If you have been following me for a while now, you know that I think sabbaticals are amazing. Even though I just completed a 9 month sabbatical, I know there are a few more going to happen before I retire. Sabbaticals, a time to recharge, reset, and reinvigorate yourself can seem like a dream to most. As some of my friends have told me, sabbaticals are unrealistic in life. But they aren’t! They can be your reality.

I recently spoke to a nurse who asked me what have I been up to since I left the hospital.  I mentioned my sabbatical and she said, “ You know, I have been thinking that I have never taken a break except for Maternity Leave”. That is wild to me. I guess that’s why I am so devoted to writing and talking about sabbaticals and what they can do for you. In today’s society when we complain about never having enough time. Imagine if you had all the time in the world. What would you do with it? 

My experience

My sabbatical started as 3 months but lasted 9 months unplanned. Yeah, the thought of not working for 3 months initially gave me chest pain as well. My initial thought was that I would take 3 months off from work. For the first 2months, I would do absolutely nothing. The last month, I would start looking for a job. However, my sabbatical gave me so much more than I could have ever anticipated. Here are the benefits of taking a sabbatical.

4 Benefits of taking a sabbaticaL

You get more time

Think about your morning. Like today. Did you wake up by an alarm clock? You jumped up out of bed, rushed to get ready for work, and everyone in your household including walking the dog. Everything is on schedule. Beating the traffic to make it to work or your shift on time. You have to drink your morning beverage in a travel mug or it has to be picked up from the Starbucks counter quickly. You arrive at work and immediately begin caring for patients or attending a meeting. Does any of this sound familiar?

Now imagine what it would be like if there was no rush. Every morning was like Saturday (unless your Saturdays are filled with early morning sports). Yet, truly, if you had time to care for your family and yourself. How would you feel? What if for 1 week, 1 month, or even a year, you could leisurely move about your day without it being dictated by a calendar event?

Yes, you may still have to take care of the kids, and the dog, and put out the trash. Still, there are several hours that are just yours. Today, most of us complain that we don’t have enough time. Enough time to learn something, travel, spend time with distant relatives or even call the repair man about that leaky faucet. Your time is invaluable. Life should feel like its not dictated by work. A sabbatical can give you the time to reflect and live in the moment.

Discover more about yourself

No I don’t mean in the sense of finding yourself.. unless you want to find yourself. I mean truly take time to explore your likes and dislike, your wants, and your dreams. Stay with me, I am not trying to give you therapy. But we decide to become a nurse to help others. However does it still truly align with what we desire in life? Does our work setting align with our true values? Are we “Quiet Quitting on the job?”

With my time, I took time to truly do the things that I love to do. Each one gave me a different feeling. I also reflected on my career. Was I done with nursing? Did I still want to be at the bedside? Did I still want to identify as a nurse? And if so, what would be my next career step? Lastly, I reflected on my burnout story and some of my bad habits. Whatever work I was going to do next. I was not going to carry it with me. Through my sabbatical, I was able to identify those factors, and work on developing healthier boundaries towards work and life in general.

Your health is your wealth

Being burned out is not fun. I didn’t realize how bad it was until my mom said.” You look so good!”

” Wait, did I look bad before?” I mean my daily migraines are GONE. My facial acne cleared up. I work out 5 days a week and its ingrained in me. I sleep incredibly well. So I guess I did look bad. Lol.

As much as we care for others and their health, how good are we at taking care of ourselves? Do we move our bodies enough? Are we sleeping enough between our 12 hours shifts or from day to evening shifts? Are we eating fresh foods enough or relying on processed items because there is not enough time? Either way, I think it’s important for us to take care of ourselves in order to take care of others. 

With time, I can now actually prepare food for myself. I cook myself meals at lunch time which supports my healthier lifestyle and also saves money. I am much more attuned to my body and how it feels. If I am tired, I rest. 

Joy in life is everything

The biggest thing I gained was JOY. I am truly happy about how I live right now. I notice things on my run, like this image of trees and foliage. Before, I would walk hurriedly past this and not notice it because my calendar told me I have 10 minutes to arrive somewhere.

Having completed a 9-month sabbatical, I know that nothing is impossible. The truth of the matter is that my sabbatical taught me so much about myself. I learned to focus on what I like and want from life versus what others or society tells me I should want. I also realized that  I do not want to work in a hospital anytime soon. I want to do work that allows for creativity, innovation, joy, and fun while helping others. In addition, flexibility is key.

I think back to a year ago of what my life was like. Thank God I took a sabbatical. Life feels so different now. I’m in such a better place mentally, physically, and spiritually. If any of these moments resonated with you. If you want to change but don’t know how, message me today and let’s chat. I would love to help you create your own nurse sabbatical.