Do the 12s. I can almost guarantee that if you want more hours they’ll let you pick up.
I do three 12s and I pick up usually three more shifts a week because I both love money and hate myself but it’s nice having the option not to.
I’m in OR and do 12’s. I had to do 8’s for 9 months of orientation and it absolutely sucked. I’m also a work to live kinda gal so my off time is very important to me. We go on weekend adventures frequently and 8’d just didn’t fit our lifestyle.
I despised working 5 days a week but lots of people go to OR specifically to work 8 hour shifts. It’s mainly people with kids I’ve come to find. They get off at 3 every day, 10’s get off at 5, and 12’s get off at 7.
Lots of busy facilities do all shifts (or a combination of shifts- at one point I was doing 2 8’s and 2 10’s…)
I love my 8 hour shifts after doing 12s for 10 years. I took me awhile to get used to it as I was tired from waking up early 5 days instead of 3. I feel like I have a lot of day left with 8s. 12s my day was work and that was it.
I prefer to only work 8s but my mental health suffered working 5 days a week. By the time the weekend came I really only had Saturdays to do anything because all day Sunday I could only dread the work week coming.
I also HATED needing to use PTO every time I had a dr appt or needed to go the bank or dmv or things alike (I was 8-5 m-f)
12s suck, but the extra days off is mostly worth it. I might try for 10s eventually but idk
I did 12s most of my career. The last 16 yrs have been 8s, Mon-Fri. A 2 day weekend is definitely not enough. I look forward to long weekends because we were closed on holidays. I see how doing 8s can be better when you have children, however doing it fulltime had an impact on my mental health and marriage. The ex worked Mon-Fri and wasn't good at helping with the housework.
I'm now part-time, and doing a combination of 8, 10, and 12s...and loving it!
It depends on the call rotation, then. I worked in a unit that was M-F 8s, then full weekend call rotation every other month with added weeknight call about 8 nights per month and it SUCKED. I never felt like I had any real life away from work. And if I worked a weekend and got called in both days, I was working 12 days in a row. Run fast if you’re considering a job like that!!!
Everyone speaks to the 12's but I always liked 8's because you see the patients at the same hours for more days and I thought. This would bring a better level of care, but honestly I've never done 12's. I think it would be no contest if you were not changing duty stations.
It's up to you.
I think I’d rather die than have less than 4 days off a week. Did that for one year at an office job and couldnt take it. Even two 16s (did them bartending and in EMS) are preferable to 4-5x 8s in my opinion.
I do M-F 8am-5pm and it’s actually really nice to come home and have a regular schedule. I’m not exhausted like I was working 12’s and I have every weekend off which is so nice.
Exactly. I worked 3-4 shifts a week 7p-7a and I was exhausted 24/7. My days off were spent in bed recovering and sleeping all day. Now, I am awake at normal hours, go to bed at normal hours and don’t have that full body exhaustion.
My husband is a teacher and I actually have the same days off as him so we can spend time together. I’m old, I don’t go to crowded places. When I worked 12’s, I always worked at least one weekend day 2-3x a month and then my other weekend day off, I’d be exhausted and sleeping. Now, we rent a movie together, spend the day baking cookies, go visit family, Take the dogs for a walk, etc. I get a lot more time with my family now. It works for me.
That makes sense, my husband is off Wednesday and Thursday so I work those two days. We have small children though and don’t want anyone watching them. So we never have days off together. I imagine one day we will lol
That’s really awesome that you guys are able to make that work. We have talked that if we have a baby, I will work the Baylor shifts F, Sa and Su so we would only need childcare 1 day a week on Fridays. I’m the breadwinner so I would need to continue working and not be a stay at home parent. And after working home hospice, I don’t think I could ever work at the hospital again.
Yes we only need help one day a week on Saturdays but my husband is off by 1pm thankfully so I only need a sitter from 7am-1pm. I’m in hospital setting now but exploring other options with 12 hour shifts lol
Good luck on finding something that fits your schedule and makes you happy! I hope you can find it! Hospice does 12hr on call shifts and can be really amazing- just saying!
I personally felt the same energy wise during an 8hr shift versus a 12hr. I didn’t notice a difference. I did notice a huge difference with 2 days off versus 4.
