Am I Taking Care of Everyone Except Myself? Self-Care for Healthcare Professionals
According to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), 46% of U.S. health workers reported feeling burned out often or very often in 2022, compared with 32% in 2018.
That is nearly half of healthcare workers.
Healthcare professionals spend their days noticing what other people need.
Is the patient comfortable?
Did they get their medication?
Has the family been updated?
Does someone need help getting out of bed?
Is that patient eating?
Is that family member coping?
Did I finish my charting?
Who needs me next?
But there is one question healthcare professionals may forget to ask:
How am I doing?
When your job revolves around caring for other people, putting yourself last can start to feel normal. But self-care for healthcare professionals is not simply about treating yourself after a difficult week. Sometimes it begins with recognizing just how long you have been ignoring your own needs.
Key Takeaways: Self-Care for Healthcare Professionals
Healthcare professionals can become so accustomed to caring for others that neglecting their own needs begins to feel normal.
Self-care does not have to mean elaborate wellness routines; sometimes it means eating lunch, drinking water, going to an appointment, resting, or saying no.
Constant exhaustion, irritability, emotional detachment, or dread about work may deserve attention rather than being dismissed as "part of healthcare."
Caring about your patients and caring about yourself are not competing priorities.
Workplace conditions such as workload, staffing, schedules, and organizational support can contribute to burnout; individual self-care cannot solve every workplace problem.
You do not have to wait until you are completely overwhelmed before asking for help or making a change.
Why Self-Care for Healthcare Professionals Can Be So Easy to Ignore
Healthcare teaches you to respond.
Someone needs something, and you help.
The call light goes off.
The phone rings.
A family has a question.
A patient needs assistance.
A coworker needs help.
Documentation still needs to be finished.
Then you go home, and there may be an entirely different group of people who need you there.
Dinner.
Children.
A spouse or partner.
Parents.
Pets.
Laundry.
Appointments.
Bills.
Housework.
Life.
Somewhere in that cycle, your own needs can quietly move farther and farther down the list.
Not because they do not matter.
But because they rarely feel as urgent as everyone else's.
You May Have Become Very Good at Functioning While Running on Empty
Healthcare professionals can become remarkably skilled at functioning while tired.
You learn to eat quickly.
You learn to hold your bladder longer than you probably should.
You learn to finish one more thing before taking a break.
You learn to compartmentalize difficult moments because another patient needs you.
And sometimes you become so good at pushing through that you stop noticing how depleted you actually are.
You may tell yourself:
I'm fine.
I'm just tired.
It's been a busy week.
Everyone here is exhausted.
I'll rest on my next day off.
But then the day off comes, and it becomes the day you catch up on everything you could not do while you were working.
Rest keeps getting postponed.
What Does Self-Care for Healthcare Professionals Actually Look Like?
Self-care does not have to be expensive, time-consuming, or Instagram-worthy.
It might look like:
Actually taking your lunch break when circumstances allow
Drinking enough water during your shift
Going to your own medical appointments
Getting enough sleep before picking up another shift
Spending time with people who have nothing to do with healthcare
Taking a walk without checking work messages
Saying no to an extra commitment
Asking someone else for help
Using your PTO
Talking with a counselor, employee assistance program, faith leader, support group, or someone you trust
Doing something you enjoy simply because you enjoy it
Sitting quietly for ten minutes without needing to accomplish anything
Sometimes self-care is not adding another thing to your schedule.
Sometimes it is deciding that you do not have to do one more thing today.
When Caring Becomes Part of Your Identity
There is something unique about professions built around helping people.
Being a nurse, CNA, physician, social worker, therapist, chaplain, hospice professional, medical assistant, caregiver, technician, or other healthcare worker can become more than a job.
It can become part of how you see yourself.
You are the helper.
The dependable one.
The calm one.
The person who knows what to do.
The person other people call.
That identity can be meaningful.
But it can also make asking for help surprisingly difficult.
You may be excellent at recognizing exhaustion, pain, anxiety, grief, or distress in someone else while overlooking those same things in yourself.
Ask Yourself the Questions You Would Ask Someone Else
Imagine a coworker told you:
"I'm exhausted all the time. I'm barely eating during my shifts. I'm irritated with everyone. I don't enjoy much anymore, and even when I'm off, I'm thinking about work."
Would you tell them to just work harder?
Probably not.
You might tell them they need rest.
You might encourage them to talk to someone.
You might ask what you could take off their plate.
You might remind them that they cannot keep going indefinitely without taking care of themselves.
Now ask yourself:
Would you offer yourself the same compassion?
If not, why?
When "I'm Fine" Might Need a Second Look
Not every difficult shift means you are burned out.
Not every exhausting week means something is wrong.
Healthcare can simply be tiring.
But there is a difference between needing a good night's sleep and feeling persistently depleted.
If you have been wondering whether what you are experiencing is ordinary exhaustion or something more, read our Oasis Hospice article Am I Burned Out or Just Tired? Recognizing the Difference for Healthcare Workers.
Burnout can develop gradually. Because healthcare workers are often surrounded by other exhausted healthcare workers, chronic stress can begin to look normal.
That does not mean it should automatically be ignored.
Self-Care Cannot Fix Every Healthcare Problem
There is also an important distinction that healthcare professionals deserve to hear:
Not everything can be fixed by self-care.
A bubble bath cannot fix chronic understaffing.
Meditation cannot shorten an unsafe workload.
A gratitude journal cannot eliminate mandatory overtime.
Drinking more water cannot repair a workplace culture where employees feel unsupported.
