Your Story Is Someone’s Survival Guide: Why Nurses Need to Be Heard

I remember the moment I realized I’d lost myself.

After more than 30 years in healthcare—climbing the ladder from nurse’s aide to Vice President of Education—I found myself burned out, emotionally drained, and asking a question I couldn’t answer: What do I want?

For decades, I had done everything “right.” I said yes. I worked hard. I kept the peace. I supported the team. I put patients, staff, and leadership before myself. And I was good at it.

But I wasn’t okay.

And I didn’t talk about it. I didn’t know how. I thought I was the only one.

Looking back now, I can see I was stuck in what I call the Good Girl Operating System—programmed to keep everyone else comfortable, even if it meant losing my own voice in the process.

It took the help of a coach, a lot of courage, and a full reckoning with my own values to finally step out of that pattern and into a more liberated version of myself. And now, as a coach, I work with other nurses who are walking that same path—brilliant, compassionate professionals who feel invisible, overworked, and silenced.

And here’s what I’ve learned:

Your story—your real story—isn’t a burden or a weakness.
It’s a beacon.

When you share what you’ve been through, you offer someone else a glimpse of what’s possible.
You say, “Me too.”
You say, “You’re not alone.”
You say, “Here’s how I found my way back to myself.”

As nurses, we’ve been conditioned to prioritize everyone else’s needs. We carry the emotional labor of families, patients, staff, and systems. We know how to hold space for others. But we rarely hold space for ourselves.

That’s why sharing your story matters so deeply.

Because the nurse sitting silently in the break room, wondering if she’s the only one feeling this way, needs to hear it.
The new grad questioning if she’s cut out for this work needs to hear it.
The seasoned nurse on the edge of burnout who’s terrified to admit she’s struggling—she needs to hear it.

And your voice could be the thing that gives her the courage to speak up, too.

That’s exactly why I created the Nurses Unleashed Show™️—a space where nurses can drop the mask, share the truth, and inspire each other through honest, raw, and powerful stories of growth, resilience, and transformation.

Whether you’ve set a boundary for the first time, advocated for yourself in a system that didn’t want to listen, or walked away from a role that no longer fit—you have something to say that someone else needs to hear.

Your story might just be the survival guide that helps another nurse find her way home to herself.

🎙️ Apply to be a guest on the Nurses Unleashed Show™️

Let’s amplify your voice. Because when one nurse speaks up, she makes it safer for the rest of us to follow.

👉 Apply here to share your story.