognitive roadblocks to self-care.

There is an increasing concern for self-care and quality of life among Master of Social Work (MSW) students as they prepare to serve vulnerable individuals, families, and communities. Evidence suggests numerous benefits to practicing self-care; however, the majority of these studies focus on practitioners in the helping professions as opposed to graduate students working toward their degrees, suggesting a need for research. Accordingly, this study investigates the association between self-care actions, distress tolerance, mindfulness and quality of life among MSW students. A cross-sectional survey design, was used to examine these associations among 148 MSW students. Three multiple regression analyses were conducted to determine the relationship among the key variables. Results suggest that emotional self-care was significantly associated with quality of life, and that the level of engagement in self-care actions differed across students' socioeconomic class. Students' mindfulness and emotional self-care also were positively associated with distress tolerance. Findings suggest that promoting engagement in emotional self-care and mindfulness self-care may promote higher quality of life among MSW students. Implications for MSW programs and the potential to support students' health and sustainable learning are discussed.

Objectives Ageism is a prevalent, insidious social justice issue that has harmful effects on the health of older adults. Preliminary literature explores the intersectionality of ageism with sexism, ableism, and ageism experienced among LGBTQ+ older adults. Yet, the intersectionality of ageism with racism remains largely absent from the literature. Therefore, this study explores the lived experience of the intersectionality of ageism and racism among older adults. Methods This qualitative study applied a phenomenological approach. Twenty participants 60+ years of age (M = 69, standard deviation = 8.84) in the U.S. Mountain West identifying as Black, Latino(a), Asian–American/Pacific Islander, Indigenous, or White engaged in a 1-hr interview between February and July 2021. A 3-cycle coding process applied constant comparison methods. Five coders independently coded interviews, engaging in critical discussion to resolve disagreements. An audit trail, member checking, and peer debriefing enhanced credibility. Results This study focuses on individual-level experiences exemplified by 3 umbrella themes and 7 subthemes. The subthemes are (a) compounding oppression, (b) intersection of disparities, (c) White privilege, (d) racism and ageism: being tokenized or ignored, (e) ageism and racism: unspoken bias, (f) racism versus ageism: overt or covert? and (g) racism versus ageism: differentiated or ubiquitous? Discussion The findings indicate how ageism may be racialized through stereotypes related to mental (in)capability. Practitioners can apply the findings to enhance support for older adults by designing interventions aimed at reducing racialized ageist stereotypes and increasing collaboration through education across anti-ageism/anti-racism initiatives. Future research should focus on the impacts of the intersectionality of ageism and racism on specific health outcomes in addition to structural-level interventions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Mind-body practices (MBPs), which include seated- (meditation) and movement-based practices (yoga, Tai Chi, qigong ), have grown increasingly popular in the United States for improving mental and physical wellness. While literature has identified socioeconomic and health-related factors related to seated- and movement-MBP engagement separately, no studies have explored the factors associated with combined-MBP use. This study accordingly used Anderson's behavioral model of health service utilization to explore sociodemographic and health-related factors associated with seated-, movement-, and combined-MBP engagement among a representative adult sample in the 2017 National Health Interview Survey. Methods: Descriptive statistics were used to summarize sample characteristics. Multinomial logistic regression using survey weights examined associations between predisposing ( race-ethnicity , age , geographic region , sex , sexual minority status , and marital status ), enabling ( educational attainment , income , having continuous health insurance coverage , and having flexible spending accounts ), and needs factors ( psychological distress , self-reported health , and chronic pain ) with type of MBP engagement. Results: Nearly 6% (5.8%) of the U.S. adult population practiced combined-MBPs. Results also showed that educational attainment was associated with increasingly higher odds of utilizing all forms of MBPs and revealed racial-ethnic disparities in movement- and combined-MBP engagement. Combined-MBP engagement was roughly two times higher among those with moderate psychological distress (relative risk ratio [RRR] = 1.92; 95% confidence interval [CI]: 1.58-2.32; p < 0.001), severe psychological distress (RRR = 1.96; 95% CI: 1.35-2.85; p < 0.001), and chronic pain. Conclusions and Implications: Findings suggest that combined-MBPs are utilized by a significant portion of the U.S. population and that engagement has varied distribution across sociodemographic and health factors. Considering the association of combined-MBP usage with mental and physical health needs, the authors recommend that health care providers suggest combined-MBPs as an additional resource for patients with psychological distress or mild chronic pain. Future practice and research can focus on increasing accessibility to MBPs in education settings to reduce racial-ethnic disparities.