Develop Self Care Practices
Self-Care Awareness during Nursing School is as important as it will be for our future nursing careers. As nurses we give, we care, we nurture others however we forget to take the time to care for our own health. Through all of the exceptions of nursing school we sleep less, trying to meet deadlines; eat fast, which leads to unhealthy eating and rush day in and day out, leaving no time to exercise leading us to became physically, emotionally, spiritually and mentally exhausted. Throughout nursing school we have heard time in time again that we need to take care of our selves as well as we take care of patients. There have been many conversations on how important it is to make sure that we are also caring for our own bodies and that failure to do this will lead us down the pathway of burnout and fatigue. I think it is a manageable lifestyle for the short period, while in nursing school but it will not last a lifestyle so why not start now, while in nursing school to build those healthy happens. As I am coming to the end of my college career (for now at least) I am beginning to realize how important it is to lead a healthier life; I just wish I would have figured out how to do this at the beginning of my student nursing journey as maybe I would have been able to control my anxiety and stress better.
Lets take it all the way back to our first semester in nursing school, to Nursing Theories. "Dorothea Orem explains Universal Self-Care Requisites as all the things that are needed by individuals, at all stages of life, to be able to care for ones self; for an individual to be completely healthy all of these requisites must be fulfilled" (Moore, 2013, N.P.). One of Dorothea's stages is activity and rest in which are assessing mentation and activities of daily living but I encourage you to take this stage a step further and think about what you are doing in your life to create peace between your mind, body and soul. I believe that this is a very necessary need in creating the "whole" healthy individual.
You might be thinking how does this relate to leadership? "There is growing evidence in the nursing literature about the positive impact of a healthy work environment on staff satisfaction, retention, improved patient outcomes, and organizational performance" (Sherman & Pross, 2013, N.P.). The first step in creating a healthy environment is to personally change to way we feel. I believe that leadership is more then just leadership in the workplace with your co-workers but it is also about living with a leadership mentality through your entire life. We also need to empower our patients to be motivated towards developing self care awareness through our own actions we can help them see that things will only improve if we make a change, internally or externally.
One of my favorite ways to relieve stress and re-energize my spirit is through the practice of yoga, so why not bring this very transformational habit into my very own practice; yoga at the bedside with our patients. Please listen to the YOGA NURSE video below to better understand how this movement can empower patients.
Additional Resources
American Holistic Nurse Association: Join the Holistic Community - Nurture Yourself
Nursing Blog: "Nursing the buddda" Autonomy, Beneficence, Justice, Fidelity
How Leaders Become Self-Aware
Growing Future Nurse Leaders to Build and Sustain Healthy Work Environments at the Unit Level
Moral Courage and the Nurse Leader
Follow the YOGA NURSE on twitter
References
Sherman, R., & Pross, E. (2010). Growing future nurse leaders to build and sustain healthy work environments at the unit level. Online Journal Of Issues In Nursing, 15(1), 4
Moore, C. (2013). Dorothea Orem's Self-Care Requisites. Retrieved from http://www.bellaonline.com/articles/art57766.asp
Virginia, J. (2008). Nurses must learn to take care of themselves. Retrieved from http://allnurses.com/showthread.php?t=300832
Self-Care Awareness during Nursing School is as important as it will be for our future nursing careers. As nurses we give, we care, we nurture others however we forget to take the time to care for our own health. Through all of the exceptions of nursing school we sleep less, trying to meet deadlines; eat fast, which leads to unhealthy eating and rush day in and day out, leaving no time to exercise leading us to became physically, emotionally, spiritually and mentally exhausted. Throughout nursing school we have heard time in time again that we need to take care of our selves as well as we take care of patients. There have been many conversations on how important it is to make sure that we are also caring for our own bodies and that failure to do this will lead us down the pathway of burnout and fatigue. I think it is a manageable lifestyle for the short period, while in nursing school but it will not last a lifestyle so why not start now, while in nursing school to build those healthy happens. As I am coming to the end of my college career (for now at least) I am beginning to realize how important it is to lead a healthier life; I just wish I would have figured out how to do this at the beginning of my student nursing journey as maybe I would have been able to control my anxiety and stress better.
