Give Yourself the Best of Yourself Not What is Left of Yourself
Reflecting on the privilege of having a neurobiology professor become a mentor, one piece of advice they always expressed was to remember that, “In order to give your best to others, you must first give your best to yourself.”
A big aspect of the identities of healthcare workers and caregivers is their love and desire to take care of others—but that love and desire can become all-consuming to the point that personal self-care is put on the back burner. While days are fulfilled with the satisfaction and pride of helping, healing, and taking care of others, it would be remiss to hide from the fact that days are also filled with long hours that are physically, mentally, and emotionally draining.
We had the pleasure of interviewing healthcare professionals, ranging from mental health, surgical, and nursing professionals and gained insight on how they practice self-care. What we learned above anything: that self-care is not only essential but will look different for everyone. It is imperative to find what practices work best for you as it will make you not only a better professional, but person as well.
In talking with mental health professionals, we discovered that bringing work home can be one of the hardest parts of the job. While it cannot be avoided completely, they shared self-care practices that not only helped with this struggle, but in turn helped them become better therapists and counselors. A student well-being advocate shared their self-care regimen that includes regular exercise, occasional meditation, lots of walks and hikes in nature, and time spent with family and pets. Other mental healthcare workers and professionals in the medical field have suggested that committing to a good nutrition, talking to a therapist, keeping a gratitude journal, and using positive-self talk (especially at work) are practices that have greatly improved and maintained their mental health as well as their perspectives on what it means to take care of themselves. It also ultimately led to them rediscovering an excitement and passion for their work in healthcare.
It is also crucial in identifying what is best for your mental health. In talking with a chief medical officer and general surgeon, we learned that it is imperative to identify signs of declining mental health as well as being our own advocates and finding those who will support our mental health decisions. This can look like communicating with bosses, employee advocates, and family members to not only come up with a plan to maintain mental health but to ask for help, as this is a battle not meant to go at alone. Advocating for yourself and asking hospital systems, private practices, and your company what programs they provide to support the mental health of their professionals is not something you have to earn, it is your right.
In talking with surgical professionals, we were moved by their humility and honesty as they described burnout as one of their toughest mental health battles. They worked their whole academic careers and lives to get to this professional point—how could they not be happy? Burnout can manifest in feelings of guilt, uselessness, anhedonia, insomnia, and distraction. While it is important to track these feelings, it is important to take the time to discern why you are feeling this way and what solutions will help. The self-care practices shared above are a beneficial option, but in talking with a NICU nurse turned oncology nurse, self-care practices can also include changing fields, scenery, and colleagues. This nurse expressed that working in the NICU was her dream field since she began nursing school at the University of Virginia. Over a few years in the NICU, this nurse found that she was less present outside of the NICU and less excited to go to work each day. The patients she lost and saw struggling seemed to hide and steer her away from the patients she saved and saw succeeding. She lost her love of being a NICU nurse. “How could I leave and where would I go?” “Will I make an impact somewhere else?” These were some of the questions she asked herself, but little by little she found the strength to identify what she needed—and that was a change in scenery. Now, two years as an oncology nurse, she has more flexible hours, more time to spend with her husband and their two dogs, and feels excited to go to work.
“If you don’t give yourself a break, you will be broken.” Practicing self-care is something healthcare professionals must prioritize so that they continue to find fulfillment, passion, and success in not only their careers, but their personal lives as well. You are worth it. You are deserving of the care you give to everyone else.