NURS 478 Self Care Journal

Your Name: Julia Binder Your Buddy: Chloe DeWitt

Select any evidence-based intervention/recommendation to follow (do this over 8 weeks):

 Sleep at least 7 hours per night before and after a work or school day
X Practice mindfulness meditation for at least 10 minutes everyday
 Complete at least 150 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic exercise per week, such as biking under 9
mph, dancing, jogging, or playing tennis; or complete 60 minutes of vigorous-intensity exercise per week,
such as running, kickboxing, or jumping rope.
 Participate in two professionally led yoga classes for one hour or longer per week
 Spend up to 2 hrs in Nature or longer per week
 Other (Must get your Clinical Faculty approval first, and activity should be up to 2 hrs or longer
per week)

Complete Weekly journal entries:

Week Description of intervention implemented this week (include frequency/length of time):
1 This week I began practicing 10 minutes of mindfulness meditation each day before bed. I was
successful at implementing this five out of the seven days.

Comments on Activity:
I found that meditating before bed has helped me fall asleep easier. Spending a few minutes meditating
right before bed rather than talking with someone or looking at my phone has helped me feel relaxed. I
did mess up a few times this week (on Wednesday night and Thursday night before my preceptorship).
When I have my preceptorship the next day, I have a difficult time dedicating time to anything except
making dinner and showering so I can get to bed early. I do feel that meditating the nights before my
preceptorship would be beneficial, as I would likely fall asleep faster.

Buddy Check-In Comments: (Note Key Comments from Conversation)

Chloe got 7 hours of sleep only 3 days this week. She feels like this intervention is difficult for her
because she has to wake up early for her preceptorship. She has a hard time getting schoolwork done,
working, and getting to bed at a reasonable hour. She has never made it a goal to sleep enough each
night so she thinks it will be a challenge to implement this intervention.
Week Description of intervention implemented this week (include frequency/length of time):
2 This week I implemented the use of mindfulness meditation for 10 minutes each day before bed. I only
missed one day this week – Thursday.

Comments on Activity:
I am definitely enjoying using mindfulness meditation each night before bed. I feel calm and relaxed
after meditating. It helps to clear my mind. I also feel that it helps me to feel less overwhelmed. I did not
meditate on Thursday because I had my preceptorship that day and again on Friday. As I mentioned,
when I have my preceptorship the next day I feel like I need to rush to prepare myself for the next day
and did not take the time to meditate. I do think that meditating before my preceptorship would most
likely be the best time to do it. I will have to implement this intervention when I am a nurse as we are

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 now finished with the preceptorship.
Buddy Check-In Comments: (Note Key Comments from Conversation)
Chloe decided to implement sleeping for 7 hours every night for her self-care journal. She told me that
she felt better after getting more sleep this week, however, she did have one rough night after she got
sick at the hospital. She said she was stressed out and it affected her sleep.
Week Description of intervention implemented this week (include frequency/length of time):
3 This week I implemented the intervention of mindfulness meditation for 10 minutes. I have been doing
this before bed, however, some days this week I implemented this during the day.

Comments on Activity:
I went to California with my dad this week. Most nights we were there, I went out with my dad and his
work collogues. During the dad my dad was in business meetings and I went to the beach by myself. On
these days (Sunday, Monday, and Tuesday) I did my mindfulness meditation alone on the beach. This
was so amazing and peaceful. I wish I could meditate on the beach every day! Once I was back in
Tucson, I meditated before bed once again.
Buddy Check-In Comments: (Note Key Comments from Conversation)
This week, Chloe feels like she is on a better sleeping schedule. When she gets home from her
preceptorship she goes straight to bed so she can get her full 7 hours of sleep. She is feeling more rested
but mentioned that she does still feel stressed. This week Chloe mentioned that she is drinking more
water and eating healthier which has made her feel better.
Week Description of intervention implemented this week (include frequency/length of time):
4 This week I implemented the use of mindfulness meditation for 10 minutes each day.

Comments on Activity:
This week I was successful in meditating every day for 10 minutes. On Tuesday, I spent most of the day
studying for the 478 exam. As a result, I meditated during a break in studying rather than before bed. I
feel like meditating for 10 minutes a day is becoming a part of my daily routine now. I find that it really
improves my mood and helps me to feel less uptight. When I am stressed out, I am very uptight and not
very fun to be around. By using mindfulness meditation I find my mood improving. I think meditation
helps to improve my perspective. I realize that what I am stressed out about is not actually very
important in the grand scheme of things.
Buddy Check-In Comments: (Note Key Comments from Conversation)
This week, Chloe had clinical 4 days in a row. On her half day she was able to do schoolwork before
going to bed which she enjoyed. She slept for at least 7 hours before each clinical day which helped her
quite a bit. She feels motivated right now because soon she is going to be a nurse and won’t have to
balance work, school, and clinical. She wants to continue this habit for when she is a registered nurse to
prevent burnout.
Week Description of intervention implemented this week (include frequency/length of time):
5 This week I implemented the intervention of mindfulness meditation for 10 minutes every day.

