The steam train and the stop sign | What’s the Next Smallest Step? Ep. 3

Thirty years in the Emergency Department, a patient's warning she wasn't yet ready to hear, and learning when to pause. Niamh O'Gorman has spent thirty years working in the Emergency Department, twenty-two of them as an Advanced Nurse Practitioner. After years of working in a high-pressure environment, she began to recognise what chronic stress and burnout had come to look like in her own life. In this conversation, we talk about the patient who described Niamh as a steam train travelling at 80 miles an hour towards a station, ignoring the stop sign; years before she was ready to hear what he was telling her. We talk about the moment in Croatia when she realised something had to change, the small practices she's built into her life since, how she has learned to notice when something that once helped is no longer helping, and what “reset” actually looks like in the middle of a twelve-hour shift. In this episode • What burnout looked and felt like for Niamh after years in a high-pressure environment • The patient who saw what Niamh couldn't yet see herself • The moment in Croatia when she realised something had to change • Self-compassion, journaling and finding forms of mindfulness that work for you • What a two-minute pause can look like in the middle of a busy Emergency Department shift • Why awareness is the first step towards change - and why a reset can happen more than once • Rebuilding movement, enjoyment and social connection after burnout • What Niamh has learned about bad days, self-forgiveness and beginning again Chapters 00:00 Introduction 02:00 Thirty years in emergency nursing 03:58 What burnout looked like 06:30 Stress, purpose and healthcare 12:12 The steam train and the warning signs 18:56 The Croatia wake-up call 20:18 Self-compassion and mindfulness 24:36 Practical reset techniques 32:42 Lessons learned and moving forward 52:48 Reset, awareness and small steps About Niamh O'Gorman Niamh O'Gorman is an Emergency Department nurse and Advanced Nurse Practitioner with thirty years' experience in the Emergency Department. She is also a mentor, positive health coach and founder of The Reset Coach. About the show What's the Next Smallest Step? is a podcast about lifestyle medicine, positive health, and the small habits and bigger ideas that change a life. Hosted by Shauna Garvey, PhD, Positive Health Coach, EMCC Senior Practitioner and founder of Éistim Coaching; Éistim being the Irish word for “I listen.” Links Niamh on LinkedIn:   / niamh-o-gorman-067a9874   Shauna on LinkedIn:   / shauna-garvey   Éistim Coaching: https://www.eistim.com/ A note for listeners The experiences and views shared in this podcast are personal and are not medical advice. Health conditions and responses to different approaches vary between individuals. If you have concerns about your health or are considering significant changes to its management, please speak to an appropriately qualified healthcare professional. Music Music licensed through Soundstripe. Code: QHSM5WA9YLCO18S4