The beginning of a new adventure.

While still in nursing school, all you hear about is how much money travel nurses make, how adventurous it can be, and what a lifestyle it is. I've been at it for approximately a month now, and it's.... fabulous! All of the things "they" tell you are true. The hardest part is truly making the leap of faith and then following through.  I'm here to tell you: You can do it!

About two months ago, I got an itch. I was living in a small town in Florida about ten minutes from the beach, in a perfectly nice apartment that I found at a reasonable price. I was working in a great surgical ICU where we also took care of traumas and neuro patients. The night shift crew I worked with were all fantastic people and nurses, and we worked (for the most part), cohesively.  Despite all of this, I kept feeling as though there had to be something else out there....something BIGGER. I'm not talking about the hospital, or the town I was working in. I'm talking in a global sense. This "feeling" is sort of what started this whole thing. 

Travel nursing is something different for everyone. Some are parents, spouses and partners that need the extra money and do it locally. Some are older divorcees and single people that want to meet new people and see new things. There are people like me that have really never been out of a particular region. Traveling for a living is a personal choice. Everyone has a reason. The people that don't have money listed as #1 usually are the most successful at maintaining and enjoying the lifestyle. Sure, the money is a powerful incentive, but to do long distance travel nursing, you have to have a thirst for MORE. That thirst is what will carry you when you are scared, alone, and lonely in a city you have never been. 

Before you start traveling, before you even contact a recruiter, be sure you sit yourself down and do some self reflection. Am I happy now at my current position? What ties do I have to my current community? Why do I want to sell or store all of my belongings and drive into the sunset with my dog and clothes? Am I crazy? When I made the decision, which I like to call, "The Leap," I had a three column list:

1. Why do I want to do this in the first place?

2.  How is this going to effect my life in the short term?

3. How is this going to effect my life in the long term?

My responses were personal, perhaps one day I will share on this platform, but it's another blog post. To make a long blog post a little shorter, the end result was me throwing the piece of paper away and calling a recruiter. I threw caution to the wind and just did it. I am not listing any of the companies or hospitals I work with for fear of being identified and slapped with a HIPPA violation (I knew I could fit it in somewhere! HIPPA is your master!!), but just google, "Travel nursing companies." Then once you find one, look up their reviews on-line. There are a million and one websites about it.  

I have set out to make this blog about travel nursing because I want it to stand out. There are a LOT of blogs about the profession, but I haven't found a single one about a young, newer nurse that is just learning by trial and error. All the other ones seem to start, "I have 1,000 years of experience and 500 of them have been spent traveling." I want my readers to see a nurse that is 20 something, and new at the game, and hopefully I am easy to relate too. This post has been much longer than I intended, so here is a picture of the sunset from my agency provided apartment in the mountains of Pennsylvania:

I look forward to hearing from you with questions, comments (even rude ones!)