Self Care to Prevent Nurse Burnout

Type of Nurse I Want to Be

As a future Family Nurse Practitioner, I see myself as being the type of nurse who is very considerate, empathetic, compassionate, knowledgeable, and capable of giving quality patient-centered care. I want to be one who promotes preventive health, raise health literacy, spread health education, and trust. That is quite a lot but I believe it is all possible by learning now how to manage my time and energy. Nursing ultimately is a balance between the professional world of patient care, continuing education, and one’s personal life of home and family (Ho et al., 2021).

One way to manage my time is to have a schedule with realistic goals (Zimmerman et al., 2023). Sometimes people make schedules for themselves that they do not stick to because they put too many things in for themselves (or too few). One should be careful about planning—know how much time is required for each task and use the hours effectively. Plan everything: school work, social time, recreation, meals. It can all go a great way to being organized and healthy.

Energy management depends on knowing your limits and taking breaks. Self-care is so important, as is a healthy work-life balance. Mindfulness exercises can help during the day. A short walk in nature, some time with music, or a hobby can help with staying focused and reducing stress levels.

Self-care is a good way to prevent burnout (Roux & Benita, 2020). In the past, I've found several self-care strategies that help me with stress. These would be things like going to the gym, going for walks, reading for pleasure, and listening to music. Eating right is also a big one: fast food should be a once a week (maximum) behavior (at least for me). Too much fast food and the mood quickly goes south. Hobbies are another way to support the mental recharging. But, also, I think that looking for professional support, such as counseling or joining support groups, can be a really good source of gaining insights on ways to cope with the pressures of being a professional nurse.