Abstract

The purpose of the current research was to explore and expose discourses that constrain how Black women engage with health and well-being practices, specifically long-distance running, therapy, and adhering to a vegan diet. The theoretical framework for this research builds upon Black feminist thought and the Foucauldian concepts governmentality and disciplinary power. I employed aspects of netnography and conducted 28 semi-structured interviews with Black millennial women in the United States. I argue that disciplinary power constrained how the Black women in this study engaged with the well-being practices. However, the participants resisted disciplinary power by rejecting the discursive barriers that would deter them from freely engaging with the well-being practices. The current articulation of discursive barriers refers to discourses that deter Black women from engaging with the well-being practices and other activities because they are Black women. Contexts where discursive barriers circulate and constrain Black women’s health are identified. The rationale behind health-related discursive barriers and connections to health disparities are also discussed.