5 Tips To Manage Stress In Nursing School
Self-care. We hear people talk about self-care often and we stress the idea that self-care is important a lot more these days than before. It’s true! But, when you’re hustling and bustling in school trying to understand all the stages of labor, get your care plans completed, and still make it to clinical, class, and work how can you really find time in-between all of that to really get any self-care in? Self-care is getting a grade worth having on your exams, right? Wrong.
Here are some tips on how to get your necessary self-care in while also getting those necessary grades:
Schedule That Shit Out!
Alright, so, you’re probably already anal and writing all up in your planner with due dates and bullshit, so why not pencil in some damn self-love and appreciation? It can be hard to really get your shit together once the semester gets rolling and you’ll soon notice that you’re losing time that you once had to just do simple stuff like deep condition your hair, get that pedicure you deserve, lift heavy shit in the gym, or whatever it is you do in your routine. The truth is, the time is there we just seem to overlook it because it’s not on our to do list.
My best advice here is to make your weeks more organized. If you know your test or big project your staring at is next week, but you have some time after or before it to really do something other than fake stare at a notecard and not absorb info, then schedule in an hour or two for self! It’s okay to take care of you.
Pencil yourself in for a change! It’ll also make studying easier because it’ll reduce some stress.
GET SOME DAMN SLEEP!
I don’t know how to stress this enough. You may think you’re a all-nighter champ, or some kind of nocturnal warrior, but trust me - you’re going to crash and it’ll just become a spiral of depression and pain. You won’t be able to retain any new information, you will literally feel hysterical, and then you’ll possibly hate this journey more than you already do.
As mentioned before, scheduling in self-care is important because you may overlook your own needs. With sleep, it’s kind of a good idea to organize and arrange your time ahead of schedule so you will be well-rested before big days like exam days or clinical days.
I know, getting sleep seems like a joke, but it’s so important for information retention and to avoid physical exhaustion. Getting adequate rest allows your brain to work and recover from all of the work you’re putting on it, as well as allows your body to recoup from a long day’s work. So, get your Z’s to get your A’s.
Do Something You Enjoy
It’s okay to take an hour out of your day each day to do something you like. I enjoy arts and crafts so I have begun doing knick knacks before I start homework or studying to really calm my brain down and get out of my head for a while. It’s okay to set aside some time to knock off some tasks that don’t require much thinking before you settle in and study. Go to the gym - you can really review while on the treadmill (I’ve done it). Whatever you need to do to relax before you go steady with your books - DO IT!
Anxiety is real and you can’t focus if you’re not relaxed. Each day you are allowed some time to decompress after class or a clinical day. Watch your favorite show, turn on a movie, get a nap. You’ll thank yourself once you pop open that book afterwards because your attention span will be greater. This just requires some discipline so as not to get sidetracked and let the day get away from you.
Stop Procrastinating
Organize your life, fam.
I’m a procrastinator, but I’ve learned the hard way that this isn’t the setting for it anymore. Long gone are the days of busting out a good paper in a few hours or cramming for an exam the night before. I’m not saying you can’t try, but I’m telling you it might make you cry (take my word on that one).
It’s just too much content and too elaborate for you to want to even play yourself when it comes to exams and big assignments. You have 24 hours in a day and each class requires you somehow have 30 hours in your day to get shit done. Don’t procrastinate as MUCH as you can. You’ll just raise your blood pressure and have mini heart attacks each time.
Schedule your weeks out, cut shit out that isn’t necessary, and focus on your goals. Your friends and family will be there and will have to really understand that you can’t make every function. Once you get ahold of how to juggle around and balance your schedule, you’ll do better at showing face. But, until you are organized and get in the rhythm…FOCUS ON SCHOOL AND YOUR ALONE TIME HOBBIES.
This also relates to organizing your space!
Do your best to tidy up your space and do big cleans after important tests are done. You’ll notice that a tidier space makes it easier to concentrate and will really lower some of your anxiety.
Breathe
Take a deep breath in….now release! You’ve got this! Sometimes it can get so overwhelming that you may forget to breathe. Don’t kick yourself into respiratory acidosis, fam. Practice good tranquil breathing in high times of anxiety; it’ll calm your body down and get you the adequate oxygen you need.
We say breathe to people as if it’s a joke, but literally, just breathe. Breathing exercises are handy when you’re anxious or need to really clear your head. Sometimes things get overwhelming, and that’s okay. Just put your pen down, close your eyes, and take long steady breaths in and out until you’ve calmed your body back down. What also helps is laying on your back, in supine position, and closing your eyes and practicing circle breathing. It’ll relax you and really put you in your zone. So, get to breathing!
I KNOW…
Everything seems so stressful and brand new. It’s all going to be okay in the end. Just remember to love on yourself! (You can literally do that, too, to burn off stress, eh?) It’s great that you want to go into a profession dedicated to healing and helping others, but how can you possibly help them if you’re slowly killing yourself by not getting adequate amounts of rest and relaxation? It may not be a lot of time for it, but there IS some time for it - use it!
My last sidebar tip, though, to make it through your days: If you gotta cry…cry! Let that shit out. It’s so relaxing once it’s out. Just don’t cry onto your care plan.
- Begum, Over and Out! ;)
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