Excerpt from newsletter below - Personal Challenge - Drop in once a week and share your self care journey - when one of us succeeds we all benefit and make it easier for the rest of us! We are better Together! Susanne
Secretary: Susanne One Love, BSN, RN
In nursing there can be so much pressure to do it right and to know it all. When pandemic or crises occur,
the feeling of being overwhelmed can rise and feel like the tide rushing in or it can feel like being battered
by waves. Nurses have a foundation to support themselves and others at all times with grounding and
peace. The nursing process. We all use it and take it for granted as "our job.” When the nursing process is
applied to selfcare, feelings of being overwhelmed and fear can be replaced with peace and direction. The
nursing process is -assessment, diagnosis, planning, implementation, and evaluation
Assessment: awareness starts here- be cognizant of your stressors
Plan: Plan your days 1, 2 and 3.
1. Every day meditate for 10-20 minutes first thing in the morning. Set a timer. Sit and
breathe. Let the thoughts wander by. When timer ends, get up and go about your
day.
2. Plan 15 minutes for yourself in the middle of your day. Take a walk. Look out the
window. Devote this time to you.
3. At end of the day after dinner or at bedtime, take 15 minutes and journal your
thoughts and get them out of your head. Or write down 5 things you appreciate
about anyone or anything. Give yourself 15 minutes of nothing to do. Breathe for 15
minutes.
Diagnosis: Ask yourself-what do I need to do to feel calm and at peace? Take three deep slow
breaths. This may be all you need to create some space between you and a perceived problem.
Implementation: Start slow-first week only meditate daily; 2nd week add 15 min middle of
daybreak and 3rd week add evening relax 15 min. Or spice it up and do at least one thing a day
for a week and add a second daily thing when it feels good. If you fail one day, pick it up again
the next day. Make a commitment for self-care. Make a commitment to care for yourself as you
care for others. The sooner you start the sooner you feel better! And others will notice.
Evaluation- Share your thoughts, triumphs, and feelings of defeat with others and revel in the
good feeling of camaraderie as we normalize self-care into a daily nursing practice!
Check out Northern Arizona Chapter blog on the AZNA website chapter page as we write
about how it feels for selfcare!
Blog address: Arizona Nurses Association Community (aznurse.org)
Looking forward to sharing your successes!