Help! having second thoughts and feel sad

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First, thanks so much for all of the support in previous posts of mine throughout the years. I recently accepted a job offer at a very rural hospital in a small town several states away. I will be moving away from my husband, friends, and cats, plus a recent job I will kind of miss (a job in a SNF). I would only be moving for 1 year and will be visiting once a month, nevertheless, my mood has changed today. The new place where I will be living is a tiny community and I'm worried I might be viewed as an outsider, which will make me feel even worse. If I feel terrible, I won't be able to do very well in my orientation. I've already made a commitment too, so I don't want to go back on my word. What do I do?

Specializes in Home Care.

As long as you have emotional support from your husband I think you'll do ok.

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Specializes in ED, Cardiac-step down, tele, med surg.

I will keep you posted.

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First, thanks so much for all of the support in previous posts of mine throughout the years. I recently accepted a job offer at a very rural hospital in a small town several states away. I will be moving away from my husband, friends, and cats, plus a recent job I will kind of miss (a job in a SNF). I would only be moving for 1 year and will be visiting once a month, nevertheless, my mood has changed today. The new place where I will be living is a tiny community and I'm worried I might be viewed as an outsider, which will make me feel even worse. If I feel terrible, I won't be able to do very well in my orientation. I've already made a commitment too, so I don't want to go back on my word. What do I do?

Why are you moving? You don't have to answer but when I relocated far far away from everything I knew for a job I asked myself that. I pretty much had to for tangible reasons such as money, helath insurance etc. That helped me suck it up more. I dreaded the move and would tear up just thinking about it. THe first few weeks will go by fast due to being on orientation and setting up your apartment, etc. Can you find something interesting to visit/do on your days off? i moved to a rural community also and the boredom is a big issue. Stay in contact with friends often. In my experience distance can worsen/ bring about an end to many types of relationships, then found myself without a social group in either area. Also the monthly visits will make the time seem to go by faster. Being viewed as an outsider is NOT always a bad thing. I do not mind being viewed as being different. It is what it is.

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Specializes in ED, Cardiac-step down, tele, med surg.

I am moving because I think this opportunity will open more choices for me over staying in CA working at a SNF on-call. I'm making a presumption that working in a rural hospital will look better of my resume than working at a SNF. Especially since the SNF has a questionable reputation. The nursing and care I've seen has been good but the owners really care about profit before the residents. But I might be making a mistake if I'm so culture shocked that I'm not able to enjoy the experience. The town is really small, 1100 people. That is a very small town. I'm living in a city with almost 1,000.000 people now and lots of things to do and a lot of diversity. Different people with different ways of viewing the world. I think it's interesting to have a mix of folks. Not saying anything negative about the small town at all, it's just so different. I once went to NY and was a little overwhelmed by the amount of people (the city is huge), just because I've never experienced it before. Also, there's a degree of being anonymous that is comforting to me in a larger place. I don't like to stick out so much. However, this experience might be a little like camping, since it's very rural, that I might enjoy. If I had more money, I would fly out and see it first, but I'm low on cash and can't afford it.

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Specializes in Emergency.

One thing I also recommend and I forgot to put in my last post is this is a very very good time to do a few things.

STUDY for certification exams. If you do not make a ton of fast friend immediately, the studying will occupy your time in a very valuable way, and as you get certified...your career can take off.

Do something different than you have before. As one of my assignments put me in a place where I barely had internet access. I used that time to really hone up my exercise routine, and I "learned" Yoga through DVDs. In another place I learned to ride a horse (which is totally scary and I do not recommend!). And on another assignment, I started to learn a ton about photography- which I still love these days...

Go with an open mind...you might be super surprised at this town, and what it can offer you. People are people everywhere you go, and if you are living inside, it won't be at all like camping.

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Specializes in PICU, NICU, L&D, Public Health, Hospice.

I recently moved 4 thousand miles from my entire support system for a job. It was the first time in more than 50 years that I had lived alone. I missed my husband of 30+ years and my children and my grandchild and my dog and all of my friends and church family desperately.

An experience like that causes one to retreat to the foundations of comfort and support. I read my bible and prayed regularly. I exercised daily, rode my bike alot, walked alot. I invited myself into people's lives on weekends...most of the time I was graciously accepted. I skyped with family and friends daily. Mostly I worked, ate, and slept until my husband arrived.

When we are isolated health professionals it is important to find ways to "fill your bucket" outside of work. Our work is stressful and demanding and the situation you are describing only adds to the stress. Good luck! It CAN be done!

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