Lets take it all the way back to our first semester in nursing school, to Nursing Theories. "Dorothea Orem explains Universal Self-Care Requisites as all the things that are needed by individuals, at all stages of life, to be able to care for ones self; for an individual to be completely healthy all of these requisites must be fulfilled" (Moore, 2013, N.P.). One of Dorothea's stages is activity and rest in which are assessing mentation and activities of daily living but I encourage you to take this stage a step further and think about what you are doing in your life to create peace between your mind, body and soul. I believe that this is a very necessary need in creating the "whole" healthy individual.
You might be thinking how does this relate to leadership? "There is growing evidence in the nursing literature about the positive impact of a healthy work environment on staff satisfaction, retention, improved patient outcomes, and organizational performance" (Sherman & Pross, 2013, N.P.). The first step in creating a healthy environment is to personally change to way we feel. I believe that leadership is more then just leadership in the workplace with your co-workers but it is also about living with a leadership mentality through your entire life. We also need to empower our patients to be motivated towards developing self care awareness through our own actions we can help them see that things will only improve if we make a change, internally or externally.
One of my favorite ways to relieve stress and re-energize my spirit is through the practice of yoga, so why not bring this very transformational habit into my very own practice; yoga at the bedside with our patients. Please listen to the YOGA NURSE video below to better understand how this movement can empower patients.
"Yoga (Holistic healing. Spiritual illumination. Circling
breath. True love, in motion) + Nursing (Crisis aversion. Medical mojo.
Life-saving power. Compassion. Devotion) = YogaNursing evolution +
revolution
If this lights you up, explore YogaNursing,
Become a modern Nightingale "(Annette
Tersigni,RN)
Managing Stress - Here are some tips to keep stress in balance.
Plan ahead.
Learn to say no.
Treat yourself to a relaxing bath, meditate, yoga; think stress reduction
Create a Self care plan
Remember to take deep breathes.
Focus on the possibilities, not the problems.
Remind yourself that you cannot change people or certain situations, but you can change how you respond to them.
Be positive, intentionally!
Build on our strengths.
Be in the present.
Bless yourself with laughter, love and peace.
Take care of yourself, it will allow you to take better care of others, use your empathy and nurturing for yourself.
Increase your self-awareness (this one in very important)
Develop outside interests.
Friendships are critical for expressing your feelings.
Practice stress reduction techniques (exercise, relaxation, meditation, distraction, yoga).
Plan for regular breaks, days off, conferences, and vacations or just take a time out.
Make plans for burnout prevention.
African Yoga Project that is changing the way Kenya is
growing by uplifting their spirits through the practice of yoga.
Additional Resources
American Holistic Nurse Association: Join the Holistic Community - Nurture Yourself
Nursing Blog: "Nursing the buddda" Autonomy, Beneficence, Justice, Fidelity
How Leaders Become Self-Aware
Growing Future Nurse Leaders to Build and Sustain Healthy Work Environments at the Unit Level
Moral Courage and the Nurse Leader
Follow the YOGA NURSE on twitter
References
Sherman, R., & Pross, E. (2010). Growing future nurse leaders to build and sustain healthy work environments at the unit level. Online Journal Of Issues In Nursing, 15(1), 4
Moore, C. (2013). Dorothea Orem's Self-Care Requisites. Retrieved from http://www.bellaonline.com/articles/art57766.asp
Virginia, J. (2008). Nurses must learn to take care of themselves. Retrieved from http://allnurses.com/showthread.php?t=300832
Nikki,
ReplyDeleteI am a firm believer that to be an affective leader and nurse you have to take care of your own health and well being. While I'm not a yoga fan, I know that if I don't get at least 8 hours of sleep at night, I am basically worthless the next day. So I make sure I get as much sleep as possible. In order to do this (especially with two young kids) I have to manage my daylight hours very effectively. I cannot procrastinate and I rarely, if ever, burn the midnight oil trying to complete assignments or cram for tests. I think the ability to care for yourself is a fine quality in a leader and a nurse. Burn out doesn't lead to better outcomes.