Traditionally, the medical field has seen the theories of mindfulness practice as an important part of physical, emotional, and spiritual healing.
In fact, mindfulness has been shown to improve health outcomes, such as decreased stress levels and improved sleep patterns.
Mindfulness for nurses can help improve communication within the healthcare team and provide better patient care.
How a Mindfulness Practice Can Make a Huge Difference for Nurses
It might seem like a hushed whisper to most people, but mindfulness is an increasingly popular concept in the medical and nursing fields.
Mindfulness as a practice that nurses can practice has been proven to have a positive impact on their job performance, relationships with co-workers, and general health.
Mindfulness is gaining popularity in the field of nursing because it is known to improve communication in relationships and patient outcomes and can reduce stress.
The techniques of mindfulness and relaxation are being promoted on many modern online absn programs as well as through CPD seminars at hospitals and other medical settings, and this is being done because of the hugely positive outcomes that healthcare settings see when they invest in mindfulness training for staff.
How to Get Started with Mindful Techniques
If you’re new to mindfulness or if you’re a nurse who’s never taken up the practice, then it can help to think of meditation as a skill that you can practice.
Mindfulness is similar to any other skill that you want to hone in order to improve your performance and acumen: you need to learn how to use it and how it works.
Of course, there are some people who are naturally good at mindfulness, but this is not a question of skill or talent.
The key thing with mindfulness is that even if you’re new to the idea of being more mindful at work, you’ll still be able to learn some things about how to be present for yourself and your colleagues in productive ways.
Here are a few techniques you can try:
Set Aside Time Each Day to Meditate
Meditation is both a skill and an art that you can learn in order to get the most from mindfulness at work.
Try to set aside at least fifteen minutes each day, either during the work day or outside of it, to sit down and do some meditation.
There are many techniques you can use – they’re not all the same.
You might start with a body scan where you focus on your breathing (or another part of your body), then move over to a particular thought that’s upsetting you and try to reject it and focus on a different part of your being.
Use a Journal to Express Your Feelings About Work
You can use a journal to express your feelings, which is a fantastic way to practice mindfulness.
Just by writing down your feelings, you’re getting in touch with yourself on a deeper level.
Many people are surprised by the effect that journaling for mindfulness has on them and their professional lives – one minute they’re in a bad place, and after writing out what’s bothering them, they find the answers or the way through easier.
If that happens to you, it can be helpful to take the time out of your busy schedule to sit down quietly with your journal and just write out what’s worrying you.
Keep a Personal Journal
Keeping a personal journal is a fantastic way to learn mindfulness and to keep track of your feelings and emotions, as well as positive things like what you’re grateful for in your life.
This kind of journaling is a great way to start practicing mindfulness because it gives you the chance to express and examine what’s going on with you emotionally.
Be sure that when you write about events or thoughts, you do not get too wrapped up in how they make you feel, but instead, just focus on getting them in your journal.
That might mean writing down something like: ‘I was worried that my patient might not recover’ rather than ‘I was stressed out and worried about my patient’.
Practice Mindful Listening
One of the most important parts of mindfulness as a practice is mindful listening.
In fact, mindfulness is almost impossible to accomplish without mindful listening skills.
You might be surprised at how many people are bad listeners – but this is especially true for people who are in the healthcare field or who are parents or carers in any capacity.
It can be hard to be truly present for others because you’re thinking about everything else that you need to do.
Use Your Senses
Being mindful of the things that you sense throughout the day can be a wonderful way to practice mindfulness.
If you want to learn to be mindful, then try going for a walk outside and just let your senses guide the way.
This is because the more you concentrate on your senses and how they’re feeling rather than on other things, the more in tune you’ll be with your own body and mind.
You’ll also have more patience and will be able to focus a lot better.
Mindfulness in the Wider Healthcare Community
While mindfulness is often connected to the medical profession, it is actually something that everybody can benefit from.
In fact, for many people, mindfulness is about being present in the moment and trying to achieve a sense of inner peace.
It’s not necessarily something you do to become calm and peaceful; instead, it’s a way of achieving balance in your life by focusing more on your own needs in a world filled with stress.
Mindfulness can help you uncover your true nature and be more aware of what’s going on around you – this helps to increase your focus and concentration both at home and at work.
Being mindful is also a great way to relax and achieve a sense of inner peace.
And when you can be peaceful both at home and at work, you will be able to deal with the stresses of your position in a much more positive way.
Mindfulness can have an extremely positive effect on your professional life as well as your personal one, whether or not you’re in the medical profession.