Nurse wisdom from the ICU at OHSU (4.9.19)

Rev. Dr. Steven Koski

Nurse. wisdom from the ICU at OHSU: “You’ve been awake for 36 hours. The best thing you can do right now is go to your hotel and rest. When you wake drink a big glass of water slowly. Stretch. Exercise. Go for a walk. Come back in the morning with your best self refreshed and renewed. Your loved one doesn’t need your weariness and worry, they need you in warrior mode. They don’t need your anxiety and fear, they need the strength of your love.”
Parker Palmer wrote, “Self-care is never a selfish act. It is simply good stewardship of the only gift I have, the gift I was put on earth to offer others. Anytime we can listen to true self and give it the care it requires, we do it not only for ourselves, but for the many others whose lives we touch.”
Reality is not objective but subjective. We do not see the world as it is. We see the world as we are. As David Whyte says, “When your eyes are tired, the world is tired also.”

We make the mistake of thinking we will feel better and take the time to care for ourselves when the challenge is overcome or the problem is solved. The truth is that when you take the time to care for your self, you will find the energy and hope required to meet your challenges.
Perhaps the best way you can love others today is to love yourself with tenderness and grace. The world doesn’t need your weariness and worry. The world needs your warrior energy.