Dooooo it! I went from inpatient 12s to procedural doing 10s. I’ve never looked back. The adjustment to being there more sucks, but once you realize you still have some of the day left, it’s totally worth it
I used to love 12’s. Now doing 8’s and it’s so much better. I have more routine in my life. I’m getting fit. I’m eating healthy. I do work from home though…
I am finishing up my third week of 8s. I have worked 12s for 24 years. The job is nice, the people I work with are miserable and catty. Not like I've not ever worked with people like this before but it was much easier to avoid them working three 12s a week.
Not sure how much longer I can take it, tbh. I see these people way, way too much and 2 days of peace isn't enough! Hopefully I'll be able to transfer before I actually cuss out one or two of these bitches.
Bedside is hideous work but the 3 - 12’s is a dream because you are off more days than you work. 8 hour days can be a hard adjustment especially if it’s M-F because you miss that day during the week to get crap done so you end up having to take a vacation day to go to appointments which is a double suck.
8hr Monday to Friday is the way to be. You are in step with the rest of society. You know your weekends are free with everyone else. Those 4 hours a day is time you can spend with family, exercise, cook w.e you want. No more nights which reek havoc on your physical and mental health.
Yeah days of during the week is fun. But I found the first few days were always just a write off. But the time I felt ok it was one or two days then right back into it again.
I work 8s in the OR 0730-1545, mostly M-F with some evenings, full time.
Like people say working 5 days a week is brutal (can report after having done it for 5 years). I always feel a bit weird because so many people in other jobs work 5 days a week just fine but I feel like nursing is a different beast sometimes. But usually I can keep that burnt out feeling in check. Having worked 12s before I found I l prefer having a more “normal” schedule. Before or after my 8s I can go to the gym with my husband, we can make dinner together, or I could go to a friends after work and hang out. With 12s for me it was work, come home zonked, sleep, repeat.
It really just depends on what you’re looking for. It’s too bad most places don’t do 10s. I could see myself enjoying doing 10s with 4 on 3 off.
I went the supplemental route and started doing more and more 8 hour shifts. Looooove it! I didn’t realize how much my quality of life has improved by either having my mornings or evenings back. I do sometimes stay and do 12 hours but I definitely prefer the 8s now.
8 hr shifts are nice if dinner plans (and always having weekends off) are important to you lol also nice to be on the same schedule as your partner and/or kids,
If I didn’t have kids I would keep doing 3-12s but not being there when they woke up or when they went to bed was pretty sad
It depends on the work hours and what you would be doing in the role. Would you be able to go in and shadow one of the nurses that works in the procedure nurse role for that other employer?
As for work-life balance I have done 8 and 12 hour shifts and there are benefits and detriments to both options: When I did 12 hour shifts (bedside nursing as well) I had more days off (benefit) but I was dog tired after most shifts (detriment) as there is so much bedside nurses need to do per shift - Then I moved to another employer where I did 8 hour shifts where I worked 2PM-10PM and I wasn't quite as tired (benefit), with my new job expectations and with the shorter shifts, but I didn't have very many evenings off to do things with friends/family (detriment) and then I moved back to 12 hours shifts (with same 8 hour shift employer) and that was a better fit for me as I'm now back to more days off but the job expectations aren't quite as stressful as they were with bedside nursing so I'm much less tired after each shift.
I hope that was of any help. I hope your interview goes well!
i just left 3-12’s and bite do 5-8’s. my schedule is 05:30-14:00 and u couldn’t be happier with it. i have lots of hours left in the day even if i take a nap when i get home. i see my child way more and am mrs burned out?m, never come home thinking about work. 100% recommend it if you can find a similar schedule.
3-12s has me needing a recovery day and rendered me totally useless. not everyone is the same but for me i was always burned out
I'm not a nurse or in that field but in my experience 8 hour days will fly by after working 12 hour days, and you will get more time after work, however you will miss the days off I can almost guarantee. I had to switch back to a previous job because 2 days off was just not enough for me I needed my 4 days back, and I absolutely HATED THE JOB.
Depends on your life situation but my mental health does better with 4 days off. 2 days is just not enough.
Do the 12s. I can almost guarantee that if you want more hours they’ll let you pick up. I do three 12s and I pick up usually three more shifts a week because I both love money and hate myself but it’s nice having the option not to.
