Nursing has a way of challenging - and sometimes flat out messing with - your perspective on life. So many Sundays, I've gone to church and started singing about truths I know to be foundational - God is good, mercy and hope are real, comfort is near. I have seen and experienced all of these … Continue reading The Inner Stretch of Nursing: Guest Post for American Journal of Nursing
Upcoming TEDx Talk on Nursing
As my passion for finding greater heart-level support for myself and fellow nurses has grown, I have struggled to understand the lack of resources and voices available in both book and video format. Please don't misunderstand me; I am incredibly grateful for the currently existing journals, books and websites that start to tell the story … Continue reading Upcoming TEDx Talk on Nursing
How to Support the Nurse in Your Life: Guest Post for American Journal of Nursing
I've been thinking a lot about why it can be so challenging for very well-intentioned friends and families of nurses to support us when our work takes its toll. My guest post for the American Journal of Nursing blog, Off the Charts, provides some suggestions for support that nurses may not always know how to directly … Continue reading How to Support the Nurse in Your Life: Guest Post for American Journal of Nursing
The Elusive Work-Life Balance: On Self-Compassion
On my morning drive to work, I shake off the cloud of drowsiness, and I debate whether to get caught up on the news – sadly nowadays, a too easy way to already burden myself before my 6:50AM arrival at the hospital – or enjoy the 40 minutes of silence before whatever will unfold, unfolds. I … Continue reading The Elusive Work-Life Balance: On Self-Compassion
How to Prevent a Code as a Nurse (and it’s not the way you think)
Hers was a story that would make you shake your head in disbelief just to hear the background, never mind what all actually went down on my shift with her. An unstable family, a turbulent social life, clear signs of personal distress. As the nurse, I listened to the story, and like a good nurse, … Continue reading How to Prevent a Code as a Nurse (and it’s not the way you think)
Papi, Read the Story: The Nurse’s Privilege to Witness Beauty
The curious and perhaps inevitable effect of a major health crisis on any family is its power to elicit affection, emotion, and perhaps long-resisted efforts at connection from those most directly involved. Reserved personalities crack open, reach out. Estranged relationships build bridges, sometimes temporarily for survival, sometimes repentantly for healing. Close relationships sometimes buckle, sometimes grow … Continue reading Papi, Read the Story: The Nurse’s Privilege to Witness Beauty
The Messy Untangling: On Sorting Through the Hard Feelings after a Rough Shift
Today, I’m feeling it. The untangling after a particularly intense shift on all levels. I walked into a shift with a family whose child had taken a big turn for the worse and they had no guarantees that moving forward with certain procedures and therapies would turn things around for the better. We could only … Continue reading The Messy Untangling: On Sorting Through the Hard Feelings after a Rough Shift
A Shared Sense of Rest: On Therapeutic Presence and the Power of Quiet
She was not my patient, but I had briefly met her earlier in the day, and my co-worker asked if I might be free to go in her room and just be with her awhile while my co-worker caught up on charting. The patient was having an anxiety attack, and the Ativan we had given … Continue reading A Shared Sense of Rest: On Therapeutic Presence and the Power of Quiet
How is Work: The Question I Struggle to Answer as a Nurse
It must seem odd, why I hesitate. It’s a pretty standard question in standard conversation. “How is work?” But I hesitate every time, and I think at times I stare at the person questioning me. I’m trying to gauge how much they want to know. Do you want an easy answer? “Work is busy. Our … Continue reading How is Work: The Question I Struggle to Answer as a Nurse
Staying in the Hard Thing: When Glory becomes Gritty
I seem to live in a perpetually tired state nowadays. If I’m looking for the easiest, most honest response to “How are you?” my default answer will be, “I’m tired.” Tired as a mom of two littles. Tired as a nurse to critically ill children. Friends and coworkers nod in empathy, and praise Jesus for … Continue reading Staying in the Hard Thing: When Glory becomes Gritty
The Heart of Nursing 