Because Those Who Heal Deserve Healing Too: How Modern Mind-Body Skills Help Nurses Come Back to Wholeness

Nursing is a sacred calling - and one that demands extraordinary emotional resilience. Yet even the most grounded nurse can find themselves running on empty after years of holding space for others. Compassion fatigue, burnout, and unresolved trauma take a toll on the nervous system, leaving many feeling disconnected from their purpose, their bodies, and their joy.

The Rooted HEART Resilience Intensive was designed with this reality in mind. It’s a 5-night, trauma-informed immersion for nurses and healthcare professionals to release, realign, and restore - through integrated breathwork, hypnosis, Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP), sound healing, and nature-based mindfulness.

This isn’t a lecture or CE course that talks about wellness - it’s an embodied experience of it.

Coming Back to Wholeness: Why NLP and Hypnosis Matter for Healing Trauma

For decades, trauma recovery has relied heavily on cognitive or exposure-based therapies. While these can be effective for many, research shows they often come with high emotional distress and dropout rates. A review of three first-line psychotherapies for PTSD (including Prolonged Exposure and Cognitive Processing Therapy) reported dropout rates as high as 39%, sometimes exceeding the success rates of those same treatments.

For nurses—many of whom already carry cumulative stress and secondary trauma—these methods can feel reactivating rather than restorative.

That’s where Neuro-Linguistic Programming (NLP) and related imagery-based approaches such as the Rewind Technique offer a new possibility. These modalities work directly with the way the brain codes experience, using visualization and sensory reframing to help individuals process traumatic memories safely and effectively.

Emerging research demonstrates the effectiveness of these methods. In a multi-site pilot study, Muss’ Rewind Treatment was shown to significantly reduce post-traumatic stress symptoms across diverse clinical settings (Adams & Allan, 2018). More recently, a randomized controlled trial found that the Rewind method produced clinically meaningful reductions in PTSD symptoms compared to standard care, highlighting its rapid and low-distress application (Astill Wright et al., 2023). Neurocognitive research further supports this mechanism: imagining trauma memories in reverse has been shown to decrease distressing intrusions and emotional reactivity (Rattel et al., 2024).

Rather than retraumatization, this approach supports reorganization—a gentle rewiring of internal representations that allows the nervous system to finally relax.

When paired with clinical hypnosis, the process deepens. Hypnosis provides a naturally relaxed, receptive state where subconscious patterns can shift safely. Together, NLP-style visualization and hypnosis help nurses:

• Release emotional triggers without reliving painful events
• Build inner calm through somatic and subconscious tools
• Anchor resilience, confidence, and clarity
• Reconnect with purpose and self-trust

As recent findings suggest (Adams & Allan, 2018; Astill Wright et al., 2023; Rattel et al., 2024), integrative imagery-based and hypnotic techniques hold unique promise for resolving stress and trauma-related symptoms by reorganizing maladaptive sensory and emotional memories.

Integrated Breathwork and Sound: Regulating the Nervous System from the Inside Out

The Rooted HEART model also incorporates integrated breathwork and therapeutic sound baths, somatic modalities that harmonize mind and body. Intentional breath patterns directly influence the vagus nerve and limbic system, facilitating emotional release and physiological regulation.

When practiced in community, breathwork helps nurses move from “thinking about” stress to releasing it - literally exhaling what the body has been holding. Modern research demonstrates that conscious breathwork can reduce cortisol, balance heart rate variability, and restore parasympathetic tone (Brown et al., 2013; Fincham et al., 2023). It strengthens emotional regulation and resilience while grounding the body in safety.

Sound therapy complements this process beautifully. Through harmonic resonance, crystal bowls, and low-frequency tones, the sound bath entrains the brain into restorative states similar to meditation and hypnosis. Participants often describe it as being held by sound itself - a feeling of cellular alignment and deep calm that integrates the emotional release of breathwork.

Together, breath and sound become medicine for the nervous system: one activates release, the other restores coherence.

Healing in Nature and in Community

At its core, Rooted HEART Resilience is about coming home - to self, to nature, and to one another.

HEART stands for:
Healing • Empowerment • Awareness • Resilience • Transformation

Each element of the immersion is intentionally designed to reconnect nurses to their natural rhythm. Mornings begin with grounding practices in nature - mindful walks, gentle movement, and sensory connection to the landscape. These nature-based practices amplify parasympathetic activation and help participants access embodied calm.

Throughout the day, small-group circles, reflective dialogue, and guided hypnosis sessions allow for emotional processing within a safe, compassionate container. Nurses not only learn techniques - they are witnessed, supported, and celebrated.

This combination of breathwork, sound, nature, hypnosis, and NLP creates a multidimensional healing experience—one that touches every layer of being: mental, emotional, physical, and spiritual.

Why This Matters Now

The nursing workforce is facing unprecedented levels of burnout, moral distress, and trauma exposure. Healing the healers is not a luxury—it’s essential to the health of our entire system.

A 2022 statewide survey of more than 5,000 nurses conducted by the Oregon Center for Nursing and the Oregon State Board of Nursing revealed the depth of the crisis. Nearly all respondents (97%) reported experiencing at least one workplace stressor, 83% reported feeling frustration at work, and 68% reported anxiety, exhaustion, or burnout (Oregon Center for Nursing, 2022). The study also found that not all stressors can be addressed by self-care or resilience training alone—highlighting the need to address both systemic workplace harm and the emotional strain nurses carry. Moreover, a gap persists between employer perception and employee experience: while 71% of healthcare employers believe they support mental health well or very well, only 27% of employees agree (Oregon Center for Nursing, 2022).

These statistics mirror a growing national concern. In the U.S., female nurses die by suicide at nearly twice the rate of the general female population (Starr, 2024). Stories like that of 28-year-old emergency nurse Tristin Kate Smith, whose viral posthumous letter detailed the despair of chronic overwork and lack of support, have become tragic symbols of a system in distress. Her plea—“There is no help”—echoes the reality that burnout and moral injury have reached critical levels across the profession (Starr, 2024).

This crisis cannot be solved by mindfulness apps or pizza parties—it requires both systemic change and trauma-informed healing spaces where nurses can safely process their lived experience.
The Rooted HEART Intensive answers this call. It offers nurses a science-based, soul-centered pathway for renewal through breathwork, hypnosis, NLP, sound, and nature. Healing doesn’t have to hurt—it can be grounded, relational, and profoundly regenerative.
Because those who heal truly deserve healing too.

Moving Forward

At Enter Into Calm, we believe that healing belongs not just to those we serve—but to those who serve. The Rooted HEART Resilience Intensive was created to give nurses and healthcare professionals a space to restore their nervous systems, reconnect to purpose, and rediscover joy in their calling.

If you’ve been feeling the pull toward something deeper—something that nurtures your whole being—we invite you to experience the Rooted HEART model for yourself.

✨ Join a Free Discover Session to Learn More
Before the next retreat begins, you can explore the philosophy and framework of Rooted HEART in a 45-minute live session designed for nurses and healthcare professionals. During this conversation, you’ll learn how this trauma-informed, experiential model supports resilience, nervous system regulation, and sustainable well-being—beyond traditional continuing education programs.

Upcoming Sessions (Pacific Time): During November and December 2025

Reserve your spot here:
👉 Discover the Rooted HEART Experience

✨ Learn More About the Rooted HEART Intensive
Visit enterintocalm.com/rootedheart to explore the full details of the 5-night immersion—its integrative approach through breathwork, sound, hypnosis, and NLP, and the heart-centered community it creates. If there are more Discovery Sessions running feel free to send an inquiry. We are here for you.

✨ What to Bring
Just yourself, an open heart, and a readiness to nurture your own healing.

Because those who heal deserve to be healed too—and it all begins with saying yes to your own renewal.

Guest Author:

Christy Cowgill
Board Certified Hypnotist, Master NLP & Time-Line Therapy® Practitioner
Specialties: Phobias | Pain & Depression

Christy is dedicated to helping clients overcome anxiety, depression, and phobias by using evidence-based hypnosis and NLP techniques. With a focus on addressing the root causes of mental health challenges, she provides tailored strategies that promote emotional resilience and lasting well-being. Drawing on her extensive background in anesthesiology and psychiatric mental health, Christy creates a safe, supportive environment where clients can achieve mental clarity, boost their confidence, and break free from limiting fears.

References:

1. Adams, S., & Allan, S. (2018). Muss’ Rewind treatment for trauma: Description and multi-site pilot study. Journal of Mental Health, 27(5), 468–474. https://doi.org/10.1080/09638237.2018.1487539
2. Astill Wright, L., Barawi, K., Kitchiner, N., & colleagues. (2023). Rewind for posttraumatic stress disorder: A randomised controlled trial. Depression and Anxiety, 2023, 6279649. https://doi.org/10.1155/2023/6279649
3. Brown, R. P., Gerbarg, P. L., & Muench, F. (2013). Breathing practices for treatment of psychiatric and stress-related medical conditions. The Psychiatric Clinics of North America, 36(1), 121–140. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.psc.2013.01.001
4. Fincham, G. W., Strauss, C., Montero-Marin, J., & Cavanagh, K. (2023). Effect of breathwork on stress and mental health: A meta-analysis of randomised-controlled trials. Scientific Reports, 13(1), 432. https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-022-27247-y
5. Knight, S. (2010). NLP at work: The essence of excellence. Nicholas Brealey Publishing.
6. Passmore, Jonathan & Rowson, Tatiana. (2019). Neuro-linguistic programming: A review of NLP research and the application of NLP in coaching. International Coaching Psychology Review. 14. 57-69. 10.53841/bpsicpr.2019.14.1.57 .
7. Oregon Center for Nursing. (2022). What have we learned? Understanding the well-being of Oregon’s nurses. https://wellbeing.oregoncenterfornursing.org/research/what-have-we-learned/
8. Rattel, J. A., Danböck, S., Miedl, S. F., Liedlgruber, M., & Wilhelm, F. H. (2024). Hitting the Rewind Button: Imagining Analogue Trauma Memories in Reverse Reduces Distressing Intrusions. Cognitive therapy and research, 48(5), 932–943. https://doi.org/10.1007/s10608-024-10488-8
9. Starr, S. (2024, March 1). ‘There is no help’: Alarm at US nurses’ suicides amid staff shortage and stress. The Guardian. https://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2024/mar/01/nurses-suicide-rate-us