Being Active for Stress Reduction....

Being active sets a positive tone for the week ahead. Whether it’s going for a run, hiking, biking, or engaging in a group sport, the benefits are numerous. Physically, exercise helps improve cardiovascular health, strengthens muscles, and boosts endurance. Mentally, it can elevate your mood due to the release of endorphins, reduce stress, and enhance focus and clarity.

In addition to traditional workouts, exploring new activities can also be a refreshing way to spend your Sunday. For instance, you might consider trying yoga, joining a dance class, or even participating in a community sports event. These not only provide a great physical challenge but also a chance to meet new people and socialize, which can be equally rewarding.

                                  Source Link and Credits for Video

Moreover, integrating nature into your active days can further enhance your experience. A leisurely walk or jog in a local park, or a hike in a nearby nature reserve, allows you to reconnect with the outdoors, which is often energizing and refreshing. The sights and sounds of nature can elevate your mood and make any physical activity feel more enjoyable.

One of the best parts of being active is that it gives you a sense of accomplishment. After dedicating some time to yourself, it’s often easier to transition into the week with a clear mind and a more positive outlook. You may find that you are more productive at work or in other aspects of your life after a refreshing weekend.

Additionally, creating a routine around your workouts can help establish a lasting habit. Maybe you’ll invite friends to join you, turning it into a social event. Or perhaps you’ll set specific goals to achieve each week, such as improving your running time or mastering a new skill in your chosen sport.

Credits-https://nurseslabs.com/fit-nurse-5-types-workout-exercises-nurses-need/

So, whether it’s hitting the gym, participating in a recreational sports league, or simply enjoying an active day outdoors, embracing this approach can significantly benefit both your physical and emotional health. Keep prioritizing those active moments—you'll definitely feel the difference!

***What are some of the ways you keep active and energized?

Resources:https://www.nursingworld.org/practice-policy/work-environment/health-safety/combating-stress/

https://online.regiscollege.edu/blog/stress-management-for-nurses/

https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC4664060/

https://online.qmu.ac.uk/blogs/what-are-the-effects-of-stress-on-nurses/#:~:text=High%20levels%20of%20stress%20is,can%20greatly%20strain%20health%20services.

https://www.clinicaladvisor.com/news/burnout-and-stress-continue-to-plague-the-nursing-profession/

Top 5 Ways Nurses Can Promote Well-being for Themselves and Others.....

 

Nursing can be a stressful profession as we all know. Nurses must deal with different personalities of patients and colleagues, patients’ significant others, difficult situations, emergencies, life and death, and disease processes. Just reading this sentence made me feel stressed and overwhelmed. So why would someone choose to go into the nursing profession?
Nurses are those people who feel confident knowing how to work with different personality types. They want to help others and assist in overcoming challenges. They make a positive impact on someone’s life and feel excited having made a huge difference, which is extremely rewarding. Of course we have heard the saying that the most treasured thing we have in life is our health. When people are sick, they can only think of the value and significance of health and nurses are there to assist them in regaining their health, making them more comfortable by being there.
So how do nurses cope? I know that there have been times when I have felt stressed and overwhelmed, wanting to be able to do more, wanting to have more time, wanting to have more assistance and wanting to reverse the circumstances and make it ‘all better’ for someone. I am sure there are a myriad of reasons why people go into the nursing profession. As nurses, we have seen things that some people never see in their lifetime. So how do we cope? I have learned that a very important point is to be “selfish”! Now please look at this word in a positive way. I want to say that we must take care of ourselves and then we are able to care for others. So what things can we do for ourselves to promote our own well-being?

1. Have Fun! Take the time to enjoy yourself on your time off. What do you enjoy doing? Do you enjoy hiking, skiing, biking, walking  your dog, working out, reading, movies, plays, playing with your children or grandchildren, swimming, dancing, art, jewelry making or other hobbies or activities?
   
   Schedule activities for yourself just like you do your work. You deserve it!
    
2. Practice positive communication in your thoughts and in your verbal and written correspondence. When you frame sentences in a positive way, it will have amazing results in how you feel and even in outcomes. A client of mine says that whenever she is running late to an appointment, she now says to herself that she is going to be there on time, safely, and even have a few minutes to spare. She tells me she is early most of the time.
    
3. Laugh on purpose. Find the funny things in life. Just last night a friend of mine started laughing because I had a piece of popcorn in my hair. I laughed along with her.
   
   Watch funny programs and do fun activities that promote laughter. We can make our own circus.
    
4. Enjoy every moment and live in the present. This means focusing on the here and now and forgetting about worrying about the future, because worrying is actually focusing on what you don’t want to have happen. Focus on what you do want to have happen. You can talk about what you want, visualize what you want, make a collage of what you want in your life, write in your journal and read books about people who have done what you want in your life. This makes it more real for you. When you know that it can happen for someone else then you know that it is possible.
    
5. Tell yourself that amazing things happen every day and they can happen for you as well.
   
   Celebrate little things. I received a free cup of coffee, a free doggie wash, a free lunch and a free 2 hour CEU class just last week. I am abundant I say to myself and I know more will continue to happen. We must celebrate for ourselves. It is fun. It brings laughter and a smile. Keep a journal of all the wonderful things that are happening in your life and then when you need to, you can go back and read and remember all the fun things that happened and will continue to happen.
   
   You can have a new motto, I am Abundant! I Celebrate every day. People around you will notice how much fun you are to be around and they will tell you that they like being around you.
   
   HAVE FUN! SMILE! When you smile more, others will smile more also.

About the Author: Joyce Hyam, RN, BSN, PHN, MPA/HSA, is a certified trainer/speaker/coach/consultant/author who teaches Positive Mindset-Positive Communication-Positive Culture-Positive Rapport Building-Happiness strategies to promote wellbeing. Joyce uses accelerated learning techniques so all communication styles will relate to the material and can begin to use it immediately. She has a BSN from the City University of New York and a Masters in Public Administration with a specialty in Organizational Development from the University of San Francisco. She founded a successful organization which was sold to a venture capital firm.

Are you getting enough Sleep ??...

But how are you supposed to get enough when you’re switching from a morning shift, to an afternoon shift, to a night shift?

You come home, and the sun is shining, cars a driving by, people are talking, and dogs are barking.  You arrive home, have breakfast, greet your family, then head to the bedroom, draw the curtains, and go to bed. All the while your body clock is thinking ‘what the heck is going on?!’
All adults require seven to eight hours of quality sleep each night. Sleeping during the day is not as restorative as night sleep.
Nightshift workers, especially those with unpredictable shifts rarely get the amount of sleep they need.
There are numerous suggestions for helping nightshift workers sleep better but do any of these really work?

• Wear sunglasses on the way home from work. It signals to your brain that your shift is over.
• Nap during your lunch break. Studies indicate that just twenty to thirty minutes of sleep can make you more alert.
• Limit your caffeine and only consume in the first four hours that you are awake.

Do you think these tips work? Or is sleeping well during the day just something you have to get used too?
How much depends on the individual? I have two family members that regularly work nursing night shifts. One swaps back and forth between morning, afternoon, and night and always feels like a ‘zombie’ even after having a decent sleep, the other works nightshift four nights a week, every week and can sleep anywhere at the drop of a hat, and wake up completely alert and ready to go. She has no problem sleeping at night on her nights off either.

So what’s the difference? Is that the ‘routine’ that makes the difference? Or does it depend on the individual?