6. Resilience Tips

The concept of resilience has been identified as a key factor in ‘protecting’ nurses from the challenges and labour of everyday practice (Jackson, et al. 2007). Moreover, it has been suggested that “the fostering of resilience among newly qualified registrants is pivotal to both the successful transition (maintenance of core values) and essential to the development of person-centred approaches to care and safeguarding patients and clients across a range of clinical settings.” (McGarry, et al. 2015).

There are some key concepts that can help with building resilience. These include:

• making sure you get your work-life-study balance right. Make time for friends, family and hobbies
• rewarding yourself for your hard work
• forgiving yourself when things don't go right
• taking regular breaks and try to get a change of scenery or setting from time to time
• looking after your physical health. Good sleep, healthy eating and regular exercise have all been shown to help.
• looking to your support networks of colleagues, friends, family and so on.

Why not return to this resource next time you are facing a potentially difficult situation and need to reflect on your resilience.