Many nurses feel they must “sacrifice everything for patients, even their health and peace of mind.” Although nurse martyrdom is not new, the label “helps no one.”
“Martyrdom is a root cause of many nurses’ experience of burnout and compassion fatigue,” Mr. Carlson said. “We’re not heroes, saints, or angels — we’re human beings with the same flaws and problems as anyone else, and we have a job. While that job may often feel like a calling to many of us, no one should feel the need to insist that a calling should also be a yoke across our shoulders and a heavy cross to bear that can’t be put down.”
The nurse martyr may experience greater risks of resentment, unhappiness and dissatisfaction. Mr. Carlson said that nurse martyrdom is “like self-imposed shackles” that should be thrown down.
“Even for those who feel that our occupation is a true calling, we can still practice diligent self-care, maintain firm boundaries, and recognize the equal importance of our needs,” he said.
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