Nurse Mental Health - Let's Talk About It.

I have been sitting on this post.

I wrote this post recently, but was not planning on sharing it. I was not sure how I felt about sharing my personal story on the blog. There is a lot of stigma related to mental health in the healthcare community (and world) and while I am pretty open about my own nursing journey, I was not confident yet that I was ready to put my mental health story out in the great, wide world of the interwebs.

However yesterday there were some comments made on the New Thing Nurse social media that reminded me why it is so important to share our stories. There is an expectation that nurses need to have a "thick skin" to be successful in medicine, or it might not be the career for you. That people with anxiety or depression or other mental health diagnoses cannot be strong, capable & amazing nurses.

I THINK THAT IS CRAZY.

Nurses don't need thicker skins. They need better support. They need better coping strategies & stress management techniques. They need better work conditions. They need to know that their job is hard, that what they're feeling is normal, and that it is OK to admit if you're struggling and to talk about it.

Nurses, like all humans, have mental health. We should be concerned about their mental and emotional wellness. Nurses have to take care of themselves, so that they can take care of others.

Now, let me tell you a story.

Let’s start with a story, my story.

I was born a baby ER nurse in 2011, and it seems like only five minutes ago. 

I remember being a newly-minted nurse, hyperventilating on my way to those first night shifts. I had finished nursing school in an accelerated 16-month, master’s-entry program. It was disorganized. It went by way too fast. I did not feel prepared to save lives.  

During nursing school, I was anxious.

I was nervous about classes and tests. I was terrified during my first weeks of clinicals. The first time I went to take vital signs on a patient, I went with my classmate to record a blood pressure, heart rate, SAO2 and respiratory rate. We divided and conquered the tasks, and I almost passed out while trying to put on the patient’s blood pressure cuff. I am sure that the poor patient thought we were completely inept, but she was kind enough not to tell me to buzz off during the encounter.

Most people would say that some academic anxiety is normal. Sure. It probably is, but I have always been a nervous person. My anxiety was magnified by a million in nursing school. Because everyone kept telling me that it would get better, I shook off the fact that I cried constantly when I was alone and stress ate like it was going out of style. I once showed up at my classmate’s house and just ate a whole cheesecake. That isn’t normal.

Then I started my first job.

I was working nights, like everyone does when they start out, and was SO excited about being in the ER. It was my dream, and I was working in a great department with a very supportive staff. Yet I was barely sleeping. I was still stress eating, and sometimes I liked stayed in bed for days at a time when I was not working. When out with a crowd, I was usually fine, but I was frequently tearful at home. My then boyfriend, now husband, dealt with extreme mood swings and many crazy, sleepless days/nights. I thought it was all because I was working night shift, so I made excuses and soldiered on.

I moved to California and worked as a traveler, then as a staff nurse at several ERs. I continued to work nights. I had a terrible time sleeping, continued to be anxious and tearful when home alone and had many days where I could not get out of bed. I blamed everything and everyone for my continued anxiety and down moods. There was no way that I had a problem. It was always situational, at least that is what I continued to tell myself.

Then one day about three years ago, I was at home, an anxious, hot mess.

I was working 4-6 shifts a week at two jobs that I was juggling while trying to pay off my student loans. There had been a string of really brutal patient cases that had made me sad to the core of my being. I had not worked for several days yet at home that day, I was jumpy and crying. My husband was away on a business trip. I started looking for something to blame my mood on, but I could not think of anything - I had stopped working nights. I had gotten married. I had an amazing community of family and friends. I had a job that I loved.

So, I did what any good nurse does. I got a consult.

I found a therapist. She changed my life.

Through a lot of talking, time, exercise, mindfulness work, self-care and medicine (YES – I take medicine for my mental health), I have come to realize and accept that I have problems with depression and anxiety. For most of you reading this, you probably could have told me that years ago just by reading my story. That would have been great! But when you are on a journey of mental health self-assessment, it usually takes a lot of time to come to accept help and realize the deeper causes of your problems.

But I work in healthcare, so why didn’t I figure this out sooner?

