With all of the flexibility that being a travel nurse provides, it makes the perfect opportunity to have an exciting life outside of the hospital. Whether it’s having the time to take an overnight trip to a nearby national park or taking a few days to go to a local music festival, the opportunities are truly endless.
When starting a new rotation in a new city, work may become your main focus, but it is equally Twelve-hour work shifts can be tolling on the mind and body, and having a healthy lifestyle to balance out the stresses that can occur at work will keep you feeling good. Not only will maintaining a good work life balance keep you healthier, but it also has been proven that it increases work productivity.
Making sure you are living your best life outside of work is actually made easier as a travel nurse. There may be fears of not having friends in the city you choose and worrying you may start to feel alone, but we’ve put together some helpful tips on how you can make the most of your time outside of the hospital.
Join a club, volunteer group or organization
Every city or town you work in is guaranteed to have some sort of club or organization that you can join. Joining a group that has a common interest with you will give you the perfect opportunity to be around like minded people and will make for the perfect opportunity to make connections you can utilize outside of the group. Not only will this get you around some good people, but it also will give you something to look forward to from a weekly meeting to a group event. Check out sites like meetup.com for fun group activities.
Take advantage of travel nursing Facebook pages to find other travel nurses in your community
One of the many great things about Stability is our ever growing community of travel nurses. Liking our page, and joining our Facebook group is a great way to find other nurses in your area that are in the same boat as you are. The best part about that? They are new to the city too and are probably willing and ready to explore everything that the city has to offer, even those cheesy tourist things that locals may overlook.
Don’t be scared to do things alone
While hanging out with others, and making great connections with people in your area, it is important to remember that being alone is ok too! There tends to be a negative stigma around doing things alone, but in reality it is actually so important to be able to get out there and do things independently. Becoming comfortable with doing things alone will make settling in anywhere a lot easier and will let you do everything that you have on your bucket list without having to worry about if you can find a friend to check out that new restaurant on the corner near your apartment.
Make a bucket list for each placement
As mentioned in the following blurb, make a bucket list! This is a great way to make sure you are maximizing the opportunities wherever you are. From attending a professional sporting event to trying the special latte at that one coffee shop, write it all down and check things off as you go. That way, you are filling your off time with meaningful activities and you won’t leave missing out on anything that you really wanted to do or see.
