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crenfro
Guest
I’d like to hear all and anybody’s tips for working the night shift.
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JanetF
Guest
get room darkening shades so that it seems like night time when you are sleeping
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DarkLight
Guest
If you’re driving home at or after sunrise, get the best sunglasses you can. Wraparound if you can find them. Sunlight triggers your body’s sense of being awake.
Try to keep a consistent schedule. It’s going to be annoying not being able to be free when other people are doing things, but sleep is critical.
Avoid getting too hooked on caffeine as it will decrease in effectiveness over time. You don’t want to end up being the one needing 5 cups of coffee to function.
Watch out for junk food as well - it’s much easier to crave on the night shift but you’ll feel lousy. Identify somewhere that has reasonably decent options for nighttime food, if you can. It’s better to bring your own, but if not you really don’t want to end up with no options other than chips and hot dogs.
Earplugs and a white noise machine (or failing that, a large fan) are helpful. If you have a computer and decent speakers, you can also play white noise through that.
Set your voicemail with your awake hours. Try to have maybe 2 hours awake in the 9-5 time frame, if you can. Then set your phone to do not disturb when you’re asleep, because people will be calling you.
Try to keep a consistent schedule. It’s going to be annoying not being able to be free when other people are doing things, but sleep is critical.
Avoid getting too hooked on caffeine as it will decrease in effectiveness over time. You don’t want to end up being the one needing 5 cups of coffee to function.
Watch out for junk food as well - it’s much easier to crave on the night shift but you’ll feel lousy. Identify somewhere that has reasonably decent options for nighttime food, if you can. It’s better to bring your own, but if not you really don’t want to end up with no options other than chips and hot dogs.
Earplugs and a white noise machine (or failing that, a large fan) are helpful. If you have a computer and decent speakers, you can also play white noise through that.
Set your voicemail with your awake hours. Try to have maybe 2 hours awake in the 9-5 time frame, if you can. Then set your phone to do not disturb when you’re asleep, because people will be calling you.
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Peeps
Guest
Do NOT try to live as a “Day Person” and a “Night Person.”
Make sleep your main priority. Guard that sleep time fanatically! Do NOT allow people, even your deal mother or grandmother to convince you to meet them for a fun activity during the time when you would normally be sleeping! Do NOT answer the phone or texts–in fact, silence it all!
And stick to the schedule when you have days off. Don’t go back to night sleeping on the weekends or days off.
Make sleep your main priority. Guard that sleep time fanatically! Do NOT allow people, even your deal mother or grandmother to convince you to meet them for a fun activity during the time when you would normally be sleeping! Do NOT answer the phone or texts–in fact, silence it all!
And stick to the schedule when you have days off. Don’t go back to night sleeping on the weekends or days off.
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poche
Guest
I recommend that you try to build a life of prayer around this schedule also.
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KCmedtech
Guest
I’ve been on nights for about 6 months at this point.
My husband did it for a couple of years and I used to work 24 hour shifts when I had my old career.
I second getting an excellent pair of sunglasses. I use mine often…even after I’ve slept the day and I’m just waking up and it’s too bright for me.
Get good black out curtains for your room and make it quiet and warm. I take an OTC sleeping pill and relax with an adult beverage after I come home and help hubby and the kids get out the door.
I also need white noise so either a sound machine or a charged iPad or phone that is covered with a shirt.
They have a lot of awesome white noise you tube videos that last for 8-10 hours.
If you only have a few days off between shifts…it’s best to try and stay on a night schedule. Going to bed much later and sleeping in until late morning or lunch time.
Then go about your chores and errands.
I don’t do this but that is because I work 7 on and 7 off…and my first day off i fight hard to go back onto a day shift schedule because it works better for me and my family.
Understand that your family may never truly get what it’s like to work nights. I’ve had my MIL call me or text me during the day while I had my white noise playing. I’ve had to unplug my house phone to stop phone calls and I’ve had to put up with working an overnight with precious little sleep during the day because of many different reasons.
Night shift can really mess with your body. It screws up your circadian rhythms that only occur with night sleep. You’ll find yourself eating far less food than you did while on day shift.
