A woman dubbed Florence Flight-ingale has revealed how she balances 60 hour working weeks as a cancer nurse and piloting planes on the weekend.
Kristina Henderson makes the most of her 24 hours in a day by pursuing her two passions – medical care and flying.
The 27-year-old spreads her time across two different hospitals providing chemotherapy and infusions to cancer patients.
But in the evening and on the weekend, she swaps her scrubs for epaulettes to jet across the sunshine state.
“I prefer to stay busy,” Kristina, based in Newport Beach, California, told Need To Know.
“Especially when my busy schedule consists of two of my passions in life.
“Seriously, I have a very busy schedule between the two.
“I’m often working at the hospital during the weekdays and piloting on the weekends or in the evenings.
“I’ve always been an ambitious person.”
After moving to California, Kristina decided to pick up a new hobby which has now led to her second career – flying.
She quickly fell in love with the feeling of soaring through the clouds and now has ambitions of becoming a commercial pilot in her spare time.
Many people are left with their jaws on the floor when she reveals the intensity of both her job and her passion.
She said: “A lot of people are very shocked that I do both.
“It can definitely be overwhelming and stressful at times.
“I’ve had my fair share of days where I feel burnt out but when you’re passionate about both things it makes the hard days worth it.
“You really learn how to balance your time and energy for the things you want to give effort to.”
With such a busy schedule and both her passions taking such a stressful toll on her, Kristina has revealed that her social life has taken a back seat.
Strict bedtimes and plenty of rest is vital for her to be in top condition on the ward and in the cockpit.
Kristina said: “I am very strict on my bedtimes and making sure I am well rested.
“The few times I have pushed past my bedtime I’ve definitely regretted it the next day, so I try to prioritise my schedule and set a consistent bedtime routine every night.
“It’s not always easy but I’ve found the consistency to be the most beneficial to both careers.”
Flying planes originally started as a hobby for the 27-year-old that spiralled into her latest passion.
At this moment in time she is just shy of 1,000 air miles and spends three days a week in the sky.
Her go-to route consists of soaring over the coast of California, visiting islands such as Catalina.
She said: “I try not to take work home with me and separate the two but inevitably there is some crossover.
“Flying started as a hobby for me to free the mind and explore the world more.
“But the more I did it, the more I fell in love with it and decided I wanted to pursue a career in aviation while maintaining my nursing career as well.”
Kristina’s main goal is to complete her training within the year to be able to fly larger aircrafts.
At this moment in time, being single suits her time management perfectly but the aspiring pilot is aiming to start a family in the near future.
She said: “I am currently single with no children at this point in my life which does help with time management.
“I want to start a family hopefully in the next few years.
“But for now, I’m enjoying my independence and the freedom it’s given me to pursue multiple passions.”
