Speaking To The Nurse's Heart

On this Valentine's Day, I'd like to speak directly to the nurse's heart, sending my support, compassion and gratitude on this special day that focuses on love.

Nurse, has your heart been bruised by the rigors of your profession? Has stress eaten you up inside? Are you struggling to keep your head above water? It's time to be gentle with your heart.

Nurse, have you worked hard and served well, yet received no thanks for your labors? It's time to thank yourself for all you do.

Nurse, does your work bring you joy and lift your spirits? Does caring for your patients feed your spirit? It's time to give thanks within your heart.

Nurse, does your spirit need healing? Are you tired and worked to the bone? It's time to give yourself the rest that you need.

Nursing can be fulfilling and uplifting, yet it can also be a difficult and burdensome profession at times.

Nurses use their minds and their scientific understanding of disease, yet they also provide direct hands-on care that brings comfort, relief and calm to clients who are ill, diseased, or riddled with anxiety and pain.

As nurses, we care for children, adults, the elderly, the sick, the mentally ill, the developmentally disabled, the dying, the newborn, the not-yet-born, and the abandoned. We provide care for the homeless, the imprisoned, the forgotten, the fallen, the forgiven and the condemned.

Nurses use their hearts, souls, spirits, hands, intellect, understanding and compassion to deliver their gifts to the world.

Nurses, wherever you are today and whatever you're doing, place your hand on your heart and thank yourself quietly for your inner strength, your gifts, and the compassion that informs your work in the world.

Valentine's Day is really about love, not about flowers and candy. Give yourself a Valentine, nurses. Love yourself. You deserve it.