Nurses and other healthcare workers historically HATE talking about their own mental health. We will diagnose and treat others ‘til the cows come home, but we will not discuss our own feelings for a million dollars. ER nurses may be some of the worst. We are so cowboy and pride ourselves on our ability to see the saddest, grossest, most traumatic cases and just keep going. That’s why we like to binge eat/drink/exercise/Netflix/craft. Call it what you want, but a lot of that is coping mechanisms in the extreme. I mean, have you ever seen any stress eating like a night shift pot luck? Think about it.

Things are changing.

The healthcare community is starting to talk more and more about the relationship between our work and our mental health. There are many organizations and foundations working to advocate for increased awareness of healthcare workers’ mental health needs (see below). Self-care and stress management is becoming more a part of the conversation, in addition to the need to combat compassion fatigue and burnout. This is a positive evolution for nurses and other healthcare providers everywhere. The world is starting to take note of the toll that our work is taking on us.

What else can we do?

I personally have made stress management and self-care a part of all of my education for both nursing students and veteran nurses. While awareness is the first step, we have to actively engage in self-care to protect ourselves from the negative effects of the stress of our jobs. Humans are incredibly resilient, and nurses are super stars in the resiliency game. However even super stars can burn out. We have to take the steps to not just continue to make nurse mental health a part of the conversation, but also to actively work to making self-care, mindfulness and stress management a part of our daily nursing and personal practice.

So, am I all better?

My anxiety and depression are going to be my forever friends. Sometimes they hang out with me, while other times they go on vacation. I have to continuously work on the things that keep me mentally well so that I do not backslide into the depths of Depression Town. I see my therapist regularly. I take my medicine. I (try to) eat well, sleep enough and exercise. I have started to try to meditate and stretch more.  I surround myself with positive humans. I travel. I read. I stay engaged with my professional and personal community. I continue to do work that I love – ER nursing, ENA volunteering & of course, New Thing Nurse. However, I am human, and I do not always succeed. I love donuts and cookies. I do not like to work out in the cold. I sometimes get too affected by things outside of my control (i.e. politics, family, donuts). But I do my best and most of the time, I feel like a fulfilled and happy person.

Also, I am, and continue to be, a strong and awesome nurse.

Having my own struggles with depression and anxiety have never made me a weak or bad nurse. On the contrary, I feel that I am a better nurse and advocate for both my patients and colleagues because of it. Additionally I have lead a successful ER nursing career, started a business to support the nursing community, lectured at the local, state and international level, and supported nurses and nursing students all along the way. My mental health challenges have never stopped me from being successful or effective in any role. I just have had to work harder and overcome more to achieve my goals.

Final Thoughts.

If you have read all of this, I commend you and thank you for sharing in my story. I want to make nurses everywhere realize that if you are feeling anything on the spectrum of anxious, self-doubting, irritable or sad, YOU ARE SO NOT ALONE. I have been there. I will be there again. There are so many more of us out there than you think. There are lots of other nurses talking about their own mental health journey on social media. Check them out! Let’s not keep how we are feeling a secret anymore.

Let’s keep the conversation going about our nurse mental health.

Let’s talk about it.

- Sarah @ New Thing Nurse

Want to read more about Nurse Mental Health & Wellness?

American Nurses Association - Healthy Nurse, Healthy Nation Campaign

Elizabeth Scala - Nursing from Within Blog

Nurse.org - Nurse Wellness: Not an Oxymoron

The Code Green Campaign - A First Responder Mental Health Advocacy Group


About the Author - Sarah K. Wells, MSN, RN, CEN, CNL is an educator, speaker, blogger and owner of New Thing Nurse, a professional and academic coaching company for the nursing world. New Thing Nurse is organized to provide support and guidance to aspiring nurses, newly graduated nurses, and veteran RNs looking to make a change in their life.

Whether it’s a new school, new job or new idea,

New Thing Nurse wants to help with your new thing!



Nurse Hearts - Big, Strong & Never Alone

<3 February is Heart Month <3

I just wanted to write a quick note about the most incredible heart out there - the heart of a nurse.

Nurse hearts are big.

