b'BALANCE & RESILIENCECommit to exercise, even if only inoff-time schedule, include meals, self- it sooner than others, says Dr. Sotile.short bursts during your break.care, exercise, reading, studying, play,Theres nothing shameful in any chores, intimacy and sleep. Repeathealth care worker going to a leader Bring healthy snacks to work sothe mantra, If it is not planned, it willor a mental health professional andyou wont be tempted to indulge innot likely occur. saying, Im not okay right now.junk food. They steer clear of perfectionism.COVID has shown us that we Practise good sleep hygiene. AvoidIf nothing is ever good enough, youdesperately need to shift the culturealcohol and screen time just beforemay overthink and fret compulsivelyinside health care organizations, adds bed and clear troubling thoughtsover every detail of everything youDr. Simonds. We need to break the by focusing on positive events.do. Make an effort to eliminate themental health stigma, we need to fix concept of perfection from yoursystemic issues that exacerbate these They take humanity breaks, largethinking and from your approachproblems, and we need to give people and small. If you feel captive to theto your work. Beware of signs ofthe tools and support they need to world of near-constant multitaskingmaladaptive perfectionism, such asbuild up their resilience. These are and endless demands happeningchronic procrastination, being overlyhuge tasks, but our people areunder artificial lights and accentedcautious and thorough in tasks,worth it. LTCTby unpleasant sights and smells, takeexcessive checking, and avoiding short breaks to focus on positivity,trying new things and risking making quiet, laughter, fresh air and humanity.mistakes. Develop, instead, a quest Enjoy a brief break in the morning andfor excellence. Remind yourself thatGary R. Simonds, MD,another respite in the afternoon forexcellence always leaves room forMHCDS is a Clinical andcoffee, chatting with colleagues, improvement. You can strive forAcademic Neurosurgeon who or meditation.success while allowing yourself to bealso holds a masters degree less than perfect.in health care delivery science. They create schedules and stickWayne M. Sotile is a Clinical to them. In the face of utter chaos,Finally, those who end up thriving overPsychologist with expertisecreating a schedule gives you athe long haul arent afraid to reachin medical psychologysense of control and can improveout for help when they need it. We alland resilience.your efficiency and efficacy. In yourhave a breaking point and some reach Building Better Pharmacy Services TogetherTo learn more: 1.866.7.CARERX 1.866.722.7379 www.carerx.cawww.oltca.com LONG TERM CARE TODAY 53'