6 Tips To Help Overcome Stress as a Nurse
Nursing is a rewarding career, but it can also be very stressful. This is especially true early in your career when you are still learning the ropes and paying your dues. The work you do can literally be a matter of life and death, which adds to the pressure.
Stress is not helpful to either you or your patients. You have to find ways to overcome it, and learning to do this early in your career can serve you well for years to come. Here are some techniques to help you manage stress and strike the right balance.
- Get the Right Equipment
There’s an old saying that a craftsperson is only as good as his or her tools. That can be true of nurses as well; if you do not have what you need, you may not be able to provide the best patient care. If your workplace does not supply what you need, it might be in your interest to spend your own money to invest in a rugged tablet or whatever you feel you need to do your job properly.
- Recognize Early Signs of Burnout
Burnout can be damaging in any career, but it can be particularly devastating for a nurse. When you are burned out, you are just going through the motions to get through your day instead of giving each patient the individualized care and attention that he or she deserves. If you recognize burnout in its early stages, you can do something to counteract it. Early symptoms of burnout include irritation, emotional numbness, and disconnection from others, including co-workers, family members, and friends.
- Do Something for Yourself
You can counteract burnout by making time for self-care on a daily basis. Your schedule outside your job may be as demanding as your work schedule, but you can still try to carve out 10 minutes out of each day to do something that you enjoy, such as taking a bath, reading a chapter of a book, talking to a friend on the phone, or hugging your kids.
- Find a Support System
You aren’t going through any of this alone, and what you are going through is not unique. It can help to talk to other nurses, especially those with more experience. They can suggest things that you can do to help you cope or even just lend a sympathetic ear while you unburden yourself, which can be very liberating.
In particular, you should try to find a mentor who can guide you through the difficult times. A mentor is not a supervisor per se but a nurse who is more experienced who can give you help and advice. Try to find a mentor who can help you identify signs of burnout and suggest self-care methods to counteract it.
- Express Emotions Fully
Part of what makes you a good nurse is the ability to empathize with your patients. On the other hand, it can be difficult to keep control of your emotions so that you can be fully present for those who need you. It may seem like the answer is to push the emotions down out of the way, but that is only a temporary solution at best. Eventually, they will come out, and not always in a way that is healthy and productive. It is better to find an outlet as soon as possible, e.g., crying in the bathroom, to let the emotions out. Failing to deal with underlying feelings can lead to unhealthy coping mechanisms, such as overeating, alcohol, or drugs.
- Find Strength
When things get difficult, you can look deep inside yourself to find the strength to continue. Nurses find strength from many different sources. Some turn to religion and spiritual pursuits, while others turn to mentors and others find strength in family. Your source of strength is unique to you, and it may take some soul-searching to discover it.
Sometimes it feels as if you don’t have time for self-care or work-life balance. However, neglecting those things doesn’t help you become a better nurse. If anything, the opposite is true.
