Too many nurses put their career success first instead of prioritizing mental health, not realizing that they need to take care of themselves first.
Learning how nurses can prioritize their mental health will lead to happier days, a better grip on your work life, and overall satisfaction with yourself.
As a nurse, you will improve your overall well-being when you prioritize your mental health.
Mental health support for nurses is not as accessible or broadcasted as it should be. Sure there is therapy, but it is not nursing-specific.
Odds are your therapist isn’t also a nurse, so they can only understand your struggles to an extent.
With a career full of various outcomes, emotions, and demands, a nurse’s mental health is very vulnerable. Some of the most common types of mental health issues nurses face are:
- Anxiety
- Stress
- Depression
- PTSD
- Insomnia
When mental health is set as a priority in not only a nurse’s personal life but professional life as well, it will greatly improve nurse wellbeing.
Related: The Importance of Nurse Wellbeing
Aside from exercising and eating healthy, one of the hardest things to do prioritizing mental health. Because you cannot see mental health, it is harder to grasp and acknowledge.
Let’s learn how you can put your mental health first as a nurse to improve your overall wellbeing!
Why It’s Important To Protect Your Mental Health In Healthcare
Many nurses go through the waves of work without taking a step back to reflect on how much it is changing them. Whether that is noticing how much snappier they’ve become or an increase in stress, self-reflection is key in improving your wellbeing!
Who doesn’t want to be a happier nurse?
Working in healthcare is naturally stressful as you are responsible for other people’s lives and outcomes. However, the more you protect and prioritize your mental health, the more manageable the stress will become.
When you start breaking down life into small sections, it becomes a lot less scary.
Let’s learn how to focus on your mental health “section” as a nurse!
Nurses are caregivers, and that means that the majority of your day will involve giving and helping others.
With that being said, you must make sure you are also giving to yourself in different ways.
You must fill your own cup before it becomes empty.
Some ways to fill your own cup are:
- Be kind to yourself
- Set boundaries with otehers
- Do things for pleasure
- Ask for favors
- Treat yourself to something you want
- Keep a clean home
Mental health is a very situational thing. The more negative situations you are in, the more it is affected.
Depending on what type of nurse you are, you may see more negative things than others. For example, an ICU nurse will see much more death and negative outcomes than say…a case manager nurse.
This is why it’s so important to manage negative situations well so you come out of them well!
Remember, you can do hard things. You are capable of giving yourself that mental health support you need.
Alright… so now you may be wondering–how can I make sure my mental health is in tip-top shape consistently as a healthcare provider?
These 10 ways will ensure you are prioritizing your mental health and giving it the care it needs!
10 Ways Nurses Can Prioritize Their Mental Health
1. Learn How To Say “No”
A prime characteristic of most nurses is being extremely helpful. While that is such an incredible characteristic to have, there is such a thing as being “too helpful.”
It’s a tough pill to swallow, but you must understand where your help is the most warranted and where it is actually hurting you.
If you know saying yes to something is going to just add more stress and overwhelm, say no. You won’t come off as a b*tch if you do it correctly.
Saying things like “I really can’t right now. If I have some time I’ll try to get to it,” is perfectly acceptable.
2. Join A Nurse Community
Hop onto Facebook and find some nursing groups to join. Learning about other people’s experiences and perspectives can really help you feel less alone in all of this.
Nurses don’t talk about their mental health often with other nurses. It’s just how we are.
We always push ourselves to be stronger and stronger, because we have to be for our patients.
But sometimes, it’s okay to break down.
Join a nurse community or Facebook group to express yourself, gain new perspectives, get mental health support, and just feel like you are a part of something greater than your role as a nurse in your workplace.
Here are a few to start with!
3. Feed Your Soul
Too many times we feel “guilty” for doing things we genuinely love to do.
Maybe that is sitting on the couch binge watching a show with some take out.
Or maybe it’s going to concerts, the beach, or an amusement park. Whatever it is, feed your freakin’ soul!
Seriously, you live once on this planet. Do more things you love and don’t get caught up in your work life so much. Prioritizing your mental health includes doing things you love that bring you joy.
4. Limit Social Media
Social media has so many benefits, from connecting with others, gaining inspiration, and educating yourself in various ways.
There is also a dark side to social media, and it is highly correlated to lower self-esteem, feelings of inadequacy, and obsession over other’s lives.
If you feel like you are leaning into the dark side of social media, take a step back.
It’s not going anywhere, so you need to reevaluate your relationship with it. If it’s making you have negative thoughts, limit your social media use.
