How Nurses Can Ensure their Own Health is Also Looked After

Becoming a nurse today requires plenty of dedication, compassion, and knowledge. Pretty much everyone understands how difficult the job can be. It’s often a fast-paced stressful environment, especially for those working in an emergency room situation. Every single minute can count, which means nurses don’t get much in terms of “down time”.

While you study for your bachelor of science in nursing at a top school such as Rutgers University Online, there’s a good chance all your focus is going to be on the content you need to learn to be successful in the healthcare industry. Rutgers University is known for preparing students for all kinds of positions and situations, which will ensure you’re prepared.

As complete as the Rutgers program is, however, what it can’t prepare you for is how that stressful and fast-paced environment can take a toll on your own health. With that in mind, here are some ways nurses can ensure their own health stays a priority.

The Forgotten Patient – You

It can be said that a nurse’s most forgotten patient is none other than themselves. They work tirelessly to provide the care and treatment their patients need, but their own needs often fall by the wayside. While this may not seem like a big deal for a few days, over the long term it will start to take a toll both physically and mentally.

Nurses are prone to getting sick, becoming worn down, and suffering from various emotional issues thanks to the stress they are under and the situations they see. Nurses tend to look after everyone else but themselves, which can lead to their personal health and mental well-being being out of balance.  It is important to set aside time for your own health if you want to be able to give your patients the care and attention that they need.

Following Simple Lifestyle Guidelines

So, what can a nurse to in order to ensure that their health is also being looked after? It’s all about following simple lifestyle guidelines that any person should be following.

This includes eating a healthy well-balanced diet filled with all the essential vitamins, nutrients, and minerals; getting enough sleep each and every night, which is at least seven to eight hours’ worth of sleep; making sure you stay hydrated and drink plenty of water; exercise on a regular basis; and give your body time to heal when you do fall ill.  It’s also important to take care of yourself emotionally and give yourself time to relax without any kinds of distractions.

Learn to Identify Burnout Early On

Nurses are prone to suffering from burnout on the job. One of the most common problems they face is compassion fatigue, which is said to affect anywhere between 16-39% of nurses. This compassion fatigue is caused by such things as stress in the workplace, feeling overworked, issues with co-workers and/or a boss, working conditions that aren't ideal, and witnessing traumatic and stressful situations on a regular basis. Burnout can lead to the inability to focus, an inability to perform their job well, and affect them in other ways both mentally and physically.

Learning to identify that beginning stages of burnout is key so you can ask for help and stop the progression of the burnout.

A Nurses’ Health is Just as Important

At the end of the day, your health as a nurse is just as important as your patient’s health, which means you need to be aware of how you are feeling and take steps to ensure you’re as healthy as possible.