Nurses are some of the strongest people, and this was made even more evident during the pandemic. We recently asked Kristy Carrington, MBA, BSN, RN, NEA-BC, Swedish Regional Chief Nursing Officer, “Where do you find your strength?” Here’s what she had to say.

The last two years have undoubtedly put our inner strength and resiliency to the test. When times get tough, I’ve found that my mindset matters.

It influences how I perceive and experience challenges but most importantly, it influences how I solve problems to find a path forward. A fixed and negative mindset causes me to get stuck on a mental treadmill, preventing me from finding ways to navigate and persevere through tough times. Over the last two years, I have found that I must work harder to get off that treadmill and have made a habit of taking time to do things that help me shift my mindset. I have learned to become more disciplined with my self-care routine, which has helped me find the energy and motivation to do a mindset reset.

My strength then comes from having clarity over what I can do to endure or overcome difficult circumstances because I am able to accept the realities and identify what I have control over.

My ability to do this well requires self-awareness and trusted friends, family, and colleagues in my life who I can turn to when I need to self-check my attitude or perspective.

Improving Swedish nurses’ daily well-being

Shifting to a more positive mindset is not easy. That’s why Swedish offers a host of benefits to support nurses’ daily well-being and minimize stressors. Through the Choose Well portal, Swedish nurses have access to a plethora of well-being benefits including on-demand fitness classes, yoga and mindfulness practices, diabetes prevention and management, financial wellness checkups and learning events, 24/7 mental health support, smoking cessation programs, TeleSpiritual Health and Prayer Requests, tuition reimbursement, and social connections. Connected teams that help nurses learn and grow and supportive management are additional ways we’re prioritizing our nurses, mind, body and spirit.

If Swedish sounds like a place you’d like to work, check out all nursing careers.