The Value of Contemplative Practices in Mental Health Nursing

The relentless pressure in the role of a modern healthcare professional has led to what Dr Susan Sumskis describes as disembodiment — learning to override and even ignore our innate bodily signals. We can ignore the most basic needs like thirst, hunger, or arising feelings and emotions. Not surprisingly, lack of awareness and the care that should routinely result leads to burnout, both physiological and psychological, in the nursing role.

Dr Sumskis is a Registered Nurse, Credentialed Mental Health Nurse, and Fellow of the ACMHN. As Chair of the new ACMHN Contemplative Practices Special Interest Group (ConSIG), she makes the case for why restorative practices of both mind and body are not a luxury — they are essential for anyone in a caring profession.

What are contemplative practices?

To contemplate is to gaze attentively within. Contemplative practices originated from ancient wisdom traditions and have recently been gaining increasing recognition for their capacity to reduce suffering, build resilience, and support wellbeing. Contemplation is an individual activity and a personal practice that requires immersion in, and reflection on, an object or experience — a present moment, an idea, a thought, a feeling, or another aspect of conscious experience. Contemplative practices that can help restore our compromised connections include deep listening, meditation, yoga, storytelling, music, and more. Many of the things we love to do can be contemplative in nature — things that bring us into a state of flow, like dancing, creative art, or playing a musical instrument.

Why do mental health nurses need contemplative practices?

The relentless pressure of modern healthcare has led nurses to override their own bodily signals. Regular contemplative practice supports deeply therapeutic mental health nursing — having presence of body and mind, turning up awake and aware, listening deeply, hearing, and responding. Emerging research findings on inclusion of these practices in undergraduate nursing curriculum identifies associations with deep reflectivity, connectedness, respect, and gratitude. Studies in nursing leadership show reduced burnout. Practice brings a lasting impact — not only for the nurse, but for those they connect with daily.

How do contemplative practices work?

Transformation occurs through taking the mind off autopilot — reducing the habitual, reactive, and unregulated thinking associated with the brain's Default Mode Network, which when unregulated can lead to suffering and disease. We are not our thoughts — we have thoughts. We have consciousness, and from that perspective we can learn to watch our thoughts, giving us an immensely valuable distance between an arising thought and action. Through becoming the watcher of our own thinking, we can increase our ability to regulate reactivity and choose how we respond. Can you recall a moment when you were so immediately overcome by an experience that you were lost for words? That space between stimulus and response is what contemplative practice helps us access intentionally.

About the ACMHN Contemplative Practices Special Interest Group

The ConSIG was established to support mental health nurses in exploring and developing contemplative practices for both personal wellbeing and therapeutic practice. Research is associating the use of contemplative practices in recovery with ongoing therapeutic effect for people living with mental health conditions. If you are a mental health nurse interested in exploring contemplative practices, we invite you to join the group and connect with colleagues who share this interest.