10 Ways to Get Stress Under Control

Case Management Focus

Nurse Case Managers are under a lot of stress for a variety of reasons. Here are two that affect all case managers no matter where their clients live: keeping up with ever increasing caseloads and dealing with fewer resources when resources are more needed than ever. Working in disruptive times is stressful for the case manager who often finds up is down and down is up.  

How are you coping with the stress in your life? In this post I suggest 10 tips you might consider if you are feeling noticeably stressed. 

1. Get organized: Plan your day, your week, your month by looking at each of your cases to decide which cases are complex and which ones fall into a simpler “maintenance” category. Go through each case to see what is needed, and what you specifically need to do. Keep a rolling record on your to-do list, updated frequently as changes occur. Carry this information over to your professional calendar to keep yourself on track with due date reminders.   

2. If you realize you have too many cases and are only putting out fire’s vs giving clients the attention they deserve, talk to your manager to let him/her know you need time to catch up. Don’t accept more cases till you feel you are able to manage your cases in an organized and meaningful way. Protect yourself and your clients by working up to your capacity but not beyond.  

3. Review your personal commitments. Do you have events coming up that are going to require your time, perhaps take you away from your cases? Add these commitments to your to-do list to encourage a calmer day to day workflow.  

4. Look at your professional appointments and see what is coming up that you need to focus on. This could be a conference, a webinar, team meetings or other events that require you to carve time out of your work schedule.   

5. Book your days off and vacation time early on. Make sure you get the time approved. Doing this in advance allows you to prepare for your time off and your manager to find coverage while you are off. Taking days off as well as scheduling  extended vacation time are both important for your personal well being. Don’t put it off!   

6. During these disruptive times - limit time taken listening/ watching the news. Too much news coverage can increase your stress levels. Protect your peace of mind by limiting time “dialoguing” with those vehemently opposed to your point of view and vice versa. Often times we must agree to disagree 

7. Talk to someone on a professional level if you feel things are getting out of control and your concerns/ anxiety are affecting your emotional stability. Don’t deny your feelings as they are real and need to be addressed.  

8. Take time to exercise every day. Eat the cleanest diet possible. Put yourself first!  

9. Make sure you are getting enough sleep. It is important for your wellbeing 

10. If you pray – pray!  

I hope these 10 tips will help you to lower your stress levels. If you have additional ideas, I would love to hear from you. Email me at allewellyn48@gmail.com  

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