I have been an nurse for 48 years. I avoided burn out by focusing on striving to give the best care to my patients, changing type of units I worked every four years, and trying to touch someone's life for good every shift and I avoided colleagues who complained and spoke ugly about their colleagues or managers. I tried to keep in mind why I went into nursing. It worked for me!
I am an extrovert nurse, but I can tell you burnout is burnout. As nurses, we all are some level of empaths, this is why we are drawn to caring for others. Imagine that your compassion is water in a pitcher and our patients, co-workers, and family's health or personal problems are stones. We walk through life pouring out our compassion and we take into our pitcher their issues. Our pitcher becomes heavier to carry because of the many stones and we have less room in the pitcher for compassion. Eventually, the weight of our pitcher is overwhelming, and our compassion runs out more quickly so that we have none to bring home to our family or ourselves. Bleek, huh?
I still struggle with burnout 15 years into my career, but I am getting better at it. Here are some things I do:
1) Vent to a trusted friend/friends. Preferably non-medical friends, this way you don't get advice and you don't have to see them at work.
2) I try not to make major plans after work. I do 12 hr. shifts and when I get home, I want to be home. THIS IS MY TIME! I ask for 15 minutes to myself; shower, change, and deep breathing practice. Headspace has great exercises.
3) Disclaimer: I HATE THIS NEXT ONE. Exercise! Yoga, running, Zumba, Just Dance on my Nintendo Switch. In the great words of Elle Wood's "Exercise gives you endorphins. Endorphins make you happy. Happy people don't kill their husbands." Hilarious line from Legally Blonde but 100% true.
4) TAKE YOUR PTO!!!!! If you don't have money, stay home. Every 6 months, I try and plan a vacation. Sometimes I go on a trip but mostly I just stay home. I read books, plan a project, or just sit outside. Whatever makes you happy.
5) Practice meditation. This sounds cheesy, I know, but it totally helps. Sometimes during the work day I do 10 minutes in guided meditation. It takes constant practice but when I can clear my head to refocus, I am a better nurse.
6) Say no! Remember you are only required to work your scheduled hours (unless specified in your contract). You are not responsible to stay late, work overtime, or pick up open shifts. You do not have to explain yourself. JUST SAY NO!!
and Last but not least remember "You can only control what You can control". I must remind myself of this constantly. You cannot control anyone's health outcome, you cannot control your co-workers behaviors, and you cannot control the state of the world. You can control your behavior, your health, and your response to situations.
I cannot remember who said this, but I remember hearing someone describe self-care like the instructions for putting on an oxygen mask on a plane; "First place the mask on yourself before helping others". This is counter intuitive to nurses' personality, but if you think about it, it only makes sense. We cannot care for others if we don't care for ourselves first. This is something we can control.
Hope it helps.
