Help! Night shift and NICU opportunity

Ruby Vee, BSN · Oct 28, 2016

Suck it up and do night shift. It really isn't that difficult. There are many, many threads on here about how to survive and thrive on night shift, but mostly it's attitude. Go into with an attitude that you can make it work because it's advancing you toward your goals.

RNuko · Oct 28, 2016

Thank you Ruby Vee!! This is what I wax and wane with, some days I'm so determined and then others I read forums about people's health being in grave danger from working nights!! It is refreshing to here someone say suck it up!!

adventure_rn, MSN, NP · Oct 29, 2016

Thank you Ruby Vee!! This is what I wax and wane with, some days I'm so determined and then others I read forums about people's health being in grave danger from working nights!! It is refreshing to here someone say suck it up!!

Lol, that sounds a bit overdramatic; I think the only time your life is in 'grave danger' as a night-shift nurse is if you're falling asleep at the wheel. Night shift nursing may be uncomfortable and you may have a less healthy lifestyle overall, but it probably won't kill you.

As for taking the job or not, sounds like it will require some soul-searching. NICU can be hard to get into, so if you really want it you'll probably have to start on nights and then move to days (which can take a few months to a few years depending on your facility). Meanwhile, your graduate education goals seem...unclear? If you don't want to get a clinical NP graduate degree, you may not need clinical hours at all, or you could potentially get them at whatever job you're doing now. I'm all for higher ed (I love school), but I wouldn't pay a ton of money for a graduate degree if you don't have a plan for what you're getting, why you're getting it, or what you're going to do with it.

I guess what I mean to say is that you have to figure out your priorities to know if it's worth working a schedule you dislike. If taking a night shift NICU job won't help you achieve your goals, then don't do it. However, if NICU nursing is your passion, I wouldn't let the night shift schedule deter you from accepting the job, since you can eventually switch to a better shift. You may also consider going part-time or PRN if that will help you to fit in a graduate course load.

tinybbynurse · Oct 30, 2016

I can attest to night shift being dangerous in that you fall asleep behind the wheel on the drive home. At my previous job, I drove kinda far, and there were times I did almost doze off. Luckily I landed a job in NICU now and won't be far at all from the hospital I'm working for now!!

My point is, if you had or suspect you'll seriously have issues staying awake behind the wheel on the drive home, like if you live far like I did, then that truly is a serious concern.

If that's NOT the case, then I would find a way to make the other inconveniences of night shift work until you achieve your goals or get on dayshift. It is doable! Though I think it is easier for some than others.

And then there's even those that seriously do it for their whole entire careers!

Also, day shift positions do open up at places ...before I left my last job, some days opened a little over my year mark. I was told at this job it may take a year or so to get on days. So usually, if you put in a little time, those positions do open up and you can eventually make a switch.

tavalon1 · Nov 19, 2016

Of course your personal situation (familial, school, life in general) must dictate but as a nurse who has chosen to work night shift or evening shift all of my career, I can give a few tips to ease the pain and actually support your health, though it's possible that even with the things I do, I am at higher risk for cancer, etc.

I don't vary my shift at all. I go to sleep at 8:30AM and get up at 4:30pm. I use Melatonin and other sleep aids as necessary and I use a white noise machine. Total black out in my room and no TV in there. I drink one cup of coffee a day, at 4:31PM, give or take a few minutes. I take my vitamins, especially C when I wake up. That's every single day, whether I am working or not.

I still get the evening to be social and spend time with my family. Appointments are made for 4pm or later (as much as possible). I use my nights off for chores or Netflix binges or whatever. Like tonight, for instance, I'm not working but I will stay up until 8:30 in the morning. Lather, rinse, repeat. Hardly any nurses I work with do that and they are miserable.

Now, I've always been a night owl, so it's going to be a little easier for me, but any time I try to vary, I suffer. All it takes for me to understand how miserable my fellow night nurses are is to flip my schedule. Most night nurses do flip their schedule on their days off. While I understand why, I don't have a clue how they do it.