Social work is an emotionally demanding, complex profession. Exposure to abuse, neglect, and trauma at work can affect home life. Explore research findings around the experiences of social workers who are mothers in a new blog for #MaternalMentalHealthAwarenessWeek. https://ow.ly/z4Kf50YVr3N

Risks, rewards and supporting social workers who are mothers

Child protection social work is emotionally demanding, ethically complex, and deeply relational work. Exposure to abuse, neglect, and trauma at work often affected home life. Dr Shaista Afzal shares findings from her doctoral research around the experiences of social workers who are mothers across England.

ow.ly

Abbie Lake @ ARU is running her second series of the Researcher Wellbeing Webinars Recognising and Responding to Trauma and Burnout in Sensitive and Emotionally Challenging Research 17 Thursday 14th May 2026 12:00-13:00 Online (Teams) www.linkedin.com/posts/abbie-...

Microsoft Virtual Events Powered by Teams | Abbie Lake

It's a real honour that so many of the people I cross paths with are doing vital work to address some of society's most pressing and devastating issues. But that work can take a toll - and that's norm...

linkedin.com

Protecting yourself from secondary trauma. Chartered Psychologist Dr Ravi Gill argues that caring professionals must also be cared for, ahead of a @bpsofficial.bsky.social webinar. www.bps.org.uk/event/protec...

If you're a PGR or ECR at the University of Exeter working on Emotionally Demanding Health Research and would like to meet with others working on similar research, we have been supported by a Researcher Led Initiatives Award to host a series of meetings between now and summer - sign up below

Emotionally Demand Health Research: PGR/ECR Network

Open to all Exeter PGRs and ECRs working on health related research, the network offers an informal space for peer support and learning.

eventbrite.co.uk

The annual #MGSconf is back! This time at @uniofnottingham.bsky.social Submit your abstract by the 27th March tinyurl.com/mgsconferenc...

MGS Conference 2026

Paths to Progress: Inclusion, Innovation, and Possibilities

tinyurl.com

MGS Conference 2026@mgsconf.bsky.social · 6mo ago

Paths to Progress: Inclusion, Innovation, and Possibilities Call for papers is now live! MGS2026 is here, and we warmly invite you to participate! This year, the Conference is taking place at the University of Nottingham on the 24 June 2026.

This article, @oliviapetie.bsky.social says, draws on two case studies to explore how concepts of #hospitality, home, and unhome can be useful in understanding the use of hotel accommodation for #asylumseekers in the UK & the experiences of those living there doi.org/10.1386/hosp...

My first paper got published! A protocol paper for an adapted rapid realist review to explore how national-level policies in England address the impact of social determinants on self-harm and suicidal thoughts and behaviours (STB) across the whole population. doi.org/10.1136/bmjo...

We are excited to announce our Research Day! This research day is aimed at PGRs and ECRs looking to gain insights and practical tools for navigating emotionally demanding and sensitive research areas. To find out more and register, visit: www.srnmidlands.com/research-day

Are you a PhD student in the Midlands conducting sensitive or emotionally demanding research? 💭 Who are we? A peer-led research network for PhD researchers across the Midlands who are navigating complex, emotionally demanding research (EDR). We are a @mgsesrcdtp.bsky.social student network!

🔎✒️ How can we keep research teams and ourselves safe when studying politically sensitive topics? @britanlar.bsky.social and I present a new framework for protection and support drawing on feminist care ethics. The report is now available on the @men4dem.bsky.social website 👇

@men4dem.bsky.social · 11mo ago

MEN4DEM releases a report introducing the Safe Research Ethics Framework. The framework, grounded in Feminist Care Ethics, offers practical tools to protect scholars working on politically sensitive topics. Read more at men4dem.eu/news-events-... #MEN4DEM

In support of this great work the Empowering Community Action to Prevent Youth Suicide event takes place 17/10/25 18:30–20:30. Open to young people, parents, carers, charities, suicide prevention services, local authorities, community leaders, and researchers. www.birmingham.ac.uk/events/stron...

Stronger together: Empowering community action to prevent youth suicide - University of Birmingham

Raising awareness of help-seeking in youth facing self-harm or suicidal thoughts, and the barriers they encounter when accessing support.

birmingham.ac.uk

💡Did you know @thesprintproject.bsky.social have created downloadable infographics which are condensed versions of their report! Find more here: 🔗 www.sprintproject.org/guidelines

Our event is only a week away! Please do register if you haven’t done so already!

Birmingham Network for Phenomenology and Mental Health@uobphenomenal.bsky.social · last yr.

🌟Registration for our PhD and ECR Research Day is now open! Click here to register and see the provisional schedule: forms.cloud.microsoft/e/deAH1HLcv2 We will be hearing amazing presentations on the theme of lived experiences in mental health, and talking about career goals and next steps!

We're looking to set up a research day for PhDs and ECRs to navigate emotionally demanding research and reflexive practice. If you're interested in helping run a session / know people who may be interested, please contact us! It will be in person at the University of Birmingham

Doing research on tough topics? Missed our seminar? You’re not alone. Check out our first NABS+ seminar readout on navigating emotionally demanding work, including memory impacts and practical strategies for self-care and supervision here: crestresearch.ac.uk/nabs/early-c...