Nurses can work 12+ hours and provide care and support for patients and their families going through the best and worst moments of their lives. Nurses will give and give. Their hearts are a bottomless wells for caring for others.

Nurse hearts are strong.

Nurses see the utter horrors of the world. Death, betrayal, poverty, violence & hatred can come across a nurse's path at any time during a shift. Often it is not the medical issues of the patients that are the hardest thing to see. Usually it is the impossible social situations that they come from that the nurse has to navigate. Nurse hearts see it all and keep going.

Nurse hearts are never alone.   

Where there is one nurse heart, there is always another. We don't travel alone. Nurse hearts will help support each other in their times of need, because nobody knows how hard it is to nurse except another nurse.

This month is coming to an end, but take a moment to appreciate your own nurse heart. It's pretty incredible.

- Sarah @ New Thing Nurse

About the Author - Sarah K. Wells, MSN, RN, CEN, CNL is an educator, speaker, blogger and owner of New Thing Nurse, a professional and academic coaching company for the nursing world. New Thing Nurse is organized to provide support and guidance to aspiring nurses, newly graduated nurses, and veteran RNs looking to make a change in their life.

Whether it’s a new school, new job or new idea,

New Thing Nurse wants to help with your new thing!



The Importance of Learning & Self-Care for the Nursey Soul - My Week in Mazatlan, MX with ExpeditionEd

Is there anything better than a week at the beach?

Answer – YES! I am spending a week at the beach with a #newthingnurse & my nurse mentor - Allison Shuttleworth - and the crew of ExpeditionEd - a tropical destination continuing education company for nurses - in beautiful Mazatlan, MX. We have an incredible group of passionate nurses here with us who are learning, networking & taking time for self-care during a week at the beach.

I am here as an instructor with my bestie and nurse gal pal, Sarah Goss (same name = no one forgets what to call the teacher), and we are having a blast teaching in a casual and relaxing atmosphere for a few hours each morning as we all sip our coffee and gaze out at the waves. Our curriculum includes topics such as Pediatric Triage, Cultural Considerations for the Emergent Patient, Peds Mock Codes, Essential Spanish for the ER, How to Tell When a Psych Patient isn’t a Psych Patient, Self-Care for the ER RN and much more. I am learning. I am teaching. I am loving this program.

And if all of this wasn’t enough, our program participants are teaching Sarah and me as much as we are teaching them! These strong and inspiring nurses come from a variety of nursing backgrounds, but have all had ER experience which has brought us close together as only a common nursing unit can. We have almost 100 years of nursing experience between us. Let me tell y’all - the stories have been soooooo good.

The best part of this week, besides our amazing group of new nursey friends, has been all the encouragement of self-care activities. Allison does an amazing job of balancing our class time with play time. Yoga, hula-hooping and tourist-ing are a huge part of the ExpeditionEd’s curriculum. Allison believes in holistically treating the nursey soul to build a strong personal foundation to enhance your nurse practice as well as fostering a stronger sense of self. Allison wants each of us to be happy, balanced and successful as a person and a nurse.

I personally believe that travel, professional development and collaboration with others make each of us a better nurse, colleague, friend, family and community member. By putting yourself in new environments, you expand your personal perspective and ability to understand the world. Without discomfort, there is no growth.

This week ExpeditionEd and New Thing Nurse have both grown along with our fantastic group of new nurse friends.

- Sarah @ New Thing Nurse

        You can follow Allison, husband Dave & pup Chacho on their sailing adventures -         

Instagram - @sailepifania

Want to learn more about ExpeditionEd?

Check out their website - www.expedition-ed.com



Like! Love!! Repost!!! - RNs Using Social Media

I love social media.

I do. It's obvious. I use Instagram, Facebook, Blogs (Follow/Like/Read New Thing Nurse!) & listen to sooooo many podcasts.  A 2014 study of nurse social media use found that approximately 94% of participants reported using some form of social media. It is happening. Nurses are using social media to network, educate, advocate & respond to issues in real time. It can be so useful & efficient. Many large health organizations - like the CDC, the WHO, ENA, AACN & so many more letter combinations - have their own social media accounts (that you should be following). It is an incredibly easy & fun way to stay up-to-date with healthcare trends.

