Becoming a home health aide through HHA classes in NYC means you will eventually be helping the chronically ill, elderly, and otherwise vulnerable patients on a daily basis to be more comfortable in their homes. However, this incredibly important job can also mean a much higher risk of caregiver burnout unless you have strategies like these to build resilience.
- Self-Care
While all of the strategies suggested here will help to improve your resilience, self-care is the top priority. If your own health suffers, you won’t be able to provide high-quality care to others.
Take the time to care for yourself by doing those things that help relieve your stress, and resist the urge to feel guilty about doing so. Spend time with people whose company you enjoy, and get outdoors if you can. Most importantly, remember and accept that you are important, too, and, as such, deserve to take a break and relax.
In addition to doing the things you like, you’ll also want to ensure that you are practicing healthy habits. For example, it’s important to get enough sleep, as well as adopt a healthy diet so that your body can be as resilient as your outlook.
- A Positive Outlook
Holding on to your humor and thinking positively can have a very significant impact on your level of resilience, as home attendant training in the Bronx will teach you. The act of laughing reduces tension to more tolerable levels, as well as helps you to see things from a more powerful and positive perspective.
As well, the ability to perceive adversity from a solution-finding standpoint also adds power and positivity to your everyday tasks. For instance, when an issue arises, instead of responding negatively, you can make the choice to consider the options available to you to resolve it.
- Mindfulness for Immediate Refocus
Mindfulness involves placing yourself in the present moment by paying attention to your surroundings, physical processes and sensations, feelings, and present thoughts. When stress and anxiety seem to be taking over, spending even just a few minutes on mindfulness practices can have many physical and mental benefits.
If you need a way to diffuse stress quickly and effectively, the STOP method is an effective solution. First, stop what you are doing immediately, and then take slow and deep breaths, focusing on the expansion and emptying of your lungs.
Then observe your thoughts, feelings, and physical sensations as you breathe. Acknowledge your thoughts and feelings, but then let them go. Finally, focus on the feeling of kindness and awareness as you proceed with your day.
You’ll learn via home health aide classes in NYC that mindful breathing is something that can be done anywhere. It only requires a few minutes in a quiet space if one is available.
To breathe mindfully, get comfortable, close your eyes, and then breathe deeply from the abdomen, filling your lungs and then exhaling slowly. Focus on inhaling peace and positivity and exhaling anxiety and negativity. Gradually open your eyes, focusing on your feelings of calmness.
Finally, the practice of daily meditation can also help you to retain your positive outlook. Meditation can be learned in a group, or you can learn how to practice it independently.
- Acts of Kindness
Engaging in even one act of kindness can boost the brain’s serotonin levels, which will make you feel good. Not only that but, in being of service to others in this way on a regular basis, the benefits will multiply. When the need arises, you will have a large amount of resiliency and positivity to draw from as you think about those acts of kindness and how you were able to help.
- Accepting Change
Change is an inevitable part of life, and this is definitely true for those who will work in the industry following home health aide training in NYC. Getting into the habit of expecting change to occur will put you in a better position to flow with change as it arises.
When you register for professional training at an accredited institution like ABC Training Center, you will learn how to employ resilience strategies as you learn how to provide the best quality care to all patients.