Building Nurses' Resilience to Trauma Through Contemplative Practices
- Fiske, Elizabeth PhD, RN, CNE
- Martin, Sarah MSN, RNC-OB
- Luetkemeyer, Jennifer PhD
Correspondence regarding this article should be directed to Elizabeth Fiske at [email protected]
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Elizabeth Fiske, PhD, RN, CNE, (she/her), is an Associate Professor and Director of Graduate Programs in Nursing at Appalachian State University in Boone, North Carolina. Her clinical focus is Maternal/Child Health. Her research focus is on stress in nurses and contemplative practice.
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Sarah Martin, MSN, RNC-OB, (she/her), is a clinical faculty member at Appalachian State University in Boone, North Carolina. She has been an RN for 19 years with experience in Women's Health, Pediatrics, and nursing education. Her research includes resilience in health-care professionals using integrative approaches to health.
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Jennifer Luetkemeyer, PhD, (she/her), is an Assistant Professor of Library Science at Appalachian State University in Boone, North Carolina. She is interested in the ways students access information and knowledge, and what factors affect their access, what resources and information they have access to, and how information and knowledge are presented to them.
Nurses can benefit from strategies that build resilience to counterbalance trauma exposures. Adverse childhood experiences (ACEs) and adverse community environments are common; nurses frequently encounter trauma victims and hear trauma narratives in most care settings. Having skills to manage the triggers present in health-care environments is essential. Contemplative practices can help to meet these needs. Breathing exercises can be used as needed throughout the work day; gratitude practices are simple but powerful; and visual journaling can help nurses process experiences. These practices are easy to implement and can profoundly affect health outcomes for nurses.