But with all the good, comes the bad.

As healthcare providers, we nurses are responsible for many things & are held accountable for what we say & do while on & off the clock. In addition to all laws that we have to follow (ahem - HIPAA), we are representing our ourselves, our unit, our employers & our profession at all times whether we realize or not. This extends to our online presence. Many employers are starting to monitor social media accounts for potential & current employees. Plus almost all facilities now have a social media policy in addition to a professional policy that all employees must follow. Check out the policies of your facility.

While one of the main words in social media is social, nurses also have to keep the social posts professional. The risks for not doing so include potential professional repercussions from employers or state licensing boards. In plain speak, you can lose your job or your RN license. Not worth it.

And are you a student? This applies to you too! Universities check social media when looking at student applications & almost all educational institutions have both the social media & professional policies in place for their students. So think thrice about your next post.

How do I use social media without getting in trouble?

I know you're thinking - "Great. Now I can't post anymore. THANKS A LOT!"

Relax. I am not going to leave you high & dry. You can still use social media, but I just want you to review your posting practices & think about it from a professional point of view -

Would this content be concerning if I were an employer?

Does this make me look like a competent nurse... or human?

Would my patients feel good seeing me drinking those six shots 6 hours before my shift starts?

How would my grandma feel about that dress?

With these points in mind, let's review some social media best practices for nursing professionals.

Privacy Settings

The first step to making your online presence more secure is to max out your privacy settings. Try to Google yourself & see what comes up. If you don't like your results, consider increasing the privacy settings on your accounts. All social media platforms have privacy settings which frequently change, so it's a good practice to recheck yours every 3-6 months. This does not mean that you are excluded from the "professional posting" rule. People can still see what you are posting. This will just decrease the possibility of your boss randomly stumbling upon your birthday party bus posts.

Use A Different Name

Like increased privacy settings, using a different name WILL NOT protect you from unprofessional posts. However it can deter unwanted folks from finding your more personal social media activity. Some nurses that I have met have a personal social media account with a nickname & a professional social media account with their legal name. Again you still have to keep it professional, but it is a common approach to enhancing your privacy.

Would You Be OK with the Whole World Seeing This?

You should just assume that EVERYONE is going to see what you just posted. Would you be ok with your grandma & your boss checking that outfit from last night? If not, you might want to make some choices on what you're posting. Also consider that if 94% of nurses are using social media, you can assume 98% of patients are too. If they didn't like their care or something you said, bet your Christmas bonus that they are going to try to find you online & find other things that they don't like. Then they are going to file a complaint. It happens. Don't let it happen to you!

Photos of Work

Don't do it. Just don't. I know you think that it will be ok, but I feel really strongly that you should never post specifics about your job, photos from work, what happens on shift or complain in any way about your employer or patients. Never post photos of you socializing in your scrubs. Don't post your badge. Don't post where you work unless it's a professional profile used for specifically professional purposes. I know that I have not been perfect about this. Facebook went public while I was in college, & we all had to learn. But photos & posts about work can be very quickly turned against you. My motto - just be positive about work or don't mention it at all.

HIPAA & Posting

Patient confidentiality is a BIG DEAL & federally protected by law. You need to be really careful about telling stories, posting on social media or texting out any tales from the patient care world.
Think about it! Even if you change patient identifiers, don’t most people know where you work? Plus what kind of floor you work on? & how hard would it be to figure out the day this happened? That’s a lot of identifying information. I used to work in a small town & some of the Nosey Neds & Nancies of that town could figure out a lot from less than that.

Many Schools & Employers Do a Social Media Check

We touched on this earlier, but it bears repeating. It is happening. During job & school application processes, many institutions are doing social media checks on their applicants. I recommend doing a review of what's out there on you before applying to schools or new jobs & consider deleting questionable photos (especially with nudity or alcohol), de-tagging yourself from off color status updates or de-activating accounts while in the application process.

