Nursing as a career is a physical and emotional one. Every shift you walk miles in the hallways, go without eating, without breaks, and with a full bladder. Then there is boosting patients up in bed, transferring them, re-positioning and constantly bending over. Several nurses and techs have gone out for months on disability due to injuries. Then the emotion battles a nurse handles on a typical day, the bad diagnosis of cancer, amputation, or terminal. We watch patients and family struggle with diagnosis, treatment, and outcomes whether good or bad.
Signs of Nursing Burn out
There are several signs of burn out, and I am only going to go through a few. Remember, internalizing emotions and events results in a different outcome for everyone. Fatigue, are you always tired? No matter how much sleep and rest you get, you to come to work feeling mentally and physically exhausted. Not excited to work, the enthusiasm the nurse once had drained, and you feel as if you are on autopilot. Feeling no or little compassion coming into work, feel as if you are only physically present not emotionally.
Combating Burn out
When you are starting to feel burned-out find someone that you could talk too, particularly regarding the emotional side of the burn-out. Being able to talk about what you internalize and understand that you are not the only one will help you feel better. Take a break, take some time off of work and schedule a vacation. The time with family and friends will reset you and your outlook on nursing. Self-care, when our work is caring for others we put ourselves on the back burner. This is not healthy for the caregiver and eventually isn’t healthy for the patients either. Self-care includes taking your lunch, and other breaks throughout the shift, stepping out from the shift for event 15 minutes to reset yourself. Out of work care is included as well, exercise, sleep, healthy eating habits, not taking care of yourself will take its toll on your mental and physical health. Finally, if you are still feeling the burnout, look into other avenues of nursing, a different unit, perhaps leaving the bedside nursing to pursue case management, education, or management of nursing.
The nursing burn is a real thing, being able to recognize and find a solution is the best way to keep our nurses not only happy but also healthy. Have you ever felt the weight of nursing burn out?