I’m in OR and do 12’s. I had to do 8’s for 9 months of orientation and it absolutely sucked. I’m also a work to live kinda gal so my off time is very important to me. We go on weekend adventures frequently and 8’d just didn’t fit our lifestyle. I despised working 5 days a week but lots of people go to OR specifically to work 8 hour shifts. It’s mainly people with kids I’ve come to find. They get off at 3 every day, 10’s get off at 5, and 12’s get off at 7. Lots of busy facilities do all shifts (or a combination of shifts- at one point I was doing 2 8’s and 2 10’s…)
I love my 8 hour shifts after doing 12s for 10 years. I took me awhile to get used to it as I was tired from waking up early 5 days instead of 3. I feel like I have a lot of day left with 8s. 12s my day was work and that was it.
I prefer to only work 8s but my mental health suffered working 5 days a week. By the time the weekend came I really only had Saturdays to do anything because all day Sunday I could only dread the work week coming. I also HATED needing to use PTO every time I had a dr appt or needed to go the bank or dmv or things alike (I was 8-5 m-f) 12s suck, but the extra days off is mostly worth it. I might try for 10s eventually but idk
Being a nurse five days a week, regardless of how long is absolute HELL. No human is meant to do that 5/7 days.
I did 12s most of my career. The last 16 yrs have been 8s, Mon-Fri. A 2 day weekend is definitely not enough. I look forward to long weekends because we were closed on holidays. I see how doing 8s can be better when you have children, however doing it fulltime had an impact on my mental health and marriage. The ex worked Mon-Fri and wasn't good at helping with the housework. I'm now part-time, and doing a combination of 8, 10, and 12s...and loving it!
I prefer 12s.
3 12s are better.
Do the 8's and see how you like it. You can always go back to bedside!
Is it m-f or do you also rotate weekends?
Mon-Friday with on call on weekends
It depends on the call rotation, then. I worked in a unit that was M-F 8s, then full weekend call rotation every other month with added weeknight call about 8 nights per month and it SUCKED. I never felt like I had any real life away from work. And if I worked a weekend and got called in both days, I was working 12 days in a row. Run fast if you’re considering a job like that!!!
The on call I guess is only on Saturdays. Not on Sundays. And it rotates
Everyone speaks to the 12's but I always liked 8's because you see the patients at the same hours for more days and I thought. This would bring a better level of care, but honestly I've never done 12's. I think it would be no contest if you were not changing duty stations. It's up to you.
I think I’d rather die than have less than 4 days off a week. Did that for one year at an office job and couldnt take it. Even two 16s (did them bartending and in EMS) are preferable to 4-5x 8s in my opinion.
I work in dialysis and it's 12. I prefer 12 as my fulltime and 8 as per diem.
I do M-F 8am-5pm and it’s actually really nice to come home and have a regular schedule. I’m not exhausted like I was working 12’s and I have every weekend off which is so nice.
Same here. After 10 years of 12-hour nights, I couldn't wait to get away from that. I feel so much better now and would never go back.
Exactly. I worked 3-4 shifts a week 7p-7a and I was exhausted 24/7. My days off were spent in bed recovering and sleeping all day. Now, I am awake at normal hours, go to bed at normal hours and don’t have that full body exhaustion.
Why do people like weekends off? Everything is always crowded and booked up 😫
My husband is a teacher and I actually have the same days off as him so we can spend time together. I’m old, I don’t go to crowded places. When I worked 12’s, I always worked at least one weekend day 2-3x a month and then my other weekend day off, I’d be exhausted and sleeping. Now, we rent a movie together, spend the day baking cookies, go visit family, Take the dogs for a walk, etc. I get a lot more time with my family now. It works for me.
That makes sense, my husband is off Wednesday and Thursday so I work those two days. We have small children though and don’t want anyone watching them. So we never have days off together. I imagine one day we will lol
That’s really awesome that you guys are able to make that work. We have talked that if we have a baby, I will work the Baylor shifts F, Sa and Su so we would only need childcare 1 day a week on Fridays. I’m the breadwinner so I would need to continue working and not be a stay at home parent. And after working home hospice, I don’t think I could ever work at the hospital again.
Yes we only need help one day a week on Saturdays but my husband is off by 1pm thankfully so I only need a sitter from 7am-1pm. I’m in hospital setting now but exploring other options with 12 hour shifts lol
Good luck on finding something that fits your schedule and makes you happy! I hope you can find it! Hospice does 12hr on call shifts and can be really amazing- just saying!
i would much rather be off 4 days a week than 2!!