Social Media & Professional Policies

I know that we touched on this topic briefly, but this also is super important. Social media & professional policies are documents that clearly define an organization's expectations for online & professional conduct. Some are super detailed while others are more vague. You need to read the policies of your facility. When you become an employee or student at an organization, you are agreeing to follow their policies. If you are found in violation of these policies, you can be in deep trouble. Save yourself the pain & find out what the expectations are for you.

More Resources!!

While I like to think of myself as an awesome resource, please DO NOT JUST FOLLOW THIS POST FOR YOUR SOCIAL MEDIA RECOMMENDATIONS. There are many other resources out there. First & foremost, FOLLOW THE POLICIES OF YOUR EMPLOYER, FACILITY & EDUCATIONAL INSTITUTIONS. For further reading, here are a few other resources for you to review -

National Council of State Boards of Nursing - A Nurse's Guide to the Use of Social Media

C. Lee Ventola - Social Media and Health Care Professionals: Benefits, Risks, and Best Practices

Nancy Spector, PHD, RN & Dawn M. Kappel, MA - Guidelines for Using Electronic and Social Media: The Regulatory Perspective

Remember - Social media can be awesome. Just make sure to keep it professional & follow the policy.

- Sarah @ New Thing Nurse

 



HELLO 2018! LET'S TALK ABOUT NURSE SELF-CARE GOALS.

2017 was a year of highs & lows.

The Lows: Mom gets diagnosed with colon cancer & spending Thanksgiving week in the hospital hoping that modern medicine is all it's cracked up to be.

The Super Highs: Mom is found clear of cancer after surgery & doesn't need chemo or radiation!!! Also starting this little company - New Thing Nurse - & finding so many connections & endless support through our #newthingnursetribe during the harder parts of this year has been a great gift. Thank you to everyone who reached out. You guys are amazing. 

A Personal High: I've found so much joy in helping my clients throughout the past year achieve their goals & pursue their new things. Have a new thing? Let's chat.

so what are my goals for the new year?

These past few months have definitely reshaped my goals for 2018. I have been away from the bedside for almost 6 weeks helping with my mom and am returning to work soon. I'm a little nervous, but so ready to see my ER team again. They were constant supporters throughout this whole series of events. I am so lucky & honored to be able to work with them.

However I want to come back as strong of a co-worker as possible. I am almost ready, but there are certain self-care steps that I want to make priorities this year to ensure that I am my best self for home & work. These past few months have been hard, & I have not always excelled at keeping my head level. Now it's a new year, so time to change up my approach.

None of these ideas are revolutionary, but if I achieve a few of them every day, I will be a stronger person & nurse -

Self-Care Goal: Eat better.

This is in no way a unique idea for a New Year's goal. I want to eat better for my health - eat cleaner, less junk & more consistently. My husband & I want to cook more this year. We bought an InstaPot. We will see how that goes. But the idea is to not just eat for physical health, but also for my mental health. I don't want to count calories or be guilty for having a cookie (I really love cookies). I want to support myself in my food decisions not only by what I eat but also, how I feel about what I eat. (If you want to have daily morsels of self-love along these themes, please follow BodyPosiPanda on IG.) I want to be more forgiving of myself. More on that later.

Self-Care Goal: Drink more water.

I am putting myself on notice for being better about carrying around my water bottle & using it. I am a hot mess when I am cracked out on coffee. We have all been there. The shift is going bad. You didn't sleep well the night before. The miracle bean juice smells incredible, so you drink a few cups. Then a few more. The resulting headaches & dehydrated crank are real. Sarah needs to drink more agua.

Self-Care Goal: Stretch.

Along with working out (which I need to be better about), I want to stretch more. As nurses, we carry a lot of stress in our bodies. We also have very physical jobs. I sometimes come home with aches & pains that make me feel like an old woman. Last year I got a roller, which has changed the game, but I need to use it more consistently. I want to make time in the morning & evening to stretch it out on my new yoga mat. It's time to make the pain nothing but a 2017 memory.

Self-Care Goal: Be more forgiving of myself.

I am a worrier. I worry about my patients, their families, my co-workers, my job, my family, my husband, myself, my extended family, my neighbors, my stuff, my community, my country & the general state of the world. And this is just the short list. I worry about all of these things, want to fix all the problems & then feel an amazing amount of guilt related to my inability to fix the planet.

