ThePilotsDaughter A blog about one girl's experiences in the world

I’ve been rather busy lately working crazy hours in the vet hospital and I have learned an important lesson. You cannot survive on 2 hours sleep three days in a row, or just on coco pops and bananas for dinner for a week for that matter!!!

To care for your patients you must take the time to care for yourself, so that you can care for them better. There is a tendency among people who work in caring professions towards self-sacrifice, we sacrifice our family relationships, our health and mental wellbeing in order to put our patients first. Yet, by not taking proper care of ourselves does our patients a disservice. I know many great doctors, nurses and vets who have suffered mental breakdowns or depression,an inability to cope with the situations they find themselves in by trying to do too much or putting themselves under insane pressure. Yes, sure your patients come first no matter what and yes, sometimes that means dropping everything else but ultimately we must preserve our own health and sanity too. If that means ensuring we get proper rest and eat proper food, spend enough time with our friends and family and enough time caring for ourselves it places us in a much better position from which we are able to care for our patients. Lesson learned. I’m off to do another 12 hour shift on the 3 hours of sleep I got yesterday….. Love xxxxx

I was thinking about the role which people who inspire us have on our lives, the way they challenge us, shape our decisions and push us forwards. I bet most people can recall old teachers or friends who have had a huge impact on our lives in a way you would never have recognised at the time. Most progressive-thinking companies, university and schools have come to recognise the importance of mentoring as a support system for employees and students. People who are willing to impart their knowledge from their experiences are worth their weight in gold. I can think of around 50 people who had had a huge impact on the last 22 years of my life.I mean HUGE. Sometimes a mentor can be a person you don’t even realise - someone you despise but who actually challenges you to be the bigger person and drive forwards to prove them wrong or they might be someone who supports you and holds your hand when you get scared and believes in you more than you might have believed in yourself. They might be a friend, a relative a colleague or a teacher but they will route for you no matter what. what they say counts for something. Look for a mentor who suits you, who do you most admire? Why?  

My mentors have taught me a great deal and been a source of guidance and reassurance and made me get the best from myself. Whether you pick a mentor who you aspire to professionally, or admire is up to you. One of my most influential mentors sadly passed away last year and I haven’t really come to terms with the loss of such a wonderful human being who had such an impact on my life, I think about what I have learnt and try and apply my knowledge to achieve results. So here’s to all the special people in the world who   shape the lives of people around them. Try and find a mentor for yourself and try and mentor others. Remember, an amazing mentor might make the difference between being  average joe and being greater than you ever dreamed possible….  Love Em xxxx