Spiritual Health for Nurse: Why it Matters and How to Nurture It
Nurturing Your Spiritual Health: A Guide for Nurses
As nurses, we see and experience things that most people run from. This may seem cliche to say these days, but it’s true. Many people outside of healthcare have no idea what it’s like to sit with a person you don’t even know, so that they don’t die alone, while a worldwide pandemic prevents their loved ones from visiting. Most people never had to witness the anguish on someone’s face as the only access they had to their dying loved one was through an iPad screen or window. This takes a very real toll on nurses and other healthcare workers.
We are very familiar with the mental and even physical effects that the stressors of nursing have on us. However, what’s often ignored is its effect on our spiritual health. There may be a variety of reasons for this. Among them is the connection that many place between spiritual health and religion. We’ll talk more about the difference between the two, but this connection often leads folks to avoid any talk of spiritual health, much to their own detriment and that of other nurses.
Ok, but what IS spiritual health? A quick Google search gives us this definition for spiritual:
“A dimension of wellness focuses on meaning, purpose, and connection, encompassing belief, values, and a sense of connection to something larger than oneself.”
Understanding Spiritual Health in Nursing
Now that we’ve identified what spirituality is, let’s talk about what it’s not. Spirituality is not equal to religion. Yes, if someone has a faith tradition, it will influence their definition of spiritual health, as well as the habits and routines that they use to nurture it. However, spiritually does not automatically mean religion. In my book, The Restored Nurse, I share some of my own spiritual journey as a Christian. Regardless of your religious background, you may find some of yourself in my story.
You can be spiritual, without being religious.
Ok, now that we’ve established that spirituality is not about religion, let’s look at how spiritual health can impact your emotional resilience and mental health. An article from Mass General Brigham hospital shows us how spiritual health can affect mental health in a variety of ways. (1)
- Purpose and Meaning: Spiritual health practices can help us to gain a sense of purpose and meaning in our lives. In a time when many people struggle with a lack of these things, this can be a powerful tool.
- Supportive Community: Many spiritual habits include spending time with people who share your beliefs and values. This provides a base for the sort of supportive community that we really all need in the difficult times of our lives.
- Hope, Self-Esteem, and Self-Worth: Spirituality, even when separate from religion, can help us to see that there is hope beyond our darkest moments. It can help us to believe in ourselves more and improve our sense that we matter.
- Tools: Spiritual practices can provide he sort of tools that we need to better care for ourselves.
On a more clinical level, spiritual health habits have been shown to help with addiction, depression, and even lowering suicide risk by as much as 68% in women and 33% in men. (1)
Common Challenges Nursing Face in Maintaining Spiritual Health
It’s among the greatest of ironies that the very people who dedicate their lives to caring for others often ignore the very care that they, themselves, need. Mental healthcare among nurses has almost become a taboo subject, with a large stigma being attached to it. Spiritual healthcare may not have the same level of taboo or stigma, but mostly because it simply gets ignored. I’d say that stigma and lack of awareness are the start of the challenges nurses face when it comes to spiritual health.
Stress and Emotional Exhastion: Let’s be real here, nurses are TIRED. Not just a physical kind of tired that can be fixed by a good nap or a weekend of sleeping in. I’m talking about the kind of tired that you feel DEEP down inside. The kind of tired that has you driving home from work, crying in the car, for no reason, which I did recently.
The job of a nurse has always been hard, but it seems in the past few years, since COVID, it’s gotten worse. I believe that many nurses went into COVID at their limit emotionally, mentally, and spiritually, and came out of it with nothing left. This is why we saw 100,000 nurses leave during COVID and expect nearly a million more to leave by 2027. (2)
The existing emotional exhaustion, the stress that’s a natural part of the job, and the many stressors that are NOT normal are huge factors making spiritual health even harder for nurses.
Compassion Fatigue: I won’t go much into this, cause I covered this in some detail in last week’s blog post. Still, understand that it is a factor that affects spiritual health.
Time constraints and lack of self-care focus: Some time ago, I asked nurses on TikTok to identify their biggest barriers to self-care. Time was one of the top answers. We work long hours, weekends, nights, holidays, etc, 24 hours, 7 days a week, Nurses are working to care for other people. On top of that, many of us have lives outside of work, regardless of what our employers may want. This all leaves us with limited time for self-care, especially spiritual health.
Practical Strategies for Nurturing Spiritual Health
Personal reflection and mindfulness: Recently, on LinkedIn, I shared a post on mindfulness. In its most basic form, mindfulness is about understanding yourself both mentally and physically. If you’re interested in learning more about mindfulness, I’m planning a Mindfulness Workshop.
Meditation: While meditation is a common practice among a wide range of religions, it’s an amazing practice that you can benefit from, even if not religious.
Gratitude: This is another topic I discuss in The Restored Nurse. This can be a gratitude journal that you write down 3-5 things you are grateful for every day, or simply thinking about what you’re grateful for as you drive to work.
Finding meaning in your work: I recently spoke at a pinning ceremony for a nearby nursing school. One of the things I told these soon-to-be nurses was that if the work you do doesn’t mean anything to you, then it will become harder and harder to do it year after year. If you can’t find meaning in the current work you are doing, seek out work that does give you meaning.
Community: We are made for community. This can be as simple as spending time with friends or as big as religious or other gatherings with people who share your beliefs and values. You NEED those relationships. They will feed your spiritual health, but also your mental and relational health.
Prayer, music, time outside, and many other things can feed your spiritual health. If you’re not sure which practice is best for you, just start doing SOMETHING. Take the time to learn what works best for you. The truth is that even as you try some things and find that some don’t work as well as others, your spiritual health will benefit, even from this process of discovery.
Conclusion
If you get nothing else from this post, remember that you are a spiritual being, even if not a religious one. As you work to take care of all the other parts of yourself and your life, don’t ignore this one. If you do, you may make great advancements in your life, only to find that you still feel empty. That emptiness is within your spirit. Be sure to fill it.
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