The CDC's research found that health workers reported fewer mental health concerns when they described their workplaces as supportive. Factors included trust in management, supervisor support, participation in workplace decisions, and having enough time to complete their work.
That matters because conversations about self-care for healthcare professionals should not place the entire responsibility for burnout on the individual worker.
Personal wellness matters.
Workplace wellness matters, too.
Maybe You Don't Need to Earn Your Rest
Healthcare workers are used to prioritizing need.
The sickest patient comes first.
The urgent task gets handled first.
The person who needs help gets your attention.
So when it comes to your own needs, you may subconsciously wait until they become urgent.
You wait until you are completely exhausted before resting.
You wait until you are overwhelmed before asking for help.
You wait until you are sick before taking a day off.
You wait until something hurts badly enough before making your own appointment.
But your needs do not have to become emergencies before they deserve attention.
You do not have to completely run out of energy before you are allowed to recharge.
Start Smaller Than You Think
If "taking better care of myself" feels like another responsibility to add to an already impossible list, make the goal smaller.
Ask yourself one question:
What do I need today?
Maybe the answer is sleep.
Maybe you need to eat something that did not come from a vending machine.
Maybe you need twenty minutes alone.
Maybe you need to call a friend.
Maybe you need to stop volunteering for every extra shift.
Maybe you need to make the doctor's appointment you have been postponing.
Maybe you need an evening where nobody needs anything from you.
Maybe you need professional support.
The answer does not have to be dramatic to matter.
You Are One of the People Worth Taking Care Of
Healthcare professionals spend enormous amounts of time protecting other people's comfort, dignity, safety, and well-being.
It can be easy to forget that those things matter for you, too.
You are allowed to have limits.
You are allowed to be tired.
You are allowed to need help.
You are allowed to take your PTO.
You are allowed to say no.
You are allowed to have a life outside of healthcare.
And you do not have to wait until you are completely burned out to start taking care of yourself.
The next time you catch yourself making sure everyone else has eaten, rested, taken their medication, made their appointment, gotten home safely, or had someone check on them, ask yourself one more question:
Have I taken care of me, too?
Because you spend a lot of your life taking care of everyone else.
You deserve to be on that list.
FAQ: Self-Care for Healthcare Professionals
Why is self-care important for healthcare professionals?
Healthcare professionals routinely experience physical, mental, and emotional demands while caring for others. Regularly attending to sleep, nutrition, relationships, physical health, emotional well-being, and personal boundaries can help support overall health and resilience.
What are signs that a healthcare worker may be neglecting themselves?
Possible signs can include constantly skipping meals or breaks, neglecting medical appointments, sleeping poorly, feeling persistently exhausted, becoming increasingly irritable, withdrawing from friends or family, losing interest in enjoyable activities, or feeling unable to mentally disconnect from work.
Is feeling exhausted normal for healthcare workers?
Healthcare work can certainly be physically and emotionally tiring, especially after demanding shifts. However, persistent exhaustion that does not improve with adequate rest may deserve closer attention. Ongoing exhaustion accompanied by detachment, irritability, reduced motivation, or dread about work can also be associated with burnout.
What are simple ways healthcare workers can practice self-care?
Self-care can include getting adequate sleep, eating regularly, staying hydrated, taking available breaks, maintaining medical appointments, spending time away from work, setting boundaries, using available PTO, staying connected with supportive people, and seeking professional support when needed.
Can self-care prevent healthcare worker burnout?
Self-care may support overall well-being and resilience, but burnout is not solely an individual responsibility. Workload, staffing, scheduling, workplace culture, organizational support, and other working conditions can also contribute to burnout. Addressing healthcare worker well-being may therefore require both individual and organizational approaches.
When should a healthcare professional seek additional support?
Consider reaching out for additional support when stress, exhaustion, anxiety, sadness, irritability, sleep difficulties, emotional detachment, or other concerns are persistent, worsening, interfering with daily life, or becoming difficult to manage alone. A healthcare provider, mental health professional, employee assistance program, or other trusted source of support may be able to help.
More Resources for Healthcare Professionals
Healthcare workers spend their days caring for others, but having the right support, resources, and information matters for caregivers, too. Explore more of our healthcare professional resources for practical guidance on workplace wellness, career development, professional support, and navigating the emotional demands of caring for others.
Looking for more helpful information? Explore our Hospice Education, Health & Disease Education, Community Resources, and Emotional Wellness & Support categories for compassionate guidance, practical resources, emotional support and answers to common questions about hospice care, caregiving, chronic illness, and the end-of-life journey.
Why Families Trust Oasis Hospice:
Oasis Hospice has been recognized as one of the highest-rated hospice providers based on Medicare.gov quality ratings. Families searching for compassionate, high-quality hospice support can compare hospice providers and learn more through Medicare.gov Care Compare. For additional education, caregiving guidance, and end-of-life support resources, families may also find helpful information through the Hospice Foundation of America.
From Houston to Huntsville, Houston to Livingston, and the many communities in between, Oasis Hospice is committed to providing compassionate hospice care, guidance, and support for patients and families during life’s most difficult moments. If you or a loved one have questions about hospice support services, Oasis Hospice is here to help families throughout Southeast Texas navigate care with compassion, dignity, and guidance every step of the way. To learn more about our hospice services and family support resources, please visit our website below.
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This article is intended for general educational purposes and is not a substitute for medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Questions about a specific medical condition, prognosis, or hospice eligibility should be discussed with a qualified healthcare professional.
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