SOCIAL MEDIA

Showing posts with label Nurse Life. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Nurse Life. Show all posts

Wednesday, November 11, 2020

Nurse Life: Boosting the Immune System


These times of the Pandemic, healthcare workers are considered heroes but that honor cost them to work harder as the cases of COVID-19 continue to rise in most areas all over the world. Every day, nurses face a lot of stress, wear thick PPEs for the whole shift making them give more effort to breathe under N95 masks, skip meals when there are ample of admissions and compromise their sleep cycles because of abrupt irregular shifting changes as well as overtime duties. As nurses working in the COVID-19 Isolation Unit, we have to take precaution to maintain our health and immunity. Being exposed to patients with Coronavirus and taking care of them is a big responsibility to handle that is why we should stay strong holistically to do our sworn duty to our patients and care for our well beings.


Protecting our Immune System is a must to maintain our body health as we are working in a stressful setting. We protect our immune system by having nutritious foods, enough sleep of possible, wearing complete PPEs and precautions and taking some supplements that boosts our immune system for extra protection not just for COVID-19 but for other communicable diseases as well. At times, we tend to eat late because we want to finish everything in our work without delays and our sleeping patterns were compromised due to shifting hours, these are some of the factors that lowers our immune system and raise our stress levels.



Taking supplements every day helps protect Healthcare Workers from acquiring diseases and maintain the adequacy of the levels of vitamins and mineral in my body in case I am not getting enough time to have nutritious foods. Some of them were Vitamin C, the most important as it gives me stronger immunity to communicable diseases, and Vitamin E to make me glow as working as a nurse could at times make you look haggard due to extreme stress, Fish Oil to maintain my Cardiovascular Health. Beta Glucan is a fiber known to prevent the risk of having Heart Diseases and lowers blood glucose. It is also beneficial in the Immune System as it stimulates the white blood cells when there is a pathogen that could invade the body, this results in stronger immunity of the body. One example of a food supplement containing Beta Glucan is Royale Immuno Boost Premium. This product is good for frontliners like us, nurses for boosting our Immune System.




Saturday, October 03, 2020

Life of a Nurse: Handling Stress and Burnout



Healthcare workers are indeed modern day superheroes. The world may see us as such due to our sacrifices in saving the lives of people but at the end of the day, all are just human beings with health limitations. Every day, healthcare workers like us, nurses, are facing exhausting situations in the workplace like increase in patient ratio, failure to eat meals on time and lack of adequate sleep given from changing schedule shifting patterns. Mental Stress could be a result of conflicts will colleagues, pressure to finish all tasks in the shift as well as studying researches and new policies. Even after work hours, overthinking and anxiety about what will happen the next day is unhealthy, all these could lead to burnout and social detachment to the environment. Therefore, nurses should make ways to handle stress and burnout as much as possible. As a nurse working in a demanding and risky area where every day is a challenge; I want to give my personal ways of coping with stress and burnout.

First, let us review some definitions.

STRESS: An antecedent of stimulus, as a consequence of a response. (NCFBI)

BURNOUT: A worker’s reaction to chronic stress. (Frendenberger HJ, 1974)

There are a lot of lists online about handling stress and burnout but I generalized them by what I do personally and is proven effective to myself.




REST YOUR MIND. As much as possible detach yourself from thinking about work related things upon going home. After taking a hot shower, meditate for 5-10 minutes. Turn off your electronic gadgets even for a short while. Take deep breaths. These sure steps will help you cleanse your mind.




LISTEN TO MUSIC/ WATCH FEEL GOOD MOVIES OR TV SERIES. Music Therapy can calm your mind. Take some time to browse stress relieving playlists or your favorite songs on Spotify. There are also varieties of feel good movies on Netflix or other movie sites. A good Rom-Com or Comedy Movie/Series could make you laugh and get you into a good mood.




TALK TO YOUR FRIENDS AND LOVED ONES. Voicing out your thoughts can release your emotional tensions. Feel free to have a talk with someone you trust very well. He/She may be your parents, best friend or lover. A great support system will strengthen your confidence as well as relieve anxiety.




KEEP A JOURNAL OR PERSONAL BLOG. Have some time to write down your thoughts, goals or reflections for the day. Old school as it may seem, a diary is a great aid for expressing yourself privately. Keeping a personal blog online is also a good idea but be careful to not post everything personal online.




CONNECT WITH NATURE. Going for a walk in a park full of trees and plants or a stroll in the beach if nearby will result in calming effect to the mind shutting off toxic thoughts.




EAT DELICIOUS FOOD. A few scoop of Ice Cream or a small bar of chocolate will stimulate your hormones like Endorphins that will lift up your mood. Just take precautions of eating in moderation to avoid stress eating leading to increase weight and health risks.



DECLUTTER/ MAINTAIN TIDINESS AT HOME.
A tidy and clean house could clear your mind leading to less stimulus for stress. Keep all unnecessary things in cabinets, clear away trash and organize your things.


Reference for Definitions:

National Center for Biotechnology Information: www.ncbi.com


Monday, September 14, 2020

Fighting the Pandemic: COVID-19 Nurses


It all began in the news that a new strain of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome virus, COVID-19 identified in Wuhan, China last December 2019. Acquired through small droplets via sneezing and coughing as well as touching contaminated surfaces. For months, the extent of this Infectious Disease turned into a global pandemic as announced by the World Health Organization. The whole world shattered by hundreds of thousands of mortalities and decline to the global economy faced a huge blow in humankind.

Healthcare workers are in the frontline in fighting this Pandemic since then, overwhelmed by increasing number of cases each day. There were new norms, guidelines and changes in the Healthcare Setting is giving an immense amount of adjustments to the Healthcare Personnel. Being one of the nurses assigned in the COVID-19 Unit has been a challenging chapter in our careers. Day after day, we have to learn new guidelines, wear strict Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) for the protection of everyone. There is a compromise in comfortable breathing for wearing an N-95 mask is essential throughout the whole shift. Fear of getting the infection anytime raises anxiety levels never knowing what lies ahead for us. As Nurses with sworn duty in our profession, this dreaded COVID-19 virus could not stop us from standing up in the midst of the challenges. We are here not for the salary or the mainstream praises we receive but because this is our duty for all humanity.




These are the times when we were tested on how we handle our profession. Giving up can be an option yet we will continue fighting not just when this Pandemic would stop but for our lifetimes. Not everyone may feel our struggles yet that feeling of seeing our patient stable, recover to being discharge is fulfilling beyond any awards of achievements. In times when patients were experiencing symptoms, we were the to ease their struggles, hold their hands when they were anxious and afraid as well as smile at them the moment they recover and results come negative.

As one of the nurses battling in Pandemic around, to the nurses who will reach this blog, may you remain strong physically, mentally and emotionally because the world needs us. May we always remember our pledge no matter how great are the hardships we encounter. Our duty is a lifetime of service and honor.