Holiday Focus and Reset: Self-Care Tips for Nursing Faculty

The Elevated NP
Dec 15, 2025
5 min read

How to Navigate End-of-Semester Stress, Enjoy the Season, and Still Reset for What’s Next

The end of the semester has a very specific energy for all nursing faculty: a blend of grading marathons, student emails that spike at impossible hours, last-minute clinical paperwork, committee obligations, and the quiet pressure of prepping for next term.

----And all of this lands right on top of the holiday season — when you’re also trying to enjoy your family, maintain some sense of tradition, and not lose yourself in the academic whirlwind.

If you’re feeling pulled in way too many directions, you’re not alone. Nursing faculty wear many hats — educator, clinician, mentor, leader, administrator — and the holiday season can magnify that load. This is exactly why intentional self-care matters most during this time of year.

Here are practical, realistic, and restorative self-care strategies for nursing faculty as you close out the semester and enter a next one with clarity and calm.

1. Create a “Finals Week Workflow” That Protects Your Time

Grading and exams can easily take over your entire schedule if you let it. Instead of racing the clock every day, design a simple workflow:

Batch similar tasks. Grade all discussion boards together, then all case studies, then all exams.
Use time blocks, not open-ended grading sessions. Try two 60–90 minute blocks per day instead of sitting for 6–8 hours straight.
- I use this strategy all semester long! I don’t have the attention span to grade 20 papers in one day in one chunk of time. Instead, I divide them into small groups throughout the week (ex: grade 5-6 papers each day). That way, I can stay focused and fresh for each student.
Set boundaries with communication. A friendly auto-reply can say: “Thank you for your message — I’m working through end-of-semester grading. Response times may be slower than usual, but I’ll reply as soon as I can within 24-48 hours.”

Just a little structure reduces mental fatigue, supports focus, and stops grading from spilling into your evenings.

2. Give Yourself Permission to Say ‘No’ (or at least ‘Not Right Now’)

Calendars can fill up quickly with “small” requests that are deceptively time-consuming — reviewing a policy draft, attending an optional meeting, taking on another applicant interview, etc. It can seem like there is always “one more thing” that must be done before the semester ends.

During the holiday season, try practicing:

No, for now — “I can revisit this after grades are submitted.”
Delegation where appropriate — Students or faculty colleagues can often co-lead tasks.
Protection of your non-work hours — especially nights and weekends.

Saying “no” is not a lack of professionalism — it’s an act of self-preservation.

3. Build Mini-Restorative Moments into Your Day

Self-care doesn’t have to be a spa day or a week-long break. In fact, those small moments of recovery are often the most powerful:

A 10-minute walk between grading sessions
A cup of coffee or tea without multitasking
A quiet morning routine before opening your inbox
Listening to a calming playlist while prepping lectures

These micro-breaks reduce cortisol, improve executive functioning, and help you think more clearly — exactly what you need during a busy season.

4. Protect the Parts of the Holiday Season You Love Most

The holidays can vanish in a blur if work consumes the whole month. Instead, choose 2–3 non-negotiable traditions or activities:

Baking with kids or grandkids
A holiday movie night
A winter festival or local event
Quiet evenings with family, board games, or reading
Faith-based or spiritual gatherings

Put these events on your calendar first. Treat them like you would a meeting with your dean — firm, respected, and blocked off.

You deserve holiday joy just as much as everyone else you take care of all year long.

5. Create a Gentle Reset Routine Between Semesters

Some semesters end with a dramatic exhale. Others end with a quiet “I survived.” Either way, your brain needs transition time before the next round of teaching.

Consider a simple reset plan:

One day to rest fully — no email, no grading, no planning.
One day to refresh your physical space — organize your desk, reset your calendar, tidy your laptop files.
One day to plan lightly — nothing heavy, just mapping out course improvements or setting personal goals for teaching and clinical practice.

Even 48–72 hours of intentional reset can make the next semester feel less overwhelming.

6. Reflect on Wins — Not Just Workload

Academic culture often pushes us to focus on what wasn’t finished, what needs improvement, or what didn’t go as planned.

Instead, spend a few minutes reflecting on what did go well:

Students you supported through challenges
A lesson plan or activity that worked beautifully
Improvements in your teaching approach
Leadership moments you didn’t expect
Positive evaluations or feedback

These reflections reinforce professional identity and reduce burnout by highlighting the meaning in your work — something nurse educators tend to forget in the rush of deadlines. Plus, you can save some of these insights for you annual faculty review (Look at you already planning ahead!).

7. Prepare “Next Semester Lite” Instead of “Next Semester Perfect”

You do not need your entire next course built before January 1, or even by the start of the next semester. Even if you are prepping a new course, don’t get caught up in the need to have everything done. It is totally fine to be only a couple weeks ahead of the students in terms of content preparation as long as you have the “big picture” planned out.

Two weeks before the semester, aim for:

Key dates and modules mapped out
First week or two of content outlined
Any major assignment updates drafted
A list of what you’ll refine later

One week before the semester:

First week (preferably two) of content published (content, resources / extra material)
Syllabus posted
Topical outline finalized and posted
Course introduction video posted

Final Thoughts

The holiday season isn’t just a break — it’s a chance to reset your mind, your routines, and your sense of purpose as an educator. Nursing faculty give so much of themselves all year long. You carry the emotional load of learners, patients, curriculum, accreditation, leadership expectations, and your own professional growth.

This season, give yourself permission to slow down, savor what matters, and step into the new semester with energy that comes from restoration — not depletion.

Your work shapes the future of nursing. Your well-being shapes you.

And both deserve to be cared for.

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