As a flight attendant at the front of an airplane demonstrates, in case of an emergency, you should put on your own oxygen mask before you help an accompanying child. You can’t help someone else if you’re incapacitated, right?
This may be obvious with a physical crisis like a plane in tailspin, but not always so with one’s own emotional tailspin. Regardless, it’s vital that we nurses are able to recognize when we need help ourselves.
Certain roles in a nurse’s life increase the risk of stress and burnout. We have much to deal with in terms of helping others get better or keeping patients comfortable during end-of-life care. We have to handle family members, coworkers and our own lives. We can care too much or we can end up protecting ourselves by choosing not to care as much. Is it any wonder that we can become overwhelmed and stressed?
Discover how to turn your stress into strength with these three videos:
(1) The stress of caring too much
(2) CPR for life balance
(3) Stress to strength
First, “The stress of caring too much”…