Midnight shift is killing me, literally.

Nurses Stress 101

Published

So here is the deal. I took a midnight position about a year ago and I have adapted poorly to say the least. I am looking for survival tips to make it a few more years on nights. I believe that is what it will take before a day position is available. Maybe some wise sage advice can help me out. I have been having a few issues.

I do not sleep. I am tired all night long and as soon as I get into bed and the sun is shinning I have a burst of energy. I have went weeks with less then an hour of sleep a night (NO JOKE). I have fallen asleep driving and at stop lights often.

I have done a few things to try and help. I have blackout curtains in my room, a fan to block out noise, I have tried every over the counter sleep aide available as well as prescription sleep aides. I tried to exercise however I find I do not have the energy. I am sick at least twice a month now. I have zero energy, trouble concentrating, some times even simple problem solving seems near to impossible. If I have a stretch of days off I wake up at 7:30 am every day and feel great. When I worked days I had no problem. I felt great and picked up plenty of overtime.

Am I doing something wrong? My coworkers love this shift and do great on it. I have been absolutely miserable. I no longer am able to see friends, family, or do any of the things I enjoy on this schedule. When I have days off I am so tired and feel like I am always adjusting my sleep schedule just to get the basic duties of being alive done. When I was younger Midnights were no big deal. Now well....I can imagine little worse. The isolation from others is also difficult for me. No one I know keeps the same hours and my coworkers are married women and I am a man. I do not feel it is appropriate to have interaction with them in the middle of the night and nether does my wife (who I only see every other weekend due to our schedules). I hope some one has some kind of advice that can help.

0 Votes

That is horrible, and I'm really sorry to hear that.

I fall into the description of your co-workers. I've always been a night time insomniac (would go to clinical on literally no sleep-tossed and turned all night).

This might not be feasible, and might not be the answer you're looking to hear, but you need to go to your doctor and get a diagnosis of shift work disorder. Having that in hand will give you some leverage into getting a day shift position. No job is worth destroying your body like that. Not only are you ruining your health, but you're endangering yourself and other people driving.

I think that you should be able to get a job, hopefully at your current employer, with a doctor's note. You compromise your ability to practice safely by running on no sleep, and you're not doing your body and mind any good. It sounds like you've already tried the blackout curtains, sleep aids, etc. My only other advice, which has worked for me, is to cut off caffeine around midnight.

I hope you are able to find peace (or better yet, find a day shift job).

Good luck

0 Votes
Specializes in Adult Nurse Practitioner.

You stuck it a lot longer than I did. I tried nights for 4 months and just couldn't do for many of the same reasons. I would fall asleep on the way home (45 minute drive), and the straw that broke the camel was when some very concerned and kindly fellow commuters started blaring their horns as I was headed toward a ditch! I got home and called my nurse manager telling her that I would not be in to work that night and would talk to her the following day when I was "coherent". I explained the situation and she was great...after one week off, I was moved to a daytime position on another unit. Eventually I came back to this unit as a day charge-nurse. Good luck. As edwindelahiggins posts, no job is worth your health or the safety of your patients. Some people manage to work nights, but some of us just can't sleep when the sun is out whether we have block-out blinds or not!

0 Votes

Thanks for all of the replies. Sadly working this shift is my only option right now. My hospital may be looking to lay off RN's in the near future and we are union so a day position will have to wait. Sadly I gave up a day position for the one I have now and can not get it back. I have around a 90 minute one way drive as well which does not help. Hopefully I can get an interview for one of the million jobs I have applied for. I kinda had hope that someone had some secret method for sleeping during the day but, I really knew that some people just can not....and I am one of them.

0 Votes

I am one of them too.... Ativan and shorter-working meds work better than meds that stay in your system for a long time like benadryl.

0 Votes

I'm sorry to hear that, that is brutal. I still think that you should go see your doctor and maybe bring these concerns to the unions? 90 minute drive you've become a threat to society, not to mention yourself.

Good luck

0 Votes
Specializes in NICU, ICU, PICU, Academia.

One thing you might try is this: Sunglasses BEFORE you ever walk outdoors in the morning to go home. Since sunlight hitting the retina supresses melatonin production, and low melatonin levels are your body's signal to WAKE UP- keeping sunlight from hitting your retina on that long commute may help.

You know how much easier it is to go to sleep in the winter when it's still dark on your drive home? Same principle.

(I teach a class on adapting to night shift work as part of our orientation. Feel free to PM me if I can help you with more info)

0 Votes

Well it has been some time since my original post. I have no relocated and have a 15-20min drive to work vs. the 90mins. This has really helped a lot. Also, I have simply had to choose between my professional and personal life. I try to keep to the night schedule as much as possible as I have no time to switch back to a day time schedule. So my sleep has improved. It is not great by any means but, it is survivable.

What is really hard for me though is that I am completely isolated and alone. There is literally not a sole to talk to up at night that I know. My only hobby I can not do at night.....which is frustrating. I have no intrest in television and sitting on my but. I feel this is the only thing to do at night. What can I do at night?? How can I have some social interaction? My schedule is pretty much day on day off. Which is horrible but your schedule is a bid thing and I need seniority to get a better one.

0 Votes
+ Add a Comment