Perceptions of superwoman schema and stress among African American women with pre-diabetes

Three focus groups were conducted with African American women with elevated cardiometabolic risk to better understand how Superwoman Schema/the strong Black woman role influences their stress and how this cognitive-emotional aspect of health may need to be targeted in future research on cardiometabolic health disparities, such as prediabetes and diabetes. Results from this study revealed that participants' descriptions of stress and the superwoman role were consistent with the Superwoman Schema Conceptual Framework, including specific emphasis on 1) an obligation to manifest strength, 2) an obligation to suppress emotions and 3) an obligation to help others. Implications for targeting Superwoman Schema and stress as social determinants of health are described

Innovative Clinical Training Site for Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner Students: Elementary School-Based Group Therapy (Manuscript ID UMHN-2017-0143)

The aim of this clinical training site innovation is to develop accessible pediatric mental health clinical training sites for psychiatric mental health nurse practitioner (PMHNP) students. Mental health services in school settings provide treatment in the child's community and create opportunities for innovation and collaboration with teachers, school counselors, and school psychologists. School settings provide opportunities for early recognition of anxiety symptoms and accessible treatment that can help close the gap in clinical training sites for this population. Mild and moderate symptoms of anxiety often go untreated and may affect academic performance negatively. Cognitive behavioral play therapy is an effective treatment modality provided by PMHNP students and supports the roles of school personnel

Barbers as community mental health advocates for African American men: A.D.A.A.M.-QR web design to address social determinants of depression and access to culturally-relevant resources

Depression is one of the costliest and most disabling illnesses worldwide (WHO, 2018). The World Health Organization (WHO) estimates that over 350 million people worldwide are affected by depression, leading to over 800,000 suicides each year (WHO, 2018). Major depression symptoms include memory loss, lack of focus, irritability and cognitive dysfunction, leading to substantial societal and economic costs (McIntyre et al., 2013; Probst et al., 2007). The direct cost of depression rose from approximately $173.2 billion to$210.5 billion between 2005 and 2010 (Greenberg et al., 2015), and the estimation is expected to be higher when chronic diseases related to depression are considered (Hankerson, Lee, et al., 2015; Hankerson, Suite, & Bailey, 2015; Penner et al., 2010). Individuals suffering from depression-associated symptoms are less productive at work and in their personal lives, have decreased energy, feel they receive inadequate support from supervisors, and have lower concentration when trying to perform job-related tasks (Bertilsson et al., 2013)

Combating Compassion Fatigue With Mindfulness Practice in Military Nurse Practitioners

Like their civilian counterparts, military clinicians are at risk for compassion fatigue. Studies have shown a relationship between mindfulness interventions and reduction of compassion fatigue and its components of burnout and secondary traumatic stress. A pilot feasibility study using a mindfulness-based stress reduction program via a mobile application was completed with a group of nurse practitioners in the military. Seventy-five percent of the participants showed improvement in burnout and stress levels and 100% improvement in mindfulness attention. Mindfulness training maybe one way to mitigate symptoms of compassion fatigue for nurse practitioners in the military

It Is Not Just About Enrollment: Recognizing the Impact of RCT Recruitment Approaches on Prediabetes Awareness, Screening, and Capacity Building in African American Communities

Diabetes is a growing epidemic in the USA. Compared to white Americans, African Americans are 1.8 times more likely to have diabetes [1]. Additionally, African Americans with diabetes experience higher rates of morbidity and mortality than other racial groups. Compared to whites, African Americans are twice as likely to suffer from diabetes-related blindness, 1.5 to 2.5 times more likely to suffer from lower limb amputations and 2.6 to 5.6 times more likely to suffer from kidney disease [1, 2]. Prediabetes is a common precursor to diabetes and characterized by blood glucose levels that are above normal but below the criteria for a diagnosis of diabetes [3]. Approximately 30% or 88 million US adults have prediabetes [4] with African Americans disproportionately affected. During the average 3 years of follow-up of the landmark Diabetes Prevention Program, prediabetes developed into type 2 diabetes in approximately 11% of the subjects who participated in the standard care or control group [5]. Other estimates show that if prevention strategies are not implemented, individuals with prediabetes will be diagnosed with type 2 diabetes within 10 years [6]. While African Americans with prediabetes are at significant risk for developing diabetes, this outcome is not inevitable. Diagnosis of prediabetes is an example of secondary prevention, screening to identify diseases at an early stage, before symptoms begin [7]. The identification of pre-diabetes, and subsequent secondary prevention efforts to thwart or delay transition to diabetes, can reduce morbidity, impaired quality of life, monumental healthcare costs, and mortality rates [1, 2, 8, 9]