This is not healthy.

I want to try to be more forgiving of myself. This goes along with being more patient with myself. I am a super type-A, self-critical human. I want to relax those personal characteristics a little. To achieve these goals, I hope to slow things down, be more honest with myself & others, be a better communicator, go talk to my therapist (I love my therapist.) & try some things like yoga & meditation. This is a big goal, which I know I won't fully achieve this year or the next, but if I can make some progress, I know that I will be a better me.

Self-Care Goal: Meditation.

I'm putting it out there. I'm going to try to meditate this year. There is so much sadness & emotional dreadfulness that we see as nurses. It's time to try to learn how to help clear my mind. Did you know that 1 in 10 emergency workers suffer from PTSD? Nurses see tragedy so often that it doesn't even register sometimes. It is so important to take care of our minds along with our bodies to make it possible to have long & healthy nursing careers.

2018 - Let's see what we can do.

I've never been big on being hard & fast on my resolutions. They always seem like rules that I am doomed to break as soon as I set them. This year, I want to go for these big, general goals. If I don't fulfill them every day, no worries. But if I can get a few right most days, I will be a better person & stronger nurse for it.

I want this year to be about building a stronger foundation of ME. That way I can be a strong foundation for YOU. Want to do it together?

Happy New Year!!! Let's help each other succeed & grow throughout 2018.

- Sarah @ New Thing Nurse



My Holiday Wish List - Clean Hands, IV Normal Saline & Full Staffing for All.

Christmas is almost here!

Everyone keeps asking me what I want under my tree. My list is going to challenge Santa because there are some supply issues this year, but I'm hoping that he can place all these items under my hospital tree & all the other nurses who made his "Nice List" this season - 

Please make everyone wash their hands with soap & water.

Soap. It's a simple & beautiful idea. Everyone wash your hands with soap & water. Anti-bacterial gel is ok, but there is nothing better than plain, old soap & hot water. Imagine a world of snotty kids, homeless patients & confused elderly patients all with pristine & germ-free hands. I wouldn't be afraid to let people use my pen or touch door knobs. Maybe.

IV Normal Saline

You may or may not know that there is a shortage on IV Normal Saline injection bags. I work in the ER, so we use A LOT of IV NS. It is the miracle fluid. It cures everything from hangovers to the dehydration effects of GI bugs. There are so few interventions that make a universally positive impact on patients. Santa, please bring me some extra 1000 cc NS bags this year.

Full Staffing

Cue Mariah Carey voice - "Alllll I wantttt for Christmasss is full staffffinnnnnnggggg!"

I am lucky enough to work in California where we have state mandated nursing ratios.  These ratios put a max number of patients assigned to each RN based on their patients' acuity or the unit specialty where the RN works. This makes busy days more manageable because you know that there is a limit to how many train wrecks that you may have to take on during a shift. But California is the exception & not the norm. I worked in Georgia for several years & know how crazy the holidays can be in the ER with 8 hour wait-times & ambulances flying in faster than you can count. Some shifts I would have a dozen patients, all with active orders & no help because of call-outs... AHHH! Even with patient ratios in California, staffing is often short in other departments during the holidays making everything a challenge. You've never appreciated EVS or lab staff more than when there isn't enough of them & suddenly everything is taking twice as long to get done.

That's why this year for Christmas, I hope that staffing is full for all departments across the land! May your care team be plentiful & your patients kind.

Now - A GIANT SHOUT OUT TO EVERYONE WORKING THIS HOLIDAY!!!

THANK YOU to everyone working, on-call, who just got off or if you're getting ready to go in! You guys are the heroes that make it possible for the healthcare machine to keep going during the holidays & enable so many to be home with their families. You guys & gals are incredible & deserve all the love <3

Lastly, I want to thank all the readers & #newthingnursetribe members who have started reading this little blog. I know that there are millions of medical bloggers out there & knowing that you are taking the time to read over my musings means so much this holiday & every day.

