First off, let me start with an apology since I have not posted anything lately. For whatever reason, I am going through writer’s mental block. For those of you who personally know me, you may think that I always have something to say, yet I cannot articulate it through an article. So uncharacteristic of me, right?

By the way, here are the podcast links: https://spotifyanchor-web.app.link/e/DdrxyNi5Sxb and https://open.spotify.com/episode/6JtHGPF0qoXrRyec0OPexI?si=9bb2079f3d1148e3

Well, I have started writing about a variety of topics lately. Yet, I never felt that anything was worth posting. Because of that, I ask myself:

Am I losing my touch? Don’t I know how to write anymore?

And then I realize that this may actually be a symptom that I am not taking care of my own mental health the best way that I can. As a typical nurse, I preach about the need to safeguard our patients’ mental health. However, we constantly reiterate the need to: “follow what I say…but not necessarily what I do, shh!”

Let’s admit it. We, nurses, are terrible at prioritizing our own mental health. As I stated in my previous post, we are such a giving bunch. We dig deep to empathize with our patients, colleagues, and families, to name a few. But at what expense?

We Deal with Stresses Differently

Whether we accept it or not, stresses abound. They could be internal or external. They are at home, at work, in the grocery store…you get the gist. With so many negative things happening: increasing costs, inflation, crimes, or even just an annoying neighbor, we are constantly bombarded with stressful stimuli.

The nurses, or clinicians for that matter, that I know just carry those stresses like a badge of honor. The shift is short-staffed? We just deal with it. Your patient coded? You ensure that he or she is well taken care of, maybe transferred to a different setting appropriate for his need for higher acuity care, and then go on with the rest of your tasks.

To many of us, burnout is just a word. We actually don’t believe in that because, by nature, we are all persevering and determined energizer bunnies.

Eventually though, and if we are in tune with ourselves, we notice subtle changes that may be considered symptoms of burnout.

1. Have you been grumpy for no reason at all lately?
2. Do you find yourself unsatisfied with your completed projects and tasks?
3. Are you eating more and giving in to cravings consistently? Are you consuming more alcohol than usual? Or have you started vaping or doing recreational drugs?

These are but a few of the outward manifestations of repressed stresses.

http://pexels-kat-smith-736843

Find Creative Ways to Express Your Stresses

Different people take care of their mental health in a variety of ways. I stated in my related post some of the ways to deal with stress. The most common ones include starting an exercise regimen, eating healthier, sleeping more, etc. In a word, the things we learned during our childhood.

I could picture my grandma with her stick ready to beat us whenever my brothers and I didn’t take our nap. As a child, I hated naps. I felt that it was such a waste of time. As I got older though, I appreciated it more. Maybe partly thanks to my grandma and her stick, haha!

Seriously though, simple ways such as those stated above do wonders for our mental health.

And then again there are more intentional options. Does taking a vacation sound like a plan? If you are a geek like me, even planning for a vacation is an enjoyable activity that diverts my attention from my stressful environment into the excitement of experiencing new adventures.

Writing as My Go-To “Therapy”

My disclaimer here is my use of the word “therapy” loosely. In the strictest sense of the word, I may be misusing the word “therapy” here because I am not being treated for any mental health issue, thus the need to enclose the word in quotes.

With that being out of the way, writing, and creative work if I may add, have always been my ways to express myself.

I write when I am happy, but more so when I am sad. I write about my own experiences and those of others as well. As you can tell in this blog, I have authored informative articles as well as reflections from my professional and personal day-to-day life.

However, if given the choice, I love my “straight from the heart,” “dug from deep down my soul” kind of articles. Those are the ones that really embody my true persona.

It is for this reason that I regret not keeping all of my writing samples since I started writing my teenage “crush” stories back when I was my paper’s high school editor. To my credit, I just didn’t write about typical high school happenings then. I have won regional and national awards to prove that my writings have some sort of substance in them.

http://pexels-judit-peter-1766604

Words Flow if I Am Passionate about the Topic

If only I could just freely write about the things I care about at all times, I will do that. However, in this era of cancel culture, that just isn’t true, especially if the ideas being expressed are against what popular belief is, right? Freedom of speech, quo vadis?

I’ve always excelled in Op-Ed kind of articles since I started writing. My early Journalism training honed my love for writing, and I am still reaping the rewards to this day. I could never forget one of my graduate school professors’ feedback regarding my healthcare policy paper:

You have a very good command of the English language. You use words like inculcated, self-introspection, and emanates which are a rarity these days.

I can’t help it. My very proficient English teachers both in high school and college inculcated (pun intended, haha!) that vocabulary early on.

What is the Point I am Making?

In a nutshell, I am just sharpening my writing skills. Who knows I may need them one of these days for bigger and better things!

Kidding aside, and as I have stated earlier, writing is my go-to stress reliever. At least one of them, I should reiterate. I guess you could say that this is my way of sharing with you that one effective way of promoting mental health is finding your passion and acting on it.

You may quip:

But I don’t write, Grace!

It doesn’t need to be writing. It doesn’t even need to be creative or require action on your part. If your happy place is binge-watching Netflix, so be it!

The point is: don’t allow yourself to fall into the abyss of no return just because you took for granted your mental health when you had the chance to do something good to enhance and cultivate it.