Travel Nurses: How to Maintain a Healthy Lifestyle While on Assignment

           Being a travel nurse comes with a lot of change and not a lot of routine, making it hard to keep a healthy lifestyle. The hardest part about creating a healthy lifestyle is starting. Once you implement just a few of these habits into your daily life, it will become easier as you go. Maintaining healthy habits will be good for you in the long run and give you a lot more energy, which will make your travel nursing assignments more enjoyable. Here are some easy tips and habits to start adding into your daily routine:

1. Find Ways to Get Adequate Sleep

Sleep schedules can get a little crazy when it comes to being a travel nurse, but there are ways to optimize your sleep schedule so you aren’t exhausted.

When you go to bed, avoid going on any technology because that can tamper with your sleep quality. It is also important to recognize your caffeine intake, so it doesn’t affect your sleeping. Following a lot of the tips below can help your quality of sleep due to being healthier and lowering stress.

2. Pack Your Meals and Snacks

It can be so easy to grab a quick meal from the cafeteria at the hospital or a vending machine, but chances are those will not be nutrient-dense meals. By just taking the step of packing your meals and snacks every day, you’ll find that it is a lot easier to eat healthily and you will have more control of what you consume. Tip: Try meal prepping on the day you are least busy. By doing this, you will have all your meals prepared for the week so that it won’t take up a lot of time, and you will find it a lot easier to make all your meals at once.

3. Get Fresh Air

“The study results are ticking up: spending time outdoors seems to have discernible benefits for physical and mental health.” (Harvard Health Publishing). Going for even just a 5-minute stroll outside during a break can benefit your health and well-being.

4. Try Meditating 5 Minutes Every Day

One of the most significant strains on a person’s health is stress. If you are a travel nurse or even in the healthcare industry, you know that those are high stressed jobs. Meditating can be a great way to calm the mind and the heart. You can meditate when you are sitting down to eat or even during your 5-minute stroll. Headspace is an excellent tool for mediations with various lengths and benefits.

5. Create Water Drinking Goals

One of the easiest ways to become healthier is drinking more water, but somehow it can also seem like the hardest when it’s not on the top of your mind. Find ways to encourage yourself to consume more water. Tip: Try using a water tracking app or a water bottle that tells you when to drink specific amounts of water.

6. Take Time for Yourself 

As we mentioned before, travel nursing can be a high-stress job. So, it’s okay to take time for yourself when you have it. Go exploring, try something new or learn a new skill. Whatever fills your cup, do it! Your mind and body will thank you.

Nurses and anyone in the healthcare industry are the backbones of this country right now, so it’s essential to care of yourself as much as you take care of others. Have more questions or interested in trying out travel nursing? Contact us today!