IndexIntroductionFaithPersonal resilienceConclusionWorks CitedIntroductionThe practice of social work raises many different ethical dilemmas on a daily basis. Doel (2016) recognizes that these dilemmas can occur due to a conflict between our personal values ​​and our professional values. Say no to plagiarism. Get a tailor-made essay on "Why Violent Video Games Shouldn't Be Banned"? Get an Original Essay Our values ​​shape our identity and what is most important to us in our lives. From the beginning of our careers in social care, we are taught how we can become more aware of our values ​​and how they may be different from other people from different cultures and backgrounds. The following assignment will reflect on some of my personal values ​​that have had a huge impact on my life. I will also seek to discover how I believe these values ​​may conflict or integrate with professional values ​​within my social work practice. I also look at why I feel this might affect my social work practice and what I should change when these conflicts arise. Faith From birth I was absorbed by a faith that brought many values ​​into my life and from a very young age I was led to live my life according to biblical principles. One of the values ​​I was taught is that marriage is considered sacred and you must not have sexual relations before marriage. I was taught that having this value contributes to a balanced and happy family lifestyle. I have also been led to believe that homosexuality is wrong and should not be practiced. This, as well as having sexual intercourse before marriage, is considered a sin. While attending a particular group session at university, it became apparent to me and other members of my group that I felt quite uncomfortable when shown photos of same-sex homosexual couples, both male and female. A member of the group then asked me if I was homophobic, which made me question whether I really was. This session made me see how much of an impact my beliefs have on me, even now, as I don't consider myself homophobic. However, I was uncomfortable with the images shown. It made me understand the conflicts that having a faith can cause due to differences in values. There are many different conflicts with my faith value that I could consider, but I chose to consider homosexuality because it is a topic that I was shocked to find that I was uncomfortable with (the images) and felt like I I would come across this often within my social work practice. One of BASW's frameworks for direct practice is that a social worker “applies anti-discriminatory and anti-oppressive principles in practice”. A social worker must be able to understand and see the importance of diversity and how it can shape people's lives and even identities. This was highlighted to us early in our careers as social workers. But social workers must not only understand this diversity, they must also identify and promote it. This leaves important questions like: How can I promote a person who practices homosexuality when I have values ​​that say promoting such a practice is wrong? And how will I demonstrate to service users that I am comfortable with their sexuality? I have a strong interest in working with children and families, particularly in fostering and adoption. Let's say, for example, that a case arises in which I am asked to entrust a child to a same-sex couple who hope toadopt? How would my values ​​conflict with practice? From an early age I was taught that a man is the head of the family and that a wife would be there to help support a husband or father in his role. A same-sex couple is totally contradictory to what I was raised to believe. As social workers we must practice and promote equality. Thompson (2019) reminds us that promoting equality means trying to ensure that individuals are not treated unfairly. Having equality does not mean we have to believe everything we hear as we are not all robots programmed to believe and accept everything we are taught. However, practicing equality means ensuring that individuals or groups of individuals are not treated differently or less favorably on the basis of their specific protected characteristics which include race, gender, disability, religion or belief, and sexual orientation. As social workers we must embrace the values ​​of person-centred care, which means we must respect the rights and equality of all individuals and put aside our personal beliefs and values. If I were a child with a same-sex couple, I would need to put my beliefs and faith aside and focus on what is most important, which is the child's well-being. As long as there are no safeguarding issues, the fact that it is a same-sex couple should have no bearing on my decision as a social worker whether to place a child in that home. Having a faith and spiritual life can complement my work practice. Matthews, I (2009) states that “Spirituality is what we can use to demonstrate our worldview in action. It manifests itself in how we respond to others, how we develop bonds and relationships, and how we demonstrate a sense of responsibility towards other people and communities.” Spirituality can help us form relationships with other people. Additionally, for me personally, spirituality allows me to mentally reconnect with myself, my feelings, and my hope in life. This then helps to reinvigorate me, so to speak, when times get tough and I need a moment to breathe. In social work practice we can expect to experience a very heavy workload and have difficult cases to deal with on a daily basis. So, having this spirituality will complement my social work practice as it will be helpful when I need to take a moment to reconnect with myself and also self-heal. Personal Resilience The next value I would like to focus on is personal resilience. In a previous relationship I was a victim of domestic, emotional and financial abuse. This was an extremely difficult time for me. I like to look for the positives in every bad situation and dealing with this has allowed me to build a personal resilience which I believe is now an important value in my life. I understand that having this personal resilience is a strength that will complement my social work practice in many ways. In social work practice, especially when working with children and families, domestic abuse is currently on the rise. A current news story states that domestic abuse in the UK is at its highest level in 5 years. Domestic abuse also has no boundaries, no matter what race, culture, class or where we live, anyone can be affected. There is no doubt that I will encounter domestic abuse in my social work practice and that as a social worker I will help families, women, men and children who have been affected by domestic abuse. Safelives.org.uk, (2019) tells us thatSocial workers have been working with victims of domestic abuse for years. However, even after all this time, the role of social workers in this field is still not well understood. Recent findings have shown that many social workers today find this particular field overwhelming and are unable to meet the victim's needs, which may include housing, childcare, transportation and legal matters. Drawing on my lived experience of domestic abuse, I feel I could be an effective advocate for those who have suffered, or are currently suffering, the same abuse. Building my personal resilience and continuing to continually enhance it will allow me to empower victims to not only survive abuse, but recover from it in whatever way it affects their lives. This experience is one of the main reasons why I wanted to become a social worker, because I believe that social workers are there to empower people. For example, one of the codes of ethics for social work, provided by the BASW, is to focus on the strengths of all individuals and promote their empowerment. This empowerment would be especially important when dealing with victims of domestic abuse. A social worker should help them feel empowered to escape and stay away from their abuser. Therefore, having such resilience and personal experience is a good complement to social work practice, particularly when dealing with domestic abuse, because you can use your personal experience and example of resilience to encourage victims to develop their own resilience personal. Drumm M, (2013) identified that using one's personal story within social work practice can not only be therapeutic for service users, but can also be empowering, encourage personal growth and develop resilience. Helping victims survive domestic abuse is not just a case of helping them escape the offender. A social worker must also promote social justice and seek to achieve the best outcomes for them, recognizing that they are the experts of their own lives. Questions I might ask myself are: “Would my emotions be affected if a case like this arose in practice?” and “How might my experience create a compliment rather than a conflict to practice?” It is good to recognize that some situations related to domestic abuse will bring out a mixture of feelings in me and act as triggers for my reactions. The years spent developing the value of emotional resilience will give me the strength to reflect on the positive outcomes of my experience and incorporate these positive things into my social work practice. Social work is rewarding but can also be emotionally demanding and extremely stressful. Developing personal resilience is not only good for our well-being, but also helps us manage stress effectively. Building on this resilience will help me to be able to deal with different situations that arise within social practice. For example, one thing you can do is practice mindfulness. Mindfulness is a technique that helps us relate wisely to our difficult emotions. It helps us strengthen our resilience by practicing calm, showing courage and having clarity on our emotions. Therefore, practicing mindfulness can help me deal with stress that arises in practice, helps me develop emotional resilience to deal with the stress of work, and can help me stay focused on the rewarding side of social work. It can therefore help me to stay focused on positive outcomes for service users and others. (6°/