Autogenic training for self-care and skills training among social work honours students

M.A.In social work, the focus is on the care for others, but the issue of self-care is neglected. There is no internship requirements for students to learn about selfcare and the consequences that a lack of self-care behaviours will have on them personally and professionally. This research study had the dual purpose of teaching social work honours students Autogenic Training (AT) as a practical method of self-care and to measure and evaluate the personal and professional value of AT for them. Autogenic training is a deep relaxation technique with an autonomic and cognitive focus, and formed the basis of the self-care programme that was presented in 10 weekly sessions. An availability sample was used, and a combined quantitativequalitative approach adopted, by using a pre-test post-test group design. A validated self-report instrument was used to measure the impact on somatic, behavioural and cognitive anxiety symptoms, while a phenomenological enquiry was used to evaluate the personal meanings and experiences of the students as a result of engaging with this programme. The high drop-out rate reflected poorly on the overall results of the self-report instrument, however, the programme proved to be a successful psychosocial intervention, as it impacted positively on the students’ physical and emotional awareness, the awareness of the impact of their past and current traumatic stresses on their physical, mental and emotional functioning, and an awareness of self-care needs. They also learned and mastered an effective stress management skill, and participation in the group was valued by the students for the emotional support it provided to help them cope with their current stresses more effectively. An experiential self-care programme could be a beneficial component of the curriculum. Future research should involve such studies as part of the curriculum to allow sufficiently sized samples and prevent the high drop-out rate