How do YOU decompress?

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After a tough shift, or after a tough day, how do you wind down?

I thought we might throw our ideas out there and maybe inspire each other!

Let's see:

1. I get home at midnight, and this is perfect weather for a cup of decaf herbal tea and a snack. Of course, if I skipped the snack, maybe I'd drop a few pounds, but I'm HUNGRY when I get home!

2. Surf a few fave sites; facebook, allnurses, etc. What are yours?

3. Bury myself in brainless fiction. And yes I still read under the covers with a flashlight as my DH is sound asleep by the time I get home.

4. Once school is out, I've got my shows saved on DVR and I'm going to have a marathon TV vege-out in front of the tube day!

What about you guys? :D

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A lot of my decompression takes place by going to this site. Actually, I've often told myself that I need to find another way, because I'm not getting away from the job by going to a nursing website. I used to go on my daily walk but have gotten away from that (not a good thing).

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Specializes in Case mgmt., rehab, (CRRN), LTC & psych.

1. I take a shower after arriving home from work

2. I browse the internet after taking a shower

3. I'll sometimes eat a snack (a meal if I'm hungry)

4. I go to bed when I feel I've wound down adequately

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Specializes in Psych ICU, addictions.

I either knit, or play DOOM in God Mode. Sometimes I really just need the release that running after cacodemons with a chainsaw can give me. :)

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I get home, have a shower, and log on to World of Warcraft. Being a rogue affords me LOTS of opportunity to unwind by getting the urge to stab things out of my system in a much more constructive way than is otherwise available. :D

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I take bubble baths. I've always loved them from the time I was a little girl. (heck, I even study in the tub sometimes.) So relaxing! Or I play with my 3 dogs in the backyard, and say hello to our cows. Or I watch a couple of tv shows on DVD. Or I waste a lot of time on the internet.

But the best de-stress activity is napping!

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Specializes in Acute Care Psych, DNP Student.

Weight-lifting and yoga.

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Specializes in LTC, assisted living, med-surg, psych.

I have a ten-mile drive, so I often spend that time in the car with the radio on and singing as LOUD as I possibly can! I can't carry a tune in a bucket, but the absurdity of screaming out "Wild Thing" all alone in the car at eleven PM is usually good for some stress-relieving laughter.

Depending on the shift, I'll also do a lot of talking to God---not formal prayer, just chatting with Him as if He were riding shotgun. Which He is.:)

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Specializes in Community, OB, Nursery.

I have a 40min drive home. If I have to be back at work the next night, I drive home in silence to chill out my overstimulated mind. Usually by the time I get home I am chilled out enough that I can shower, eat, and go to bed shortly thereafter.

If I don't have to be back, I put in some classic rock and sing my lungs out. Great stress release. When I get home I can hop in bed and off to lalaland.

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Specializes in acute care.

Come home, take a nice semi hot shower, eat if I haven't done so already, then lay on the bed or couch surfing the net and watching TV until I fall asleep.

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I am also a fan of the bubble bath wind down :bow:. Spending a few hours watching recorded tv shows (Ellen Degeneres, Greys, Private Practice) and surfing the net, I am ready to drift off into sleep so I can wake up and do it all again!

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Specializes in Emergency Room.

MUSIC! I plug in my Ipod a lot. It helps tune out other louds students when I'm studying and the right song can be a great stress relief for me.

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