What a powerful question.  One that each of us need to ask ourselves at least daily, if not several times a day.

In healthcare, we are givers at heart.  We give and give and give to others.  Sometimes to the point of exhaustion.  We take care of everyone else before thinking about caring for ourselves. We even give more of our personal time to help others.  At what expense?  Truth is, at the expense of ourselves.  At the end of the day, many of us fall in bed exhausted, to get a few hours of sleep, just to get up and do it all over again.

As healthcare workers, we are at very high risk for emotional exhaustion, burnout and compassion fatigue.  Really, this comes at no surprise if we are not taking time out for ourselves.  Time to refuel, to restore and to honor our holistic (mind, body, spirit and heart) needs.  It is time to put ourselves at the top of our own list. 

Many struggle with following through on the commitments we make to ourselves related to self-care, which creates self-trust issues.  Truth is, we let ourselves down when we don’t honor our own self-care/refueling needs. Does any of this sound familiar? If so, then we must also look at our belief patterns that we have taken on—such as self-care is selfish, there is no play until the work is done, it is important to help others before helping ourselves—this list could go on and on.  It is imperative to recognize how belief patterns are derailing the effort to honor oneself.  We need to be aware of the operating belief patterns so that we can push back against those patterns that keep us stuck in patterns that are not at all true. 

Other reflection questions that jump forward to me when I think about how I will honor myself today are:

• What is important to me right now?
• What is it that I really need to refuel?
• What is the best decision I can make for myself?
• What do I need to do to trust myself to take care of myself?
• What is the next best thing for me?
• What do I need to allow back into my life?
• How will I feel about life if I continue to do what I have always done?
• What would self-care/refueling look like in this moment?

Over the next month, I challenge everyone to ask at least daily:  How can I honor myself right now?  When the answer comes, choose to do that very thing.  Be aware that the belief patterns will sometimes be louder than the self-care/refueling answer.  Push back and do what is best for you in that moment.  Staying consistent for 30 days, will create the habit of honoring what is most important for self-care at any given moment.  Self-care is at the foundation of refueling!

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Contact me: 
chartline@rwhc.com
608-644-3235

Cella Janisch-Hartline, RN, BSN, PCC Professional Certified Coach, Nursing Leadership Senior Manager for Rural Wisconsin Health Cooperative has been involved in various healthcare industry leadership positions for the past 40 years. The majority of her career has been spent working in an acute care critical access facility for nearly 25 years. Throughout her work experience, she has learned most of her leadership skills and techniques through the school of “hard knocks”. Cella’s passion for teaching leadership tips and techniques earned her the 2018 Outstanding Educator Award through the National Rural Health Association. She is well-known for her humorous, engaging and personable facilitation style.