The beauty of nursing : midweek camping, hiking, boating, skiing, no crowds!

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Ok, every time I weary of 12 hr shifts and long for a regular job, I think 'how great is it to have all this midweek fun time!'!

Specializes in None yet..
@ Seattle: I work 2 12s back to back, Sat/Sun PMs. I am also within barking distance of age 60. I've been doing this for 12 1/2 years & have no problem with it. The best part of all is driving home on Monday morning when everybody else is dealing with Blue Monday & I get to sing to myself, "It's the weekend, baby!" Bwahahahahahahahahahahaha.

Bluenurse85, thank you! You will be my beacon of light as I travel toward that RN-working-12s goal. Evidence-based dreaming is good!

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Specializes in ICU.
No, no, no, I don't want to hear this! I'm past 50 and starting nursing school this fall. I was looking forward to those 12 hour shifts and the free time. Please. someone out there tell me oldsters can do the 12 hour shifts! (One friend in her early 60s does them; she says she's tired the first day off but is just fine the rest of the time.)

12 hour shifts are tolerable, it's the 2 hours a day sitting in the car that will push you over the edge. However, you have to be honest with yourself. When I was 32 years old I was racing my bicycle 100 to 150 miles, now over 50 I don't do THAT any more! :up:

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I work 3-12hr nights. I don't do much on my days off, but sleep and recover from the aches and pains of the physical toll it takes on your body (up and down the halls, repositioning people and changing incontinent products). I have a 20 minute drive both ways. I wouldn't trade it for 5 days though! I feel like I am at work all the time as it is! :)

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Specializes in Nurse Scientist-Research.

I usually work my 12s over the weekend which has it's negatives is sure (the hefty diffs really take the sting away though). As it turns out I was off one night last weekend and called up some friends to go out. Nothing crazy, but dinner then to a club for a small-time concert.

Though I did enjoy myself, I kept thinking, these crowds are nearly intolerable! I'm used to getting seated immediately and not having to fight viciously for parking. I remember another time when I went to Wallie World on a Saturday night. Now there's a sociological study in itself but besides the myriad of psych/sociological abnormalities it was so freaking crowded!!

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Specializes in Med/surg, Tele, educator, FNP.

When you work 3 12s only, 12 hour shifts are great. It can get hairy when you add overtime, then it seems like all you do is work. I think there is a good life work balance with 12s if you manage your time wisely. I absolutely love 12 hour shift when I can scheduled myself as I wish as a per diem.

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Specializes in None yet..
12 hour shifts are tolerable, it's the 2 hours a day sitting in the car that will push you over the edge. However, you have to be honest with yourself. When I was 32 years old I was racing my bicycle 100 to 150 miles, now over 50 I don't do THAT any more! :up:

I sure understand that! No more half marathons for me; I've used up the last of my bunionated, high-arched feet on pavements. Fortunately, I have the flexibility to move close to whatever job I find. Your two-hours-a-day commute is more than I could handle. How do you survive? Books on tape? Carpooling? Super nice car?

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Specializes in None yet..
Though I did enjoy myself, I kept thinking, these crowds are nearly intolerable! I'm used to getting seated immediately and not having to fight viciously for parking. I remember another time when I went to Wallie World on a Saturday night. Now there's a sociological study in itself but besides the myriad of psych/sociological abnormalities it was so freaking crowded!!

So true, TiffyRN! Everything you say about crowds in the city is true of weekend crowds on the trails. I love to hike but the Seattle area has grown so crowded that weekend hiking is turning into a meet'n'greet. I remember returning from a two-day midweek hiking/camping trip and encountering many large groups going in for the weekend. Being outside the herd is a blessing.

And that shift differential you mention doesn't sound so bad, either.

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@SeattleJess: I'm 47 and became an RN 2 years ago. I've turned down 8-5, M-F jobs (what possessed me to apply to work for the state, I have no idea). I love working my 3 12s a week. I started vacation today - after working Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday nights, I'm off for 13 nights. I'm using 36 hours of PTO. Where else can I do that? 2 weeks vacation for the price of one?

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I love my 3 12's and don't think I could ever go back to banker's hours/days. No thanks! Plus I work nights and there's nothing better than crawling into a warm, snuggly bed when everyone else is just starting their workday. The flip side to that is that even when I'm off, I'm often up at all ungodly hours of the night and early morning. Definite perk, as many others have mentioned, is no crowds! That can make the difference between a great trip or outing and a nightmarish one.

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