Self-care means more than just foot massages or your favorite bath bomb. It’s a mental practice as well as a physical one. As a busy nurse, it’s important to take time to refresh and re-engage your mind with simple puzzles, crosswords, word games, or other brain teasers. If you’re looking for a quick break, why not grab a coworker and share a laugh with these three nursing mad libs?
Related: How Brain Games Keep Your Mind Sharp (And Lower the Risk of Burnout)
How to do a mad libs
Never done a nursing mad libs before? No problem! Without showing them the stories below, have your coworker select a word that fits the category next to the blank space, i.e. for ________ (adjective), they might choose the word “green.” Write in their answer and move to the next blank. When you’ve completed your nursing mad libs, go back and read the wild story you’ve written together aloud!
Mad Libs #1: A Busy Nurse’s Day
It was a(n) ____________ (adjective) morning when Nurse ____________ (name) arrived at the hospital. Their first task of the day was to check on a(n) ____________ (adjective) patient in Room _____ (number). The patient complained of ____________ (plural noun), so Nurse ____________ (same name) quickly grabbed a ____________ (noun) and began to ____________ (verb).
Next, the nurse was called to the ____________ (place in a hospital) because someone had accidentally spilled (liquid) all over the ____________ (noun). Armed with a ____________ (tool/equipment), they worked ____________ (adverb) to clean up the mess.
At lunchtime, Nurse ____________ (same name) enjoyed a delicious ____________ (food item) and shared a funny story about the time they ____________ (past-tense verb). Their coworkers laughed so hard they almost dropped their ____________ (plural noun).
Later that afternoon, the nurse helped deliver a(n) ____________ (adjective) baby in the maternity ward. “What a(n) ____________ (adjective) moment,” they said, while handing the baby a tiny ____________ (noun) for their first photo.
After a ____________ (adjective) shift, Nurse ____________ (same name) finally clocked out and headed home to relax with their ____________ (animal), who greeted them with a loud ____________ (sound). It was just another ____________ (adjective) day in the life of a nurse.
Mad Libs #2: Night Shift Chaos
It was a ____________ (adjective) night at the hospital. Nurse ____________ (name) had just started their shift when the alarm in Room ______ (number) went off. They rushed in and found a ____________ (adjective) patient holding a ____________ (noun). “Everything’s ____________ (adjective)!” the patient exclaimed, pointing at the ____________ (plural noun) on the floor.
Just as Nurse ____________ (same name) solved that crisis, they heard a loud ____________ (sound) coming from the ____________ (place in the hospital). Sprinting over, they discovered a group of ____________ (plural animal) playing with hospital ____________ (plural object). Armed with a ____________ (tool/equipment), Nurse ____________ (same name) managed to ____________ (verb) the situation with ____________ (adverb) precision.
By the middle of the shift, it was time for a quick ____________ (food item) break. While taking a bite, Nurse ____________ (same name) overheard a conversation about a ____________ (adjective) incident in the ____________ (hospital department). Naturally, they had to step in, where they ended up encountering a clueless ____________ (profession) who asked for ____________ (plural noun) to help fix the situation.
At the end of the shift, Nurse ____________ (same name) finished charting patient notes and sighed, “What a ____________ (adjective) night!” They headed home, ready to relax with a ____________ (beverage) and watch ____________ (TV or movie genre), hoping for a ____________ (adjective) day tomorrow.
Download our Shift Survival Guide for our top 10 tips to surviving the night shift
Mad Libs #3: Operating Room Shenanigans
The clock struck ______ (number), and it was time for Nurse ____________ (name) to scrub in for surgery. The procedure involved removing a ____________ (adjective) ____________ (body part). But as the operation began, the surgeon accidentally dropped a ____________ (noun) onto the ____________ (noun). The entire operating room erupted into ____________ (plural emotion).
While trying to handle the chaos, Nurse ____________ (same name) received a page about a ____________ (adjective) emergency in Room ______ (number). They dashed out, still wearing their ____________ (type of clothing), and ran straight into a cart full of ____________ (plural noun). “This day just keeps getting ____________ (adjective)!” they muttered.
Returning to the operating room, Nurse ____________ (same name) coordinated with the ____________ (plural profession) to finish the procedure. It went ____________ (adverb), and by the end, the patient received a ____________ (adjective) prognosis. Celebrating the success, Nurse ____________ (same name) treated themselves to ____________ (food or drink) during their break.
Before heading out at the end of the shift, Nurse ____________ (same name) checked on a ____________ (adjective) patient who had requested a ____________ (noun). They smiled, knowing they had survived yet another ____________ (adjective) night in the operating room.