5. Start A Project
When we tune into our creative side, our brain gets into a healthy space that isn’t distracted. Diving into a new project can do just that.
Start a project based around something you really enjoy doing. If it’s writing, write a short story or poems. You know what you enjoy, so pursue it as a side project.
It gives you something to look forward to after work, and it also helps significantly in feeling a sense of purpose and accomplishment, outside of being a nurse.
It is important not to make your entire life about nursing. You are more than a nurse, at the end of the day.
Visit Skillshare to start learning about something you’ve always had an interest in.
There are literally courses for everything you can think of, from skills in music, photography, writing, cooking, crafting, gaming, home building and so much more.
6. Separate Work From Personal Life
As much of a portion of your life work takes up, try not to make your entire day about it.
When you’re with friends and family, try to limit how much you discuss work stuff. The longer work and being a nurse is on your mind, the harder it is to disconnect.
Even if you absolutely LOVE your nursing job, stop talking about it all the time. Remember, you are more than a nurse. Letting it consume you is not exactly healthy, even if it’s your passion.
Create a healthy separation between work and your personal life. It does wonders.
7. Find A New Job
If your job is negatively affecting your mental health, find a new job.
Nothing comes before your mental health. So yes, that even means your job. Now I am not advising you to quit today and be left with no income or means to pay your bills.
You do have to live your life, and that does require money.
So it’s time to strategize. If you can cut hours, cut them while you are looking for a new job. When you are in a toxic job that is affecting your mental health, every moment away from work is valuable.
If you can’t cut down hours, focus all of your free time with aggressively applying to new jobs of interest. As nurses, we are always in need. You will find a job sooner than later!
8. Find Your Job’s Wellness Initiative
Many healthcare companies have wellness initiatives that are usually found through their website or even if you ask HR.
For example, I used to work for a big insurance company, and they had a wellness initiative that you could connect with your Apple watch.
If I worked out for 30 minutes four times a week, I would get points that converted into money! After a certain amount of points, I could convert those points into gift cards or products.
It was a great way to feel like my work supported my wellness in a way, and it helped me realize my work wasn’t just me being a nurse. It was being an overall healthy person. T
This helped a ton with my mental health because it made me feel seen, acknowledged, and supported…even if it was in such a small way.
9. Use Your PTO
Regardless of how much PTO you get, you should use it all year.
“Saving it” is quite frankly silly unless you need it for personal reasons you can’t plan out.
Otherwise, you need to give yourself days off! Work is always going to be there, but your mental happiness isn’t if you don’t nourish it.
You don’t always have to go on a vacation to use PTO. It can be for smaller things to, like running errands, relaxing, extending a weekend, etc.
Do not feel embarrassed or hesitant to request PTO. I know this country doesn’t do the best job at promoting it and creating a healthy relationship with PTO, but that doesn’t mean you can’t change the narrative.
10. Vent In A Healthy Way
When you had a rough day and you just want to vent, make sure you are doing it in a healthy way by focusing on the following:
- You are not repeating yourself just for the sake of repeating
- You are getting out what you need to get out and not dragging it along
- You are listening to feedback/advice from whoever you are venting to
- You are choosing your venting partner wisely
- You are venting for mental clarity, not to talk badly about others
Oftentimes, we confuse venting for complaining.
If you think about what a vent is, it is an opening that allows something to pass out of. When we are venting, we are allowing our thoughts to pass out of our minds.
We are doing this to create mental and emotional space for things that matter, and let the negative junk out.
Remember this the next time you are venting. It will help you do it in a healthy way.
Final Thoughts
Nurse wellbeing should be a priority for all types of nurses.
You have heard it a million times… “You can’t take care of someone else if you don’t care of yourself.” Humans are so resilient and add humans who are nurses, and the resiliency skyrockets.
As nurses, we always want to look tough, but all of that is a disguise if we aren’t feeling good about things. Protect your mental energy like your life depends on it…because it does.
I recently came across the Keener app, and I wanted to share it with my readers because I think it can be very beneficial!
Keener is a free self-care app for nurses.
Their mission is to help nurses thrive and connect with one another.
I recently started using it and love all the great content on there! It is so nice listening to others dive into self-care, their thoughts, perspectives, etc. I always leave the app feeling inspired and empowered, and I want you to feel that too!
Download Keener today for free to get all of their fun benefits!
Read More:
Why Being A Healthy Nurse Is Important
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QUESTION: If self-care doesn’t “work” for you, what do you think the reason could be?
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