Wishing all of you & yours a very merry Christmas!

- Sarah @ New Thing Nurse



Nurse Gratitude.

The holidays can be rough.

The hospitals are full with patients who need care, & the staffing is short because of co-workers who are not there....

This holiday season is unusual for me. I am currently with family due to illness, so enjoying doing some private duty nursing & family support this holiday season. But traditionally, this is the time of year when I like to look around the ridiculously full hospital (while I'm doing a million things, haven't had a break & may or may not have peed in the last 11 hours) & focus on all the awesome reasons why I have #nursegratitude.

What is "nurse gratitude"? Great question! Nurse gratitude is the thankful feeling that I get for all things nursing. This can be for simple things like coffee & gloves (essential for each & every shift). Or it can be for things like social workers & child life specialists who make terrible situations more manageable with their wizard-like skills (I LOVE ALL YOU SOCIAL WORKERS & CHILD LIFE FOLKS).  Today, I just wanted to focus on the general aspects of nursing that make me so full of nurse gratitude.

Here is the Top 5 on my Nurse Gratitude List  -

1. Flexibility.

This job has allowed me to travel the world, be available for my family in times of crisis, take classes & start a new business. I have worked full-time, part-time & PRN. As an ER nurse, I have worked ALLLLLL the shifts which has freed me up for many educational, personal & professional opportunities. My colleagues have been able to be daytime parents & nighttime workers, full-time students, fulfilling passion projects & a few have been seasonal athletes while still being fully employed three days a week. There are few jobs with greater flexibility than nursing. Cheers to Saturday on a Tuesday.

2. We have the best stories.

When at a party, dinner out or just a gathering of folks, nurses will always have the best stories. I hate the question, "What is the craziest thing you have ever seen?". Normal folks aren't ready for the real crazy. I usually give them a watered-down rectal foreign body story that gets a lot of giggles & then we move on. What I love is hearing that someone else is in the healthcare field & then getting to compare war stories. Healthcare workers, but nurses especially, have the best, most incredibly, "you can't make this sh*t up" stories. They are best not for general consumption, but get a few jaded nurse hearts together with a glass of whiskey or wine & the night will not disappoint.

3. Nurses are the best people.

I cannot stress enough how generally amazing the people are who are drawn to nursing. I don't know why, but they are the most passionate, hard-working & funny individuals. Almost all my friends are nurses for exactly this reason. Nurses love to help. They are driven by a crazy passion to get sh*t done. No one is better suited for a high-stress, multitasking needed situation. That's why so many are balancing kids, school & a side-hustle. And nurses are HILARIOUS. Nurses can literally be facing some of the saddest & hardest situations that life can offer, but they can make light of it all. I love me some nurses. 

4. Variety.

Have you ever seen such a variety of roles that nursing has to offer? When I meet clients who are burnt crispy & telling me that they are thinking of switching careers, I almost yell - "WHY?". There is an almost endless amount of manifestations of nursing out there. Just when I think that I've heard them all, I learn about something new. Did you know that you can be a camp nurse? Or a toxicology nurse? Or a nurse podcaster? Or an organ donation nurse? Or a nurse historian? YES!!! These are all real jobs. The list goes on & on, but I encourage you to think about your passions & do some research. There is probably an amazing fit (or at least some swag) for even your nursing & knitting interests.

5. We get to help.

We get to help people. Our patients are often in their most vulnerable time of need, as are their family, friends & other loved ones. We get to help our colleagues & communities by donating to fundraisers or working at the medic booth at the health fair. We go home & help our own relatives by taking all their calls related to - "I have this spot on my back....". Our kids & their friends come to us to help with the owies. My neighbor comes by to check in after his hip operation with questions. Nurses are helpers. I live for the helping.

This holiday season you do have the option of just dwelling on how there were three sick calls, two Code 3's in the last five minutes & a laboring mother in the waiting room (where's the partridge in the pear tree?). But why? All that would do is stress me out & make my shift that much worse. Let's choose to BUMP THAT NOISE & instead find some positivity by remembering all the reasons that we can have #nursegratitude this year.

- Sarah @ New Thing Nurse