Hey burned-out nurse practitioner!
Time to be honest with yourself…..
What are you currently feeling?
Are you feeling happy, satisfied, fulfilled, delighted, relaxed, and peaceful?
Have you used contentment to overcome nurse practitioner burnout?
Or
Are you overwhelmed, dissatisfied, stressed-out, agitated, and unhappy?
These are just a few signs and symptoms of nurse practitioner burnout. It can be very easy to have these negative thoughts and feelings come to mind when you are burned out in healthcare right now. It can be very difficult to find positive things in your life when you are just trying to make it through the day.
This is why I created The Burned-out Nurse Practitioner. To help overwhelmed nurse practitioners create a better work-life balance and conquer burnout.
There are many different ways to overcome nurse practitioner burnout. You can find helpful tips on The Burned-out Nurse Practitioner’s blog page.
This tip is on using contentment to overcome nurse practitioner burnout.
Contentment means being happy and thankful for one’s current state in life.
Finding fulfillment and satisfaction is not easy to do. Especially if you are currently burned-out. But this article will give you a few tips to finding the things you are thankful for. I have talked about similar tips in past articles but want to stress the importance of changing your mindset to assist in your journey of overcoming nurse practitioner burnout.
Tips to use contentment to overcome nurse practitioner burnout
1. Write a gratitude list.
I challenge you to think of three things you are thankful for in your life. Were you able to quickly think of three different things?
Hopefully you did and can realize how many positives you do have in your life! Implement creating a gratitude list on a daily basis. This will help to slowly shift your mindset towards contentment to overcome nurse practitioner burnout. It will help you to feel happy and fulfilled with what you have right now.
I am all about planning for the future and creating goals, but sometimes I need to take a step back and be thankful for how far I have come. I am a better mom, wife, nurse practitioner, person than I was a year ago, and I am very thankful for everything that I have! Work on changing your mindset by creating a daily gratitude list.
For more information on how to create a daily gratitude list check out: Overcome NP burnout with a gratitude list.
2. Find positives in your job.
When I was burned out as a registered nurse, working on a busy acute care floor, I remember hating everything about my job. I began to loathe going to work every day. I became irritated with every simple request from my coworkers or annoyed with a call light alarm. I became detached from my passion of working in healthcare. I suffered from compassion fatigue and was ready to leave healthcare. I could not identify a single positive aspect of my RN job. It was difficult to be thankful for a job that I hated.
However, as I worked through my journey of burnout, I started to realize the good things in my job. My life has dramatically changed since overcoming burnout.
Here are a few things to reflect on to find the positive aspects of your job. What have you learned from this job? Maybe this was your first job as a new gratitude nurse practitioner. Maybe your employer gave you a chance to begin working as an APRN. Maybe you have controlled your imposter syndrome and feel more confident as a nurse practitioner. Maybe this job is teaching you to never work in primary care again. These are examples of how to use contentment to overcome nurse practitioner burnout.
Who have you met at your job that can potentially create a connection? Maybe your network has grown to know other specialists or providers. Maybe your colleague knows someone who is looking to hire a nurse practitioner. Think of the patients you have met and how you are able to make a difference in their lives. You can also be thankful for small things. Like the fact that there are always snacks in the break room. Or that you have an office with a window. Reflect on what you are thankful for in regards to your job and allow the contentment to overcome nurse practitioner burnout.
3.Know living a content life won’t happen overnight.
You did not become a burned-out nurse practitioner overnight, and you won’t be able to conquer that burnout overnight. Changing your mindset is something that needs to be worked on daily. Remember how long it took you to become a nurse practitioner? There were so many steps and check points you had to complete.
Feeling content and overcoming burnout is no different. Work on implementing small habits such as changing your perspective. Think about the lessons you are learning as a nurse practitioner and how you will become a better person because of it. Remember that small changes can have a big impact when it comes to habit change. Make it a point to work on living your best life and increasing contentment to overcome nurse practitioner burnout.
Becoming content with what you currently have is not an easy task. However, if you learn to create a gratitude list, find the positives in your job, and know changes won’t happen overnight, you can become more fulfilled in life. It is possible to use contentment to overcome nurse practitioner burnout.
P.S. Here is a helpful YouTube video to give you more information about contentment: Dr. Seuss’ Guide to Contentment
For time management and charting tips, check out The Nurse Practitioner Charting School– The one stop for all documentation resources created specifically for nurse practitioners. Learn more at www.npchartingschool.com
**Full disclosure, this blog post may include affiliate links. I do receive a commission if any of the affiliate programs/services/supplies are purchased. This is at no extra cost to you but does allow me to continue to provide content as The Burned-out Nurse Practitioner! Thank you!
