"Nurses are very passionate people and truly love what they do. We put some much into our work to help others. I believe we forget to take time for ourselves. I love to take vacations or bake to help prevent burn out."

"I think nurses often experience burnout because they don't take enough time to care for themselves. Nursing is a very physical and oftentimes emotional profession and if you don't take time to care for yourselves you are vulnerable to burnout. Some things I do for self-care to make sure I am ready to come back to work and give care to my patients at my fullest potential are I enjoy spending time outdoors whether that is going on a hike with my dog and friends, swimming, or just relaxing outside in a hammock, reading a book. I also make sure I know when to say no to things such as if I have worked a night shift and someone asks me to do something early in the day I usually will say no because I know that lack of sleep will drain me a lot faster. Once a month I find one self-care activity to treat myself to whether that is getting a facial or a massage. I find doing something like this once a month gives me something to look forward to at the end of a busy work week and helps me feel more energized and refreshed. Other things I do are journal every night just to get my thoughts out and it helps me debrief at the end of the day. I also take my dog for a walk every day which allows me to have some time to get some exercise and enjoy the outdoors."