5 Right Ways to Vent at Work Without Hurting Your Nursing Career
A spill of coffee, malfunctioning medical equipment, or an unexpected deadline can turn a nurse's day upside down. You're juggling patient emergencies while dealing with sudden staff shortages and administrative tasks. We all know those shifts where nothing seems to go right, and you just want to let out some frustration.
As nurses, we understand the importance of balancing venting our frustrations and maintaining a positive attitude at work. While sharing with a trusted coworker is great, letting negativity take over can impact patient care and how you work with others.
So, how do you manage these rough moments without compromising your professionalism or your relationships with others? How can you find a healthy outlet to blow off steam when stress starts piling up?
What Makes Venting Valuable for Nurses?
Nurses often find themselves susceptible to burnout due to the demanding nature of their profession. The combination of long hours, emotionally taxing work, high-pressure environments, and frequent exposure to traumatic situations can affect their mental and emotional well-being.
Over the past three years, 95 percent of nurses reported feeling burnt out. Additionally, almost 47.9 percent have sought less stressful positions, considered leaving nursing, or already left due to burnout.1
This highlights the urgent need to equip nurses with effective stress management strategies to prevent burnout. It is crucial to provide opportunities for nurses to express their frustrations in a supportive environment.
Constructive venting improves communication, active listening, and problem-solving skills. Ultimately, it boosts productivity and enhances the work environment for nurses.
When Can Venting be Helpful?
There are situations where venting becomes necessary and beneficial. Venting is helpful when:
- It's a therapeutic outlet for emotions: Expressing frustrations lifts spirits and releases built-up negativity. This is healthier than keeping anger bottled up.
- It brings immediate relief: Venting, preferably face-to-face quickly eases the mind during breaks - and it improves moods after challenging shifts.
- It's open to different points of view: Sharing frustrations with friends or coworkers allows for diverse viewpoints and valuable insight.
- It doesn't demand all your focus: While venting may not solve all problems, it frees mental space from dominating frustrations. It allows you to focus on other matters.
Read More: World Mental Health Day 2023: 7 Coping Strategies for the Nurse Burnout Syndrome
Venting in the Workplace: Common Mistakes to Avoid
Figuring out what's good and what's not can feel like walking a tightrope between trying to express yourself without stirring up workplace tension. Here are some pointers to remember while finding ways to vent and unwind.
Ensure the conversation remains safe and respectful.
Feeling the urge to vent to a coworker about a frustrating situation during a shift can be tempting. But it's important to proceed with caution. Online conversations are susceptible to human error.
Sending a direct message to the wrong person or accidentally posting in a group chat could seriously affect your professional relationships and position. Similarly, sending an email expressing your frustrations to a coworker could easily end up in unintended hands.
When it comes to workplace communication, it's important to maintain professionalism. Remember, if you don't want your team to see it, it's probably best left unsaid in chats or emails.
Make your choices thoughtfully.
Selecting who to vent to is just as crucial as deciding how to vent. It's important to talk to someone you trust to handle your feelings and the information you share.
For instance, venting to a longtime coworker with whom you've built a strong relationship is likely a better option than venting to a new intern who may not know how to handle the information you disclose, aside from preserving positive impressions and relationships at work. It's important to identify individuals who can offer the support you need.
If you're upset about being passed over for a promotion or in similar situations, discussing it with an understanding and empathetic coworker may be more beneficial than talking to someone less comfortable with emotional workplace discussions.
Productive Ways for Venting Work Frustrations as a Nurse
Here are some ways to help you productively vent about work and effectively manage stress.
1. Jot down your emotions.
Whether you prefer writing with pen and paper or typing on a keyboard, take a moment to note your emotions. Research shows that writing down your feelings can help reduce stress and emotional strain and also help you manage how intense your emotions feel right now.
One research study supports this idea. Patients, families, and healthcare providers at a children's hospital experienced a decrease in stress levels after engaging in this journaling activity:2
- List three things you're thankful for.
- Summarize your life story in six words.
- Write down three wishes you have.
In a follow-up study conducted 12 to 18 months later, 85 percent of the participants found the writing exercise beneficial. Additionally, 59 percent continued to use writing as a coping mechanism for stress.3
Read More: Best Ways to Deal with Compassion Fatigue in Nursing
2. Go for a stroll.
After you've written down your feelings, stepping away from the situation for a short while can be helpful. Just five to ten minutes to clear your head can give you the space to understand your emotions better. You can then return to the problem with a fresh outlook.
While it's not ideal to vent to your closest coworker directly in the workplace, suggesting a quick coffee break or a stroll around the block with them can be a great alternative. This way, you're not only physically stepping away from the workplace, but you can also freely talk with a trusted friend without disrupting the work environment.
3. Look for different points of view.
When seeking someone to vent to, consider who can offer you the insight to reflect on your feelings and approach the situation constructively. Sometimes, it might be beneficial to seek out the perspective of someone with different views.
A study on the spouses of professional nurses shows that venting, also referred to as social sharing, is a way for nurses to cope with stress. Partners are critical in offering support and understanding when nurses share difficult or traumatic experiences.4
Hearing this alternative viewpoint could help you view challenges from a new angle, foster empathy towards differing opinions, and encourage you to consider a range of solutions. Finding someone open to listening to your thoughts and providing feedback can offer valuable insights into workplace issues.
4. Highlight the positives.
When you're feeling overwhelmed or stressed, dwelling on the negatives is common. But taking a moment to recognize the positives can shift your mindset.
When venting to a coworker, sharing moments of gratitude, like expressing appreciation for their support during a challenging shift, can alleviate some stress. While acknowledging negative emotions is important, reminding oneself of the positives can reframe the perspective and facilitate moving past challenges in the nursing profession.
5. Be specific about problems and solutions.
This helps express feelings clearly and allows others to understand you better. For instance, you might struggle with your hospital's new electronic medical record system. You could express your frustration about its complexity and the extra time it takes to input patient data accurately.
Pinpointing the specific challenges you face, such as difficulty navigating the system interface or the lack of adequate training provided, can allow you to communicate your concerns to your manager or IT department. This clarity may prompt them to offer additional training sessions or make adjustments to the system to improve usability, ease your workload, and improve patient care.
Read More: Be Your Best Self: 6 Ways You Can Elevate Your Nursing Career
Feel confident knowing that with PRS Global, you're joining a workplace where your well-being is valued.
PRS Global is here to help you find workplaces where you can vent productively and constructively. We specialize in connecting healthcare professionals with environments that foster open communication and provide support during challenging moments.
Reach out to us today and let us help you find the right workplace where you can vent healthily and build a fulfilling career.
References
1 Curry, Morgan. “Nursing CE Central: Nurse Burnout Study 2021.” Nursing CE Central, 6 Aug. 2021, nursingcecentral.com/nurse-burnout-study-2021/.
2 “Health Care Practitioners and Families Writing Together: The Three-Minute Mental Makeover.” The Permanente Journal, 2020, https://doi.org/10.7812/tpp/19.056.
3 Schaufel, Madelaine, et al. “Better Together: Long-Term Behaviors and Perspectives after a Practitioner-Family Writing Intervention in Clinical Practice.” The Permanente Journal, vol. 25, 1 May 2021, pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/33970079/, https://doi.org/10.7812/TPP/20.250.