You may want to bring a sweater or a nice sweatshirt to work because your body temp naturally drops a little while on nights and you’ll feel colder because of hormonal changes.
My husband did it for a couple of years and I used to work 24 hour shifts when I had my old career.
I second getting an excellent pair of sunglasses. I use mine often…even after I’ve slept the day and I’m just waking up and it’s too bright for me.
Get good black out curtains for your room and make it quiet and warm. I take an OTC sleeping pill and relax with an adult beverage after I come home and help hubby and the kids get out the door.
I also need white noise so either a sound machine or a charged iPad or phone that is covered with a shirt.
They have a lot of awesome white noise you tube videos that last for 8-10 hours.
If you only have a few days off between shifts…it’s best to try and stay on a night schedule. Going to bed much later and sleeping in until late morning or lunch time.
Then go about your chores and errands.
I don’t do this but that is because I work 7 on and 7 off…and my first day off i fight hard to go back onto a day shift schedule because it works better for me and my family.
Understand that your family may never truly get what it’s like to work nights. I’ve had my MIL call me or text me during the day while I had my white noise playing. I’ve had to unplug my house phone to stop phone calls and I’ve had to put up with working an overnight with precious little sleep during the day because of many different reasons.
Night shift can really mess with your body. It screws up your circadian rhythms that only occur with night sleep. You’ll find yourself eating far less food than you did while on day shift.
You may want to bring a sweater or a nice sweatshirt to work because your body temp naturally drops a little while on nights and you’ll feel colder because of hormonal changes.
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Peeps
Guest
I would like to suggest that you make use of light. When you are awake during the night (while everyone else in your house is sleeping), FLOOD your rooms with as much light as you can. Don’t try to live in the dark just because it’s dark outside. Turn those lights on.
And then when you get home, do as so many others have suggested so far on this thread–close the curtains–blackout curtains! If you are staying up to relax for a short time (make it very short!), do it in the dark–dim candlelight or very dim lights. And then turn off all the lights and sequester yourself in a dark room to sleep.
In other words, try to fool your body’s circadian rhythms.
And be grateful that you work nights at this time in history! When I used to work nights back in the 1980s (hospital work), there were no VCRS, no 24-hour TV options. The networks ended their day around 11:30 p.m. with the playing of the Star Spangled Banner, and didn’t come back on until around 5:00 a.m.
And there were no personal computers (at least in the early 1980s), and no internet and no forums or social media.
So the only option for those who were staying up during the night on their “day off” was reading, hobbies (quiet ones because everyone else was sleeping!), or household chores. I would opt for household chores.
Thankfully, nowadays a night worker can stay up on their “day off” and watch TV, or play their own movies if they still use DVDs (we do!). Or they can spend the night online, either doing lovely forums like this one, or doing what most people do–social media.
Or a night worker can still read, work on hobbies, or do household chores!
It’s a good time in history to be a night worker!
And then when you get home, do as so many others have suggested so far on this thread–close the curtains–blackout curtains! If you are staying up to relax for a short time (make it very short!), do it in the dark–dim candlelight or very dim lights. And then turn off all the lights and sequester yourself in a dark room to sleep.
In other words, try to fool your body’s circadian rhythms.
And be grateful that you work nights at this time in history! When I used to work nights back in the 1980s (hospital work), there were no VCRS, no 24-hour TV options. The networks ended their day around 11:30 p.m. with the playing of the Star Spangled Banner, and didn’t come back on until around 5:00 a.m.
And there were no personal computers (at least in the early 1980s), and no internet and no forums or social media.
So the only option for those who were staying up during the night on their “day off” was reading, hobbies (quiet ones because everyone else was sleeping!), or household chores. I would opt for household chores.
Thankfully, nowadays a night worker can stay up on their “day off” and watch TV, or play their own movies if they still use DVDs (we do!). Or they can spend the night online, either doing lovely forums like this one, or doing what most people do–social media.
Or a night worker can still read, work on hobbies, or do household chores!
It’s a good time in history to be a night worker!
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0Scarlett_nidiyilii
Guest
Nap for two or three hours before you go in.
