000			02939nab a22002897a 4500
999			_c8631 _d8631
005			20250625151658.0
008			240422s2024 -nz||||| |||| 00| 0 eng d
022			_a2463-4131
040			_aAFVC
100			_aTesta, Doris _912851
245			_a‘They are my tribe’ : _cDoris Testa _bhow a self-organising women’s group built a sisterhood that improved wellbeing and increased social connectedness
260			_c2024 _bAotearoa New Zealand Association of Social Workers,
500			_aAotearoa New Zealand Social Work, 2024, 36(1), 114-126
520			_aINTRODUCTION: Drawing from a perspective that integrates elements of both subjective and psychological wellbeing, this research explores the experiences of The Jellies, a self-organising, all-female open water swimming group. The article outlines how the women’s participation in this group created a ‘sisterhood’ that enhanced and maintained their physical, social and emotional health, social connectedness and affinity for natural aquatic environments (‘blue spaces’). This study offers insights into how social workers can act as intermediaries, aiding women in establishing sisterhoods of supportive networks and solidarity. METHODS: The research employed a thematic analysis to explore the perspectives and experiences of 39 women who belonged to a self-organising, open-water swimming group. Recruitment was through purposeful sampling. FINDINGS: The research sheds light on the importance of women-only spaces and their contribution to women's overall wellbeing, including fostering a sisterhood of solidarity and mutual support. Swimming provided a context for the women to address their need for physical activity, navigate their emotional landscape and create connections of belonging, support and solidarity. However, culture and gender norms and economic positioning excluded, silenced and marginalised some women from accessing blue spaces. CONCLUSION: The findings invite social workers to rethink the use of blue spaces as a novel community-building asset and to learn from an organically formed all-women’s swimming group about alternative ways to empower and sustain women’s overall wellbeing. Social workers can gain insight into how women understand and formalise belonging, and how belonging enables, or not, women to navigate their environmental and emotional geographies. (Author's abstract). #8631
650			_aHEALTH _9283
650			_aMENTAL HEALTH _9377
650			_aPEER SUPPORT _912794
650			_aSOCIAL WORK PRACTICE _9562
650			_aWELLBEING _96275
650			_aWOMEN _9645
651			_aINTERNATIONAL _93624
651		4	_aAUSTRALIA _92597
773	0		_tAotearoa New Zealand Social Work, 2024, 36(1), 114-126
830			_aAotearoa New Zealand Social Work _96152
856			_uhttps://anzswjournal.nz/anzsw/article/view/1111 _zOpen access, PDF
942			_2ddc _cARTICLE _hnews127