Sorry, this is a moan, and It'll go on for a while!
I work in Neuro ICU (in the UK), where obviously we have one to one nursing, plus a nurse in charge, day and night. Due to this, we have to work a lot of nights.
Full time staff work 40 hours a week, and we have to work 11 nights per 8 weeks, which I worked out to about 40% of our hours. Our night shifts are 8pm to 8am.
Thankfully, we self-roster for nights, so I try to spread them as much as possible. I hate doing more than 3 night shifts in a row, but will do 4 sometimes as I get depressed with it. So as a consequence, I am nights virtually every other week, sometimes 2 weeks in a row, with day shifts in between.
The trouble is, I am finding it harder and harder. When I finish my last night of a set in the morning at 8am, luckily I work not far from home, so home quickly and bed. I then get up about 1 - 1.30pm to try and turn myself around.
For the rest of the day, I am extremley tired, often have a headache that won't go and often nauseas - like having a hangover that lasts ALL day! Plus, I am a nasty, grumpy cow, who snaps at everything. My poor husband has to put up with me being so horrible and it isn't fair to him as he's so kind to me.
By bed time, I am utterly exhausted and fall in bed, and usually sleep for 11 to 12 hours and still have to drag myself out of bed. I am often tired for this day too. The day after that I am often back on days (lates 1230pm to 830pm or ealy shift 7.30am to 3.30pm or sometimes a long day 7.30am to 8.30pm). Either way, I am sometimes still tired. My days off after nights are just spent feeling ill and sleeping.
I wouldn't mind if this was once a month, but because this is so often, I am getting really down about feeling so ill, so often.
Now, don't get me wrong, I knew when I starting at University, I knew I would have to work nights when I qualified, but I didn't realise I'd be doing so many and how I would feel. I'm 34 next month, and can't see myself working so many nights in years to come.
I know I have a choice, I could work somewhere where I do less nights. But I like my job (mostly), it is interesting and stimulating. I have worked in a few different areas, I don't want to go back and work on the wards, and like the people I work with, as well as the job.
According to the EU Working Times Directive, amongst other things, night workers are entitled, by law, to free health checks. Now, we have an occupational health department, where I could go and have a medical. I know my mental and physical health is suffering.
The other problem is money. Nurses are not well paid in the UK (another issue), my take-home pay is about £1650 a month, which is about $3300-$3400 or so. Now a lot of this pay is made up by working unsocial hours. My nights earn me about £200 to £250-ish a month ($400-$550). So, as you can appreciate, I would be losing a lot! Something we could just about afford, but not easily and only just. But I would probably be working more weekends, so might make up a little of that.
End of the day, what price is my health?
I just don't know what to do. I know you probably won't be able to come up with a solution, but it's nice to have a moan to other people who truly know what it is like working nights.
Thanks for reading my moan!
nursey2008
35 Posts
i hear you and feel with you. I used to work in a nursing home for 5 months where they asked me to start working 1 whole monh nights only, then a month days only. end of the sory was that they asked me to work 50% of my shifs in 12 hour night duties (sometimes 4 or 5 nights a week)
After 2 weeks of this i got bad migraines and felt absolutely groggy, grumpy and moody. i ended up getting a letter from my GP that i couldnt do nights for 3 months (because of migraines, it went as far that i threw up and cried of pain from the headache)
Nights are very tough and i wish u will find a solution for your situation.
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