Get a full 6 to 8 hours of sleep when you come home. Use room darkening shades and white noise and no, you are not available for phone calls and errands and nonsense during your sleep time. If people don’t want you calling at 2am, they should leave you alone at 2pm
Lots of coffee, and make sure you get up and move around during your shift. Jumping jacks will get the blood flowing.
Good luck. Some people never adjust.
Get a full 6 to 8 hours of sleep when you come home. Use room darkening shades and white noise and no, you are not available for phone calls and errands and nonsense during your sleep time. If people don’t want you calling at 2am, they should leave you alone at 2pm
Lots of coffee, and make sure you get up and move around during your shift. Jumping jacks will get the blood flowing.
Good luck. Some people never adjust.
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lonegreywolf20
Guest
Not sure I can help much as I work two 24 hour shifts, Wednesday and Friday.
On Thursday, I come home and depending on when I get home because my 24 hour shift can turn into a 25 or 26+ hour shift, the amount of time I sleep varies. Not to mention how busy my shift was. Today I got home on time and was able to sleep for 6 hours while at work. So, I will probably only sleep for a couple hours now or if at all. If it was a busy night and I didn’t get home till after 7 or 8am, I will sleep till about 1pm because I have to get up to meet my daughter at the bus stop, plus I don’t want to mess up my night sleep as I have to be in the next morning for another 24 hour shift.
On Saturdays I can usually sleep till whenever, because my girlfriend will watch my kids for me so I can get some sleep. Some Saturdays, depending on if I have stuff to do or not I don’t sleep. So, I’ll be awake almost 40+ hours.
On Thursday, I come home and depending on when I get home because my 24 hour shift can turn into a 25 or 26+ hour shift, the amount of time I sleep varies. Not to mention how busy my shift was. Today I got home on time and was able to sleep for 6 hours while at work. So, I will probably only sleep for a couple hours now or if at all. If it was a busy night and I didn’t get home till after 7 or 8am, I will sleep till about 1pm because I have to get up to meet my daughter at the bus stop, plus I don’t want to mess up my night sleep as I have to be in the next morning for another 24 hour shift.
On Saturdays I can usually sleep till whenever, because my girlfriend will watch my kids for me so I can get some sleep. Some Saturdays, depending on if I have stuff to do or not I don’t sleep. So, I’ll be awake almost 40+ hours.
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TenEleven
Guest
^^^^THIS! No matter how much some people “get” that you work nights, they will never fully grasp the fact that you need to sleep days.
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DarkLight
Guest
That and there’s a lot of calls that just aren’t from people you know well. Any business you deal with - doctors, online orders, anything like that - will usually call whenever they have time. Telemarketers or scam callers don’t care anyway. Most of the calls I remember getting were of that sort, where they were just calling during normal business hours and not paying much attention.^^^^THIS! No matter how much some people “get” that you work nights, they will never fully grasp the fact that you need to sleep days.
That said, yes I did find a lot of people had a hard time grasping that you still need a full 8h of sleep. I’ve had extended family wonder at how I took such long naps or slept in so much, when I was working nights.
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NostalgicBaptist
Guest
I’ve been working rotating shifts for many years so I feel your pain! In addition to the many good suggestions listed by others, I recommend a sleep mask, earplugs and a fan in your bedroom for a droning noise to help drown out normal day noise in the house. Make sleep a priority.
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crenfro
Guest
Thank you all for the wonderful suggestions. I especially have a hard time when I have a few days off then have to go back to work. I have a hard time making myself go to bed when I have a day off and end up sleeping at night. I also need to finish making my other black-out curtain. I made one, but didn’t make the other, and the one doesn’t quite do the trick.
What’s a challenge is that my husband sleeps at night and one of my dogs, if I’m busy, he gets up and follows me around everywhere. He’ll usually wake up my husband.
Anyway, thanks for the great ideas.
What’s a challenge is that my husband sleeps at night and one of my dogs, if I’m busy, he gets up and follows me around everywhere. He’ll usually wake up my husband.
Anyway, thanks for the great ideas.
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