Taking your vacation days can help restore, refresh and renew your energy to be able to tackle the challenges of your job. In my experience, nurses are known for making sacrifices; working holidays and weekends, not taking vacation days, and delaying lunch or even bathroom breaks.
You deserve to have a break. But more importantly, taking care of yourself and focusing on what’s important, like family, may make you a better nurse. Time off from your work can reduce burnout and fatigue that can be common in the nursing profession.
What prevents us from taking our vacation time?
According to the “Project: Time Off” coalition, 55% of Americans in general don’t use all their vacation time. Nurses and other hospital employees face a lot of obstacles in taking vacation time. Staffing needs can sometimes determine whether vacations are approved and some organizations have vacation “blackout” dates or freezes because of high demand for vacation.
Tips for a great Vacation
I recently took my family on a beach vacation to Florida and here are some tips I learned that can help you plan for a great time off. Keep in mind, we used VRBO to rent a condo in a highly popular vacation spot.
- Make time for yourself. First and foremost, this is supposed to refreshing and relaxing. Find time to recharge your own batteries. I took walks early in the morning before my family was up. Practice your yoga or mindfulness, have a glass of wine, sit in the hot tub. Here is a 5-minute breathing exercise you can do. But you do YOU!
- Check to see what things will be provided at your rental/hotel
- You may need to bring beach towels and/or bath towels (our condo only had 2)
- Bring trash bags (ours only provided 1)
- You may want to bring your own sheets (ours were scratchy and uncomfortable)
- You may need laundry detergent, dishwashing detergent, dish soap, and hand soap/sanitizer (the dispensers in our condo were low)
- Take stock when you arrive and go to the store
- To save money, go to the grocery store and prepare your own meals
- Make a list of easy to prepare meals and bring recipes (pasta, tacos or quesadillas, and stir fry are both easy to prepare and clean up)
- Already prepared meals that you can heat in the oven or microwave
- If your condo has a grill: burgers, hot dogs, steak and marinated chicken are all great options!
- Go to the store very early in the morning! We went to Walmart at 6am the day after we arrived and it was a lot less busy. Traffic was much better too! Plus, they are restocking the shelves and a lot of things were out of stock in the evenings
- Keep in mind busy condos/hotels will have very busy elevators – get on a lower floor if possible (we were on the 20th floor!)
- Consider Location: proximity to beach access, restaurants, stores, and activities. We were within walking distance to the beach, a Walmart, and several places to eat.
- Go to the beach in the evenings when it’s cooler and less crowded
- Bring games or toys. Vacation is also for family bonding so don’t let everyone stay on their devices all the time. And rainy days or sun overload can lead to boredom back at the rental house. We brought card games and board games as well as a frisbee and inflatables for the beach or pool. We also bought a few small nerf guns at the Dollar General which created spontaneous battles among our teenagers which were super fun!
These are just some tips I learned from our trip but the point is to make sure you take your vacation time to do something that will be refreshing. Take long walks, spend time with those you love and let loose a little! Enjoy yourself, you deserve it!
Categories: Healthcare, Nursing, Careers
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