Doing Emotionally Demanding Research: A Dual Perspective of Supervisor and Researcher

Explore the personal and professional challenges of emotionally demanding research, and discover practical strategies to support researcher wellbeing from both practitioner and researcher…

crestresearch.ac.uk

📅 31 Oct | 📍 Abertay Uni, Dundee Join us for a SIPR workshop on Working with Emotionally Demanding Material. We’ll explore sensitive research, share strategies for self-care, and connect with others in the field. 🎟️ bit.ly/4m22njn #SIPR #ResearchWellbeing

💡 Did you know the SRN Midlands has a blog? It’s more than just updates; it’s a shared space where we reflect on the personal and professional sides of academic life through stories, commentaries, and reflections. It’s a space for open dialogue and thoughtful engagement. blog.srnmidlands.com

📚 Did you know we have a Resource List? 🧠 Suggested by our members, the list includes: Methodological & ethical training materials Reflective articles on EDR Wellbeing resources to support your research journey 🎧 From articles and guides to podcasts — there's something for every stage of your PhD.

Access our free guidelines and resources for supporting researcher's mental health here www.sprintproject.org/guidelines Thank you to all who attended today's workshop and to those who have participated in our survey. You can still take part via the link above!

SRN Midlands@srnmidlands.bsky.social · last yr.

Great to see @thesprintproject.bsky.social responding to survey responses and creating additional guidance!

Great to see @thesprintproject.bsky.social responding to survey responses and creating additional guidance!

🗓️ Date for your diary! NABS+ Early Career Researcher (ECR) Seminar, 'Doing Emotionally Demanding Research - A dual perspective of supervisor and researcher', Thurs 3 July, 11:00-12:00 (via Teams) with Dr Juliane Kloess and Dr Amy Burrell. Details at crestresearch.ac.uk/nabs/opportu...

Opportunities

Check out the latest opportunities from the NABS+ community.

crestresearch.ac.uk

🖊🖊 New Blog post! A Step Towards a Framework for Supporting Researchers in Emotionally Demanding Research A short commentary on the recent article published by Quinton et al. and the guidelines! blog.srnmidlands.com#h.1mdk12v2uyhu

Blog

Welcome to the SRN Midlands blog page! The SRN Blog is a space for our members to post their thoughts, ideas and news

blog.srnmidlands.com

We're very happy to have @georgiabird.bsky.social run a workshop at the @mgsconference25.bsky.social This workshop explores best practices for supporting researchers' mental health in emotionally demanding research.

MGS Conference 2026@mgsconf.bsky.social · last yr.

Emotionally Demanding Research This workshop explores best practices for supporting researchers’ mental health in emotionally demanding research.

Upcoming seminar on researcher wellbeing - of interest to folk working in sensitive or emotionally demanding/challenging research (or those managing the environments in which this work is done!) www.eventbrite.com.au/e/researcher...

We've been working behind the scenes to create our blog page: blog.srnmidlands.com You can find blog posts from our members, from commentaries to reflections!

Blog

Welcome to our blog page! The SRN Blog is maintained and managed by our members. This is a space for our members to post their thoughts, ideas and news.

blog.srnmidlands.com

Are you involved in emotionally demanding research in academic or non-academic research contexts? We'd love to hear what you think about the feasibility of our *new* guidelines to support researcher mental health! Please share with anyone who you think may be interested!

Dr Georgia Bird@georgiabird.bsky.social · last yr.

Protecting our mental health as researchers is not only important for our well-being but for our work! Help us to evaluate guidelines for safeguarding researchers mental health ⬇️ - short survey - win up to £200 app.onlinesurveys.jisc.ac.uk/s/bham/feasi... www.sprintproject.org/guidelines

🧠 New Guidelines to Safeguard Researchers' Mental Health ✨ View the guidelines: www.sprintproject.org/guidelines Help us evaluate their usefulness & feasibility 📋 Take part in a survey: app.onlinesurveys.jisc.ac.uk/s/bham/feasi... Let’s build a more psychologically safe research culture for all!

@sharongreenwood.bsky.social And i have this paper out today, building on our work on emotionally demanding research we think about how, pedagogically, we make space to practice vulnerability and why we should www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10....

Making space for positionality stories in higher education: using embodied feminist and critical pedagogies in practice

To reimagine criticality in higher education, we emphasise positionality in pedagogy. As educators, we argue there is value in critically engaging with who ‘we’ are, and why exposing our positional...

tandfonline.com

@SRNMidlands members! Want to present your current work and increase impact? Go present at the @mgsconference25.bsky.social!

MGS Conference 2026@mgsconf.bsky.social · last yr.

We are extending the deadline for our call for abstracts! The deadline is now: midday on 31st March Submissions are invited for flash talks (5 minutes), presentations (15 or 20 minutes), and poster presentations For more information visit: www.mgsdtp.ac.uk/news/seminar...

For those working in (or supervising) emotionally demanding research / aka sensitive or challenging research - we wrote this hoping someone might find it useful...even just to know there are others in the same boat and we're trying to get the oars going! www.taylorfrancis.com/chapters/oa-...

Supporting Emotionally Demanding Research | 6 | Developing Guidance fo

Conducting research that is emotionally demanding can negatively impact the health and wellbeing of researchers if adequate planning and support are not in

taylorfrancis.com