Staffing: Rethinking Work-Life Balance

Small changes can help create new habits — and break old ones.

Maintaining a proper work-life balance is particularly difficult for surgical nurses like me. Many of us pour ourselves into our work with nothing left in the tank after long days in the OR. Personally, the first thing I want to do after one of those days is go home and put my feet up.

Keeping up with an entrenched work routine is easy, as we follow each step throughout the day. We get up, put the coffee on, drive to work, change into scrubs, scrub into the first case, assist in surgery, memorize the order of the instruments that are passed to the surgeon and quickly turn over the room. Then we repeat most of these steps for each case multiple times a day. While sticking to such a routine is fairly second nature to most nurses, breaking old and sometimes unhealthy behavior patterns and starting a new routine is much more difficult.

But even small changes to your routine before you arrive at the OR, while you’re there and once you get home can foster big improvements in your work-life balance. I worked with a certified strength and conditioning coach who helped guide me to make the following changes to my daily routine. I believe several of these changes could benefit other providers who are struggling to maintain work-life balance.

Before work

Packing your bag the night before can help cut down on the rush of the morning and help ensure nothing you need for the day is left behind. I am always rushing around in the morning, so it helps to just grab my bag and run out the door — hopefully without waking up my roommates!

Prepping healthy meals and snacks with appropriate amounts of proteins and carbs is a huge help in keeping a well-rounded diet while at work. Pack clothes and snacks for the physical activity you’ll do after work and before you go home.

At work

We always tell patients to hydrate, but often don’t do it ourselves. Try to drink eight ounces of water before touching coffee. Finish a bottle of water during your lunch break and have a bottle in your car for the drive home. I also use the couple seconds in between cases for a sip from my “unnecessarily large water bottle,” as my educator calls it. Proper hydration improves skin, muscles and energy levels.

Practicing good posture and ergonomics can help prevent the back, neck and shoulder pain that can result from being hunched over the mayo stand, computers and beds day after day. When I started at Boston Children’s Hospital, I sought information on proper body mechanics and found we have a whole lesson in our e-learnings that’s very helpful.

Make lunch a priority. Skipping it makes us feel weak and causes an energy crash toward the end of the day. Properly fueling our bodies will help us feel better after work. I always keep protein bars or shakes in my bag that I can snack and sip on when I don’t have time for a lunch break.

Don’t be afraid to say “no” to an overtime shift. Our bodies need rest days. Constantly exhausting yourself at work will burn you out and hurt your work-life balance. Declining overtime can be difficult, but doing so can really help you reset and fight burnout. I make it a point to never pick up a shift if it will interfere with plans I have made with my family. I also reject overtime shifts if I start to feel extra moody for no reason, as this usually means I am overtired and need a break.

Try to maintain a positive attitude. Working in an emotionally and physically exhausting field is a lot. It’s often easier to join in while everyone is complaining. But positivity can be equally contagious. Even forcing a smile can sometimes make me feel better and help me spread positive vibes.

After work

Schedule one hour for physical activity — and do it before you go home. Whether it’s the gym, pool, track or another location, have your clothes, equipment and a light snack for the activity in your car, and go straight there. Avoid going home. If I do, I procrastinate leaving and sometimes don’t go back out. Tip: Keep a stash. Having trail mix, sneakers, clean socks, an oversized T-shirt and a scrunchie in my car helps keep me on course.

After working on your feet all day, it’s important to take time to stretch after work. This can help prevent your muscle tightness and decrease any soreness you may feel the next day. Invest in a foam roller and take 10 minutes before bed to roll out your legs and back to fight fatigue and muscle aches.

Limit how much you talk about work. I set aside 10 to 15 minutes with my partner to vent about our days, then I change the conversation. I even put my work email on “do not disturb” after a certain time. Do not invite work into your personal life any more than it needs to be.

Get a new hobby, or return to an old one, that you can do consistently and is unrelated to work. Set aside time for it during the week. I enjoy cooking so I use my Sundays to cook for my family. I also use this day to prepare meals for the week.

Meet people outside of work. Hanging out with people in health care will inevitably lead to conversations about work, so I avoid it completely. Carve out at least one day a month where you spend time with people outside of work. There are meet-up groups on social media platforms for just about every activity that make it easier to find people with similar interests.

Little changes, big results

Implementing these changes with a friend or partner can help to hold each other accountable. A coach can be useful as well. Starting and maintaining a healthier lifestyle while putting so much of yourself into your work can often seem like a daunting task, but making little changes helps us excel at work for our patients and maintain a fulfilling life outside of work for ourselves. OSM