Social determinants of smoking in women from low-income rural backgrounds: Findings from a photovoice study

Smoking is well recognized as one of the most preventable causes of death and disease in the United States (U.S.), accounting for approximately 480,000 deaths each year (Centers for Disease Control and Prevention [CDC], 2014). In addition, the American Academy of Addiction Psychiatry (AAAP, 2018) estimates that approximately 20–30% of individuals experimenting with cigarettes will meet criteria for tobacco use disorder within their lifetime while 60–80% of current cigarette smokers manifest classic drug dependence criteria. Associated annual healthcare cost of smoking are approximately133 billion dollars, with the additional cost in lost productivity estimated at 156 billion dollars annually (CDC, 2014; United States Department of Health and Human Services [USDHHS], 2014). Although recent national rates of cigarette smoking in adults have declined from 20.9% in 2005 to 13.7% in 2018, there remains significant disparity in smoking rates among rural populations (Creamer et al., 2019)

The Giscombe Superwoman Schema Questionnaire: Psychometric Properties and Associations with Mental Health and Health Behaviors in African American Women

The purpose of this research was to examine the psychometric properties of the Giscombe Superwoman Schema Questionnaire. Three separate studies conducted with 739 African American women provided preliminary evidence that the Questionnaire’s factor structure aligns with the Superwoman Schema Conceptual Framework and has good reliability. In addition, it is positively associated with perceived stress, depressive symptoms, using food to cope with stress, poor sleep quality, and physical inactivity. This study provides preliminary evidence to suggest that the Giscombe Superwoman Schema Questionnaire is psychometrically sound; Superwoman Schema is associated with health behaviors and psychological states that may increase risk for illness

Modified African Ngoma Healing Ceremony for Stress Reduction: A Pilot Study

Objective: Indigenous people's ceremonies using rhythm and dance have been used for countless generations throughout the world for healing, conflict resolution, social bonding, and spiritual experience. A previous study reported that a ceremony based on the Central African ngoma tradition was favorably received by a group of Americans. The present trial compared the effects of the modified ngoma ceremony (Ngoma) with those of mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) in a randomized pilot study

Life Course Racism and Depressive Symptoms among Young Black Women

The objective of this study is to evaluate the life course effects of racism on depressive symptoms in young Black women and to identify particularly sensitive periods. Guided by life-course theory and using logistic regression, we analyzed baseline data on racism frequency and stress from racism at two time periods (before age 20 and during the 20s) and follow-up data (at approximate 20-month intervals) on depressive symptoms (using a modified 11-item Center for Epidemiologic Studies Depression Scale, CES-D) among 1612 Black women participants aged 23–34 years living in Detroit, MI. Of the 1612 women, 65% reported experiencing some racism at baseline, and 36.5% had high depressive symptoms at follow-up. Those who experienced high frequency of racism before age 20 had an increased risk for high depressive symptoms (RR = 1.26, 95% CI: 1.07, 1.46) compared to participants in the low racism frequency group. We observed similar associations for high vs. low stress from racism (RR = 1.30, 95% CI : 1.06, 1.54) and high vs. low combination of racism frequency and stress (RR = 1.38, 95% CI: 1.13, 1.64). These findings did not hold or were weaker when assessing racism during the 20s. Among women who experienced high racism across the two time periods, the risk of high depressive symptoms was higher than those who experienced low racism during both periods (RR = 1.49, 95% CI: 1.14, 1.86). The slightly stronger associations between racism and depressive symptoms in childhood and adolescence than in young adulthood suggest that early life might be a sensitive period for experiencing racism

To be young, Black, and living with breast cancer: a systematic review of health-related quality of life in young Black breast cancer survivors

Compared with young White women, young Black women are more likely to present with aggressive breast cancer (BC) subtypes that are potentially linked to worse health-related quality of life (HRQOL); however, there is limited consensus regarding HRQOL needs among young Black BC survivors. Employing Ferrell's framework on QOL in BC (i.e., physical, psychological, social, and spiritual well-being), we conducted a systematic review on HRQOL among Black BC survivors aged <50 years and proposed recommendations for advancing HRQOL research and care for this population