Trevor and I have officially moved on to our second travel nurse assignment in Washington D.C., and while we are still very new in this travel nurse world, we have learned a lot since we started in August. Today i'm going to share what I think are the best and the worst parts of traveling.
The best:
- Obviously the travel. As a travel nurse, you can pick where you want to go whenever you want to go. You can go basically anywhere in the US, and there are even outside of the country options as well. Want to skip winter for a year? Then head somewhere sunny in the winter months. Do you want to pack your bags and head out of the continental US to Alaska or Hawaii? Then do it. Beach, desert, country, city... it's all at your fingertips.
- You can take as much time off in between assignments as you want (within reason). This is one of my favorite parts so far. Once you are finished with an assignment, you can either move right on to your next assignment, or you can choose to take a couple weeks to a couple months off. Some travelers only work 9-10 months out of the year and spend the other months on vacation. You just have to make sure you have enough money saved up to last you over your unemployment period. Trevor and I are planning on taking about a month off for our wedding and honeymoon, plus other festives.
- You push yourself out of your comfort zone to do things you never thought you would ever do. Right now, Trevor and I are starting to experience city life. We ride the metro to work and basically walk everywhere. This is a big change for this little country girl! I've always dreamed of living in a city, and I'm going to savor these next couple months.
- You meet a ton of new people of different backgrounds and cultures. While we were in New Mexico, we lived in that culture. We ate Mexican food, learned a little bit of Spanish, and honored their cultural wishes with their care. You can't get that cultural experience just by vacationing somewhere for a week. When you travel, you are forced to actually live in the culture around you, which I think it awesome. I'm really experiencing diversity out here.
- Special perks and bonuses. Some travel companies offer sign-on bonuses and completion bonuses. Our company gave us both $400 in airfare for completing our first assignment (thanks Atlas Medstaff!). We are going to use that airfare credit towards our honeymoon flight!
- Of course, the money is awesome. Trevor and I are trying to put the extra money we are earning into paying off our student loans and saving up for our wedding.
Of course, not everything is all sunshine and roses when it comes to traveling. Here are what I would consider the worst part about travel nursing:
- Being away from friends and family. Now that we are only 3 hours from home, this isn't as much of an issue. But when we lived in New Mexico, we went two months without seeing our friends and family which was hard. All Trevor and I had was each other, so I honestly think it helped strengthen our bond.
- Finding a place to live. This has been BY FAR the most stressful part of our assignments. GEEZ. Talk about gaining a couple of gray hairs in this process. It is so freaking hard to find a place to live that will let you not only sign a 3 month lease, but let you have pets as well. And if you want a furnished place, you basically have to give away your first born child. I'm not kidding. Hence the reason why Trevor and I lived without furniture in New Mexico.
- Sometimes as a traveler, staff will treat you differently by giving you the worst assignments, etc. I personally haven't experienced this, but i've heard stories that it can happen.
- Moving to a new place can be both exciting and scary. You don't know anyone, so it can be a little lonely. I'm thankful that Trevor and I can travel together, because i'm not sure I would be able to do it on my own.
And honestly, that's about it. Overall, i'm loving this experience so far. Trevor and I anticipate to be traveling for a couple more years because we really are enjoying it. We have a list of places we want to live before we settle down for good. If you have any other questions, don't hesitate to ask!
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