Nurses’ Love Languages
With Nurses Week and Nurses Month coming up, what in the world do we get our nurse friends, colleagues and family members to commemorate the occasion?
According to Gary Chapman in his book 5 Love Languages, there are 5 love languages: words of affirmation, acts of service, quality time, gifts and physical touch. Nurses can be any of these love languages but usually one is dominant.
To determine what your nurses’ love language is and what to get the nurse in your life as a gift, here are a few suggestions.
- Words of affirmation: words that makes the nurse feel loved and appreciated. It is important to give nurses positive encouraging words, share how much they mean to you and how valued they are. Nurses are constantly encouraging patients now you get to encourage the nurse.
- Acts of service: nurses are so busy taking care of everybody else and always being of service to other people. Nurses are always providing care, going above and beyond for their patients. Gifts for this love language include hiring a housekeeper for the nurse, grocery shopping or helping the nurse organize, schedule or plan.
- Quality time: many nurses have outside interests and hobbies that they love. They also love to spend quality time together with their loved ones. If the nurse’s love language is quality time, give them time to read, meditate, relax or time to do their favorite hobby. A day off with focus on doing what they love would be a perfect day for them.
- Gifts: nurses are great at giving gifts for others but are not necessarily great at receiving gifts. If receiving gifts is their love language, they are the ones always giving gifts to everyone else. What is something meaningful and thought provoking that you could give them?
- The last love language is physical touch. If your nurse’s language is physical touch, nurses are always touching their patients, examining them, holding their hand and making them feel better. Back when I was a nurse, we gave all our patients HS back rubs. If a nurse’s love language is physical touch, they would love a massage, a spa day, skin care, a long bath with a bath bomb or bubble bath would be a great gift.
Depending on your nurse’s love language will help you decide on what gifts your nurse would love.
Usually, a person’s love language is the language that they express most. So, for example, if they are expressing words of affirmation to you or their patients, then that’s probably their love language.
If their love language is touch, they’re always touching their patients (in a good way!), that’s an indication that touch is their love language. You get the picture.
Nurses Week this year is May 6th-May 12 and after a year in the pandemic, it’s going to be especially important.
Nurses are leaving the profession in droves and anything special, unique, and meaningful you could do for them would be greatly appreciated.