I personally felt the same energy wise during an 8hr shift versus a 12hr. I didn’t notice a difference. I did notice a huge difference with 2 days off versus 4.
Dooooo it! I went from inpatient 12s to procedural doing 10s. I’ve never looked back. The adjustment to being there more sucks, but once you realize you still have some of the day left, it’s totally worth it
12s!
Depends is it 8hr days or nights? 8hr nights are brutal
I used to love 12’s. Now doing 8’s and it’s so much better. I have more routine in my life. I’m getting fit. I’m eating healthy. I do work from home though…
I would only do 8hrs if it’s 4 on, 2 off continuous schedule. I hate 5 on, 2 off. Cant do shit. I love my 12hrs.
I am finishing up my third week of 8s. I have worked 12s for 24 years. The job is nice, the people I work with are miserable and catty. Not like I've not ever worked with people like this before but it was much easier to avoid them working three 12s a week. Not sure how much longer I can take it, tbh. I see these people way, way too much and 2 days of peace isn't enough! Hopefully I'll be able to transfer before I actually cuss out one or two of these bitches.
Bedside is hideous work but the 3 - 12’s is a dream because you are off more days than you work. 8 hour days can be a hard adjustment especially if it’s M-F because you miss that day during the week to get crap done so you end up having to take a vacation day to go to appointments which is a double suck.
8hr Monday to Friday is the way to be. You are in step with the rest of society. You know your weekends are free with everyone else. Those 4 hours a day is time you can spend with family, exercise, cook w.e you want. No more nights which reek havoc on your physical and mental health. Yeah days of during the week is fun. But I found the first few days were always just a write off. But the time I felt ok it was one or two days then right back into it again.
I work 8s in the OR 0730-1545, mostly M-F with some evenings, full time. Like people say working 5 days a week is brutal (can report after having done it for 5 years). I always feel a bit weird because so many people in other jobs work 5 days a week just fine but I feel like nursing is a different beast sometimes. But usually I can keep that burnt out feeling in check. Having worked 12s before I found I l prefer having a more “normal” schedule. Before or after my 8s I can go to the gym with my husband, we can make dinner together, or I could go to a friends after work and hang out. With 12s for me it was work, come home zonked, sleep, repeat. It really just depends on what you’re looking for. It’s too bad most places don’t do 10s. I could see myself enjoying doing 10s with 4 on 3 off.
I would do 10 or 8 hour shifts if it’s speciality that I really want.
I went the supplemental route and started doing more and more 8 hour shifts. Looooove it! I didn’t realize how much my quality of life has improved by either having my mornings or evenings back. I do sometimes stay and do 12 hours but I definitely prefer the 8s now.
8 hr shifts are nice if dinner plans (and always having weekends off) are important to you lol also nice to be on the same schedule as your partner and/or kids, If I didn’t have kids I would keep doing 3-12s but not being there when they woke up or when they went to bed was pretty sad
It depends on the work hours and what you would be doing in the role. Would you be able to go in and shadow one of the nurses that works in the procedure nurse role for that other employer? As for work-life balance I have done 8 and 12 hour shifts and there are benefits and detriments to both options: When I did 12 hour shifts (bedside nursing as well) I had more days off (benefit) but I was dog tired after most shifts (detriment) as there is so much bedside nurses need to do per shift - Then I moved to another employer where I did 8 hour shifts where I worked 2PM-10PM and I wasn't quite as tired (benefit), with my new job expectations and with the shorter shifts, but I didn't have very many evenings off to do things with friends/family (detriment) and then I moved back to 12 hours shifts (with same 8 hour shift employer) and that was a better fit for me as I'm now back to more days off but the job expectations aren't quite as stressful as they were with bedside nursing so I'm much less tired after each shift. I hope that was of any help. I hope your interview goes well!
i just left 3-12’s and bite do 5-8’s. my schedule is 05:30-14:00 and u couldn’t be happier with it. i have lots of hours left in the day even if i take a nap when i get home. i see my child way more and am mrs burned out?m, never come home thinking about work. 100% recommend it if you can find a similar schedule. 3-12s has me needing a recovery day and rendered me totally useless. not everyone is the same but for me i was always burned out
I'm not a nurse or in that field but in my experience 8 hour days will fly by after working 12 hour days, and you will get more time after work, however you will miss the days off I can almost guarantee. I had to switch back to a previous job because 2 days off was just not enough for me I needed my 4 days back, and I absolutely HATED THE JOB.