I walk into work these days at Urgent Care with my fingers crossed that I don’t get sick. We are working hard to protect our patients and our staff. What keeps me going in times like these? My co-workers. I love and trust my fellow nurses, providers and support staff. Lately at the end of shift, we find a dance video and we just dance for 15 minutes. There’s laughter, jokes and camaraderie. It’s just a stress reliever before we head home, and it’s fun!

Nothing prepares you for the loss of a loved one. The pain never really goes away; it just changes from year to year. In 2011, I lost my boyfriend to suicide. I thought I was going to spend the rest of my life with him.  The feelings of grief and sadness were overwhelming. I felt anger, guilt and loss all at the same time. As I struggled to come to terms with the mental illness that led to his death, I had a lot of support from his family and mine. I accessed Kaiser Permanente's Employee Assistance Program and found compassion and insight that helped me come to terms with the loss. I also became more physically active. I joined a gym and started taking Zumba classes which was really fun. I’d ask friends to go on hikes and discovered new parks and trails around town. I also practiced meditation and became more introspective about my feelings. Some of my friends didn’t know what to say to me so they said nothing. I didn’t think they cared, but I realized I was wrong. They were just trying not to upset me. My advice is be kind to yourself, talk to a professional and stay busy. 

If you or someone you know is in distress, contact the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-8255. Telephonic crisis counseling is available 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Employees also can access Kaiser Permanente’s Employee Assistance Program.

Access to tuition reimbursement has allowed me the opportunity to go for my doctorate in organizational leadership. In one of my classes, I learned about positive psychology for leaders and how to help them become more resilient. I discuss this with employees and incorporate the concepts into my presentations to stewards and unit-based team health and safety champions. I feel very fortunate that the partnership and Kaiser Permanente value continuing education. I definitely would not be going for my doctorate right now if it weren’t for the educational funds. I also love the Ben Hudnall Memorial Trust. It offers me free continuing education so I’m able to maintain my credentials, which can also be very expensive. Being able to keep up my credentials at zero cost is amazing. You can’t beat that – it’s invaluable. There’s a website you can access for all these courses and it's free with the BHMT. It’s an untapped resource – I just learned about it last year.