Meet a Holistic Nurse

Do you know how a holistic nurse is different from a conventional nurse? You may be incorporating elements of holistic nursing into your practice and not even know.

As you consider holistic nursing as a career, you’ll want to have some of your questions answered. On this page, we feature a Q&A with a nurse with over 25 years of experience who has developed holistic programs for providers and consumers. Then, find answers to your questions about what holistic nurses do in their practice and how to become a holistic nurse.

This shift was an unexpected return to my cultural roots and experiences as a kid growing up on the Texas-Mexico border. For me, a visit to the local curandera (healer) was as normal as visiting the pediatrician. The choice of medical provider depended on whether I was with my U.S.-born mother (a nurse) or my Mexican-born grandmother. I assume both approaches had merit as here I am telling this story now as a happy, healthy person.

Traditional medicine from Mexico (TMM) is alive and growing in the U.S.

Medical pluralism, use of more than one medical system’s approaches and treatments concurrently, is happening among U.S. patients. However, patients frequently do not disclose use of TMM to medical providers, and providers are not asking patients about their use either. For those using TMM, choosing which system to access when is a process of reasoned discernment about the presenting health challenge, accessibility, efficacy of interventions and expected outcomes, and prior experiences with each system.

TMM treats health as holistic and is all about moving toward greater balance and harmony. Inner health is a balanced and dynamic relationship between the mind, body, spirit, and emotions, and external health is the individual having harmonious, interdependent relationships with their community, the natural world, and an unbound universe.

Without hierarchical structures or an oversight body for practitioners and practices, there are many regional expressions of curanderismo, yet, it maintains a fundamental core of health, healing, and well-being as holistic.

Herbs and plants are the most common traditional healing “tools” reported. They are used to treat physical and mental/emotional issues and as part of deeply spiritual healing ceremonies and rituals.

The World Health Organization has a Traditional Medicine Strategy that recommends greater integration of traditional medicine practitioners, practices, and products into national health systems for global access to high quality healthcare. While there are many highly motivated and committed people supporting the WHO efforts, movement toward integration is slow and varies widely by country.

Holistic nursing practices make self-awareness, self-growth, and self-care a top priority for the nurse, which tells the nurse that they are important, worthy, and capable of change for the better. This belief in self translates into a grounded confidence that is much needed when working with diverse patients in today’s dynamic and demanding healthcare system.

Also, holistic nurses view health as multidimensional (mind, body, and spirit) and many are skilled in offering complementary and integrative health approaches to patients as part of the journey in healing, even when curing may not come.

As a holistic nurse, I incorporate many practices and skills into a “typical” day. I may begin the day with a mindful practice (deep breaths, a meditation, a simple pause) and check-in, approaching it with self-compassion and gratitude. At work, I try to remind myself that each interaction with others is unique and can be challenging, so it is likely that mindful practices and check-ins are used again and multiple times throughout the day.

I also remain open to opportunities where my skills in mind/body practices might comfort someone else, such as offering breathwork or guided meditation for managing stress and anxiety, an energy-based therapy or hands-on bodywork for physical discomfort, or simply holding space with deep listening for the other person to express themselves. Matching skills and know-how to the needs of the presenting situation, even if it means only offering presence, is part of the art of nursing.

The biggest challenges of my work are remembering that I am my own healer and have resources and agency to improve any situation.

The greatest reward is sharing the moments when others recognize that they are their own healers with resources and agency to improve any situation.

Holistic nursing is a career that not only expands the professional role and skills of nurses, but it can remind you of the Divine person you have always been. So my advice would be to approach holistic nursing as a continuous, never-ending journey that is always about YOU and includes relationships with people, animals, and the natural world as teachers.

Many nurses who choose to practice holistic nursing continue their education at a holistic healthcare school or program. After completing a master’s in nursing, many take on the family nurse practitioner role and become certified. This offers the opportunity to expand your holistic nursing career and practice greater independence. Here’s how to start as a holistic nurse.

As many holistic nurses are RNs, their salaries are comparable to a registered nurse salary. The median annual salary for an RN in the U.S. is $75,330 according to the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. According to ZipRecruiter, the national average annual salary for a holistic nurse practitioner is $99,620 as of October 2021.

You have some control over your annual salary. For example, you may negotiate a higher salary as a nurse with more experience, education, or certifications. This increases your desirability as an employee to the hospital or practice where you work.