Comments on Activity:
This week was spring break. As a result I spent a lot of time with friends from home. I had some
sleepovers with friends so on those days I performed my meditation sometime throughout the day.
Everything with the coronavirus seems to be escalating quickly. I am stressed out about this and all the
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 unknowns. My roommate’s dad is an ER physician and she called me and told me that her dad was
warned that the US would be just as bad as Italy within 2 weeks. After hearing this, I performed
meditation and it helped me to feel less worried about what is to come.
Buddy Check-In Comments: (Note Key Comments from Conversation)
This was Chloe’s last week of her preceptorship. She felt much less anxious this week waking up for
clinical. She thinks this may be due to sleeping 7 hours each night. She had been losing sleep during
most of her preceptorship because of anxiety. This week she talked about how she feels stress is
impacting her body. She doesn’t think sleeping for 7 hours will cause her stress to go away, but she
feels that it helps her manage her stress.
Week Description of intervention implemented this week (include frequency/length of time):
6 This week I implemented the use of mindfulness meditation for 10 minutes each day.

Comments on Activity:
This week, the use of meditation has been very helpful for my state of mind. Classes were moved to
online this week and I had to go to Tucson and pack up my apartment to move home to Chandler with
my parents. This week I have been using mindfulness meditation throughout the day rather than before
bed. This is a period of quite a bit of change. Taking the time to calm my mind has helped me feel less
stressed out about all of these changes.
Buddy Check-In Comments: (Note Key Comments from Conversation)
This week Chloe feels relief because we are done with our preceptorship. She also feels accomplished
and more prepared to be a professional nurse. This week, we had the week off so she had less
responsibilities. She was still working early so she had to go to bed early to get a full 7 hours of rest.
She said she didn’t feel stressed out this week and as a result her sleep was not interrupted. She sees the
light at the end of the tunnel regarding college. She also feels like she has a better understanding of what
to do to reduce her stress.
Week Description of intervention implemented this week (include frequency/length of time):
7 This week I implemented the intervention of mindfulness meditation for 10 minutes every day.

Comments on Activity:
I am having a difficult time transitioning to all online learning. I personally learn much better in person.
I feel like I am losing track of what is due. I have also been stressed out about job applications and
finding a job for after graduation. On top of this, I am scared about what is happening to the country
with coronavirus. Mindfulness meditation has been necessary this week for me to stay sane. I have been
sitting by my pool each day for an hour or two. During this time I perform my mindfulness meditation. I
am feeling more stressed this week than I have all semester, however, I know meditation is helping
quite a bit.
Buddy Check-In Comments: (Note Key Comments from Conversation)
This week was the first week of our community health rotation. Chloe is feeling excited for this rotation
because it is less stressful and we are almost done with nursing school. Chloe slept 7 hours each night
this week. The fact that our community health rotation starts later than normal clinical rotations allowed
her to sleep in a bit and have more time to get all of her work done. She feels like she has more energy
both because she is sleeping well and we are finishing nursing school.
Week Description of intervention implemented this week (include frequency/length of time):
8 This week I performed mindfulness meditation for 10 minutes each day.

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 Comments on Activity:
This week, the coronavirus is getting much worse. I am really starting to notice the impact this is having
on healthcare workers throughout the country. This week after performing mindfulness meditation I
have found myself feeling very grateful to be in the nursing profession. We truly have the ability to
impact lives in such a positive way. Meditating this week has helped me shift my perspective from
being scared and uncertain to being grateful to be a nursing student and a future nurse.

Buddy Check-In Comments: (Note Key Comments from Conversation)

This week was spring break and Chloe was able to relax. She still went to bed at a reasonable hour and
found herself waking up earlier. She realized how much stress drains her energy and makes waking up
difficult. Most nights this week Chloe slept for 7 hours. She wants to continue this intervention past this
assignment because she feels like it worked well for her.
Complete Survey Below
(Once Completed submit entire document to D2L Assignment Drop box by Due date and add to Your
Portfolio.)

Reflection on Panopto presentation and 8-week intervention:

What did these activities teach you?

After completing this activity, I feel like I have a better understanding of how important self-care is. I
have tried to implement self-care activities into my daily routine in the past but only lasted about a
week. Consistently implementing meditation in my daily routine has helped me better manage my stress
and anxiety. In addition, I realize that it is not difficult to implement self-care after a few weeks of
consistently doing it. All it takes is some dedication.

Have you noticed any changes in your life since you began this intervention?

Since I began meditating every day I find myself much less stressed out. I also feel more grounded.
When something negative happens, I realize that I want to meditate. I don’t feel as flustered as I usually
do because I am able to calmly think things through. Transitioning to online learning would typically
cause me quite a bit of stress, however, after meditating each day, I am thinking more clearly and able
to understand that I will get through this.

Will you do anything differently now? Please explain.

I will continue to implement 10 minutes of meditation into my daily routine. This intervention has
significantly decreased my stress and has even allowed me to practice more self-care activities such as
working out regularly. Especially when beginning my nursing career, I will continue to meditate to
reduce my stress.

Comments/suggestions: None

Please rate how strongly you agree or disagree with these statements:
Following an evidence-based recommendation to reduce burnout was valuable to me.

Strongly Agree Neutral Disagree Strongly

Agree Disagree
5 4 3 2 1
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This 8-week intervention will help me implement preventative strategies for burnout in my career.

Strongly Agree Neutral Disagree Strongly

Agree Disagree
5 4 3 2 1

This Panopto presentation titled: “Nurse Burnout: What this is and how you can minimize it in your careers”
effectively taught me how I can reduce and address nurse burnout in my career.

Strongly Agree Neutral Disagree Strongly

Agree Disagree
5 4 3 2 1

Completing the Big Five Personality Test was helpful for exploring my risk of nurse burnout.

Strongly Agree Neutral Disagree Strongly

Agree Disagree
1 2 3 4 5

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