I apologize in advance....

debRN0417 · Feb 16, 2004

Search is not working and I need some advice. How are night shifts to work? I am currently an evening person and it is reaking havoc with my life, or lack of one I should say. I am so wired when I get home that I don't get to sleep until 3am then I proceed to sleep up until it is almost time to go to work. I am really desperate for 10s or 12s but the only shifts available are on nights. Is it difficult to adjust. Also, at my facility, evenings are usually the busiest time and I am accustomed to the pace is it terribly slow on nights or am I being naive? TIA.

I am currently a night-shift nurse, but am soon going to days. I liked nights, but the hours don't like me anymore. I have trouble sleping during the day and have a small child to pick up from school...etc.... I know alot of nurses who think nights are great and if you can get 12 hour shifts, then it works alot better. You could work all your shifts in a row and then be off (most places work 3 on 4 off), but those nights you are working, be prepared to do alot of sleeping whe you are home! If I could have gotten the 12 hours on nights, than I could have managed it, but it is not an option. I never cared for evenings, for the same reason as you. As far as adjusting, it isn't too bad. Just make sure that you set times for meals and appropriate rest. Nutrition is very important, because you are "backwards" from the rest of the world. They are having breakfast, and you're ready for dinner! Make sure you eat well...nights are long sometimes. I hope this helps a little. (nursing for 24 years)

Shotzie · Feb 16, 2004

I worked 12 hr nights before I had chidren and again when they were all in school.

Because I tend to be a night person anyway I didn't have any trouble. I tried to schedule all my shifts together and just get them pver with. When I got home from my last shift (we worked 3 shifts one week and 4 the next ) I would sleep about 6 hours, get up and run errands or do housework and stuff and then go back to bed to sleep with my husband. That would help "reset" my body clock so I'd be on a day-type schedule for the rest of the week.

On the day I was to start my shifts I would sleep the night before, then take a nap in the evening before I went to work.

To make sure I slept well during the day I bought an eye mask and I bought a dark blue sheet that I draped over the curtains to block out as much light as possible. I also bought an ocsillating fan that I kept in the bedroom to make it cooler and create "white" noise.

This worked for me and I enjoyed nights. The pace is a bit slower and since I worked in critical care it meant more time to make sure I was doing everything I thought I needed to do.

Nights does not work for everyone. But for me it was fine.

mattsmom81 · Feb 16, 2004

I always did better with nights than evenings...as we have our evening with family on 11-7 shift. I slept while kiddos were in school. Nights can be hectic when the patients are sick...usually night shift does a lot of the paperwork, QA, etc. We are staffed with less nurses and generally get closer as we have to work together. Give nights a shot...you might love 'em and stay on nights forever...I did. :)

3-11 shift almost did my marriage in, we grew apart. So I credit the night shift with saving my marriage/family life. Good luck...every shift change is an adjustment. if you decide to switch to deep nights we nightshifters here can give you lots of hints to get good sleep, etc...just let us know. Best wishes.

Tweety, BSN, RN · Feb 16, 2004

Physically speaking I enjoyed working evenings the best. But like you, I had no life. I would go through the week and not see anyone. So I enjoyed having the evenings free when I switched to nights, but then became more physically tired making myself stay up all night and sleeping the whole day is difficult. Now I work 3 12-hour shifts and like that better.

To me that's the hardest part of working nights it that it physically is draining. Depending on where you work, and whether the moon is full depends on whether it is busy or not on nights.

Rustyhammer · Feb 17, 2004

I find 3-11 to be the worst shift for me. If you have kids you are gone before they go to school and when you get home everyone is asleep. I also don't like watching the clock all day waiting to go to work.

I'm currently working tue.-thursday 12's. although they turn into 14's and 15's a lot I enjoy the family time and the long weekends.

-Russell

SharonH, RN · Feb 17, 2004

Search is not working and I need some advice. How are night shifts to work? I am currently an evening person and it is reaking havoc with my life, or lack of one I should say. I am so wired when I get home that I don't get to sleep until 3am then I proceed to sleep up until it is almost time to go to work. I am really desperate for 10s or 12s but the only shifts available are on nights. Is it difficult to adjust. Also, at my facility, evenings are usually the busiest time and I am accustomed to the pace is it terribly slow on nights or am I being naive? TIA.

3-11 is definitely the most difficult shift to work in terms of having an outside life. It is also the busiest shift of the three. Physically, I always felt better when I worked evenings because I am a late evening person.

Nights is definitely not slow, and there is usually plenty to do. The hardest hours are between 2 and 4 and that is when I always struggled but if you can get past them, you are golden. The other big challenge is getting sleep in the mornings. When I worked nights, I didn't have kids but I couldn't do it now.

jkaee · Feb 17, 2004

I just went off nights after working them for 2 1/2 years. I decided to do nights because I wanted to keep my kids out of daycare and still bring a decent income in. I only worked 6 days a pay, and I was able to do it without too much trouble. I had another baby, and after my maternity leave I just worked EOW 3-11, but then went back to nights when the baby was about 14 months old. I found that I was physically unable to do night shift anymore. I was not able to sleep during the day, or in the evening before going to work, and getting thru the shift was just a struggle. I felt like crap all the time, and my husband was tired of have a *****y zombie as a wife. We both decided that I would go to another facility and work 3-11 5 days a pay. That way, it's only 3 days every two weeks that the kids would need a sitter for about 3 hrs until he gets home, and I can still have a normal sleep schedule. I have always enjoyed the 3-11 shift, and I did enjoy nights at one time, but I just can't do it anymore. I did a dance of joy after I worked my last night shift.

All I can say is try it.....it may work out for you. It did for me once, but don't try to force yourself to work nights if you are feeling horrible all the time. It's not worth it.

Good luck!

Jennifer :balloons: