Mindfulness Training for New Nursing Students Improves Stress Resilience and Well-Being

Background: First-year nursing students need support to mitigate the effects of stress to improve the health and consistency of the student-to-professional pathway, ad-dressing critical workforce shortages. Yet, evidence-based wellness interventions are underdeveloped and understud-ied for this population. Method: Using a mixed-methods, single-group, pre-post design, this study evaluated the effectiveness of Navigating Life’s Challenges, adapted directly from Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) in a sample of first-year nursing students (N = 33, mean age = 22.16, 94% female-identifying students). Results: Multilevel modeling for repeated measures data revealed increased use of adaptive mindfulness skills (acting with awareness, nonre-activity), reduced stress and exhaustion, and improved sat-isfaction with life. Qualitative focus group data suggested the program was enjoyable, helpful, and appreciated by students. Conclusion: Mindfulness bolsters stress resilience in new nursing students; implications for training and future directions for research are discussed.