Learning objectives

At the end of Unit 7, you will:

  • Understand the importance of caring for yourself.
  • Be aware of practical sources of support and useful resources to help with self-care.
  • Have some ideas for practicing self-care.

The realities of working in health care settings

As you support individuals and those important to them to make decisions about their future care wishes, it is important that you also receive the care and support needed to help you with this aspect of your job role. It is natural that you may feel overwhelmed at times. While it can be difficult to navigate these complex emotions, there are many sources of support available to help you both personally and professionally.

This section introduces a number of steps that are designed to promote health and wellbeing and provides links to additional resources that may offer further support/ be of interest to you.

Reflective activity

  • Consider any concerns or worries you have about work and/or advance care planning.
  • If necessary, discuss your concerns with a senior member of staff or a colleague you feel comfortable with
  • Consider how you and your colleagues can find time each day to support each other.

Your support network

Identifying your support network can be a helpful step in boosting your own wellbeing. You might find it useful to talk things through with the following people.

Work colleagues

Your colleagues can be a great source of support. They are likely to understand how you feel, offering empathy and even practical solutions to problems you are facing.

Senior colleagues or line managers

Senior colleagues can offer you help and support if you are finding aspects of your work challenging.

Family and friends

Your loved ones can help you to relax and feel supported and valued. Arranging quality time with those closest to you can be comforting when you are experiencing stress or pressure at work.

Professional guidance

You can also make use of your organisation’s Employee Assistance Programme which is usually linked to the Health and Wellbeing Department. Employee Assistance Programmes are employee benefit programmes offering valuable sources of support and advice, including counselling, to support staff wellbeing.

Reflective activity

  • Think about a person (colleague / family / friend / professional support) you could approach at some point in the future if you needed to. Is there anything you would like to discuss with them now?

Building resilience

What is resilience?

Resilience refers to ‘your ability to positively manage significant challenges or adverse events...we build resilience in the face of adversity.’

You may face challenging and difficult situations when working in a health care setting and particularly when working with ill patients. This can be stressful and may take its toll on your wellbeing.

People with greater resilience may find it easier to navigate challenging or stressful situations and recover from these quicker.

Source: adapted from Resilience Resource.

Tips for building resilience

  • Make time for yourself: make sure you eat well, get rest, ensure adequate sleep, and do something you enjoy regularly.
  • Practice self-compassion: if you can show compassion to yourself, you can show compassion for others.
  • Keep things in perspective: it can be easy to overthink and jump to worst case scenarios when overwhelmed by stress. Journalling and writing out your thoughts may help you to process a difficult situation and keep things in perspective.
  • Seek support: it is important to lean on your support networks as discussed above.
  • Engage in reflective practice: make sure you reflect on your experience. This can help you process how you feel about the experience, identify things that went well or that you might like to do differently in the future.

Source: adapted from Resilience Resource.

In the video below, community nurses discuss the challenges of having advance care planning conversations from a nurses’ perspective and the importance of selfcare.

Take care of yourself so you can take care of others

Self-care can be defined as:

"Taking proactive steps to preserve or improve your physical and mental health, wellbeing, happiness and quality of life."

"If you’re saying to yourself, I don’t have time for this, you definitely need to be making time to engage in self-care."

You can take practical steps to help maintain your health and wellbeing when working under pressure, and in difficult and often upsetting circumstances.

Finding ways to exercise, rest, relax and get a good night sleep can help you to maintain and improve your health and wellbeing.

Below are some ideas and additional resources that you might want to explore to support your own self-care.

Walking or running
Can help to improve your physical and mental health. The established ‘Couch to 5k’ beginners programme has inspired lots of people to get active for the first time.

How to get to sleep
A good night’s sleep can help you to wake feeling refreshed and ready for the day ahead. Adjusting your bedtime routine can improve the quality of your sleep.

Mindfulness
Can help to improve mental wellbeing by tuning in to what you are thinking and feeling

Yoga
Boosts physical and mental wellbeing. It reduces overall stress.

Grief and bereavement
You might experience grief and bereavement, in your personal or professional life. The following resources may be helpful in caring for yourself during this time.

Cruse Bereavement Care (England, Wales, Northern Ireland)
Provides free support, advice, and information for adults, children, and young people. National Freephone Helpline: 0808 808 1677. Opening hours Monday-Friday, 9.30am-5.00pm (excluding bank holidays), with extended hours on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday evenings until 8pm. Weekends 10am-2pm

GriefChat
A safe online space where people can share their story, explore their feelings, and be supported by a qualified bereavement counsellor. The service is free of charge and is open Monday-Friday, 9am-9pm (UK time) for people who are grieving or bereaved.

Cruse Scotland
Freephone Helpline: 0808 802 6161. Opening hours Monday-Friday, 9.30am-8pm. Weekends 10am-2pm