Combatting Stress for Nurses
Working as a nurse can come with a lot of emotional exhaustion. It involves high-pressure work environments, complex issues, negative thoughts and thousands of interactions in a short period.
According to research published in Nursing Research and Practice, 92% out of the 120 nurses studied reported moderate to high levels of stress. That’s a problem, considering that 65% of workers say stress causes them difficulties on the job, affecting overall performance. When it comes to health, that's a dangerous possibility.
The better we are at managing and dealing with stress, the better we are at our jobs, and the happier we are at home. We can live a more fulfilling life and help save more lives. We can lower the rates of burnout among nurses and increase job satisfaction. This can be done with just a few intentional steps.
Create Boundaries
When we hear the word “boundaries,” it sounds restricting, but it’s one of the most freeing things we can do. Creating boundaries is a major factor in mitigating mental health issues, high levels of anxiety, and decreasing burnout among nurses.
It’s a lot like a body of water. If it has nowhere to go, it remains stagnant and grows foul. If there is a narrow structure that guides the water, it becomes a lively stream or river to travel as far as it can go. Boundaries clarify our priorities so we can eliminate the negative things in our lives and help us thrive. They help to enhance mental health and allow us to enjoy relationships with our family members or loved ones.
Some of these boundaries can be simple habits, like not bringing work home through your thought life. Or not overcommitting and being honest about your limitations at work. Taking the time off allotted to us to enhance our well being. Think of the things that can increase your stress and see if you can protect yourself by limiting that exposure.
Meditate and Clear the Mind
Anxiety continues to rise in the States. It affects over 40 million adults every year (18%+ of the population).
Our minds are consistently overloaded by an abundance of information, apps, and thousands of things calling for its attention. Emotional exhaustion becomes a problem when we can't stop doom-scrolling, thinking about work, and are overstimulated constantly. If we don't spend time to stop and clear our mind, we will experience more stress in our lives. When we meditate, we can restart our minds and thought life. We can evaluate the day and reaffirm our priorities and vision for our lives.
Maintain a Positive Attitude and Encourage Others
Our minds and perspective directly influence our lives. That's why it's so important to have the right attitude. If we are positive and eliminate habits for negative thinking, we eliminate negative thoughts and practices. We also help our teammates reduce stress and avoid burnout.
We can do this is by switching the mindset from ourselves to others. By encouraging others, like our patients, and speaking life into them, we also benefit our own minds. When we focus on adding value to other people, we feel good and be able to combat stress in our life and toxic thinking.
Finally, prioritize rest. We live in a culture that sometimes values productivity over all us. If we take an afternoon off, we feel guilty. But just like a car needs a new oil change, so do we. If we don’t, we'll burn out and fall apart. By putting our health first, we can better serve the people around us.