How do you keep awake on a slow night shift?

[TylerDurdenRN]

So I worked christmas night in a MICU and we only had 2 patients. Only 2 RN's were on staff so it was a 1:1 ratio with both patients doing well and sleeping most the night. Also we had an RN on orientation so really we had 3 RN's. I was up most the day doing normal christmas visiting so I got minimal sleep.

I got tired fast, and I found myself doing the most ridiculous things to stay awake after the conversation ran dry with my fellow employees.

I was drinking as much water as I could, hoping it would make me have to pee, which would keep me awake,

While in the med room around 2am I did about 50 push-ups, that only made me more tired after about 20 mins. Also I was sore the next day, sad, I have to get to the gym, wait I have to get a gym membership first.

I cleaned every room to perfection(and I'm not one of those neat freak RN's)

I would sit in my chair and try to sing lyrics in my head word for word, my coworker saw me at one point slightly rocking my head to the beat in my mind. She got a good laugh out of it. I was slightly embarrassed....

I called the ER about 6 times to talk with some former co workers. I think they realized why I was doing it and gave me a few "wake up" calls as they so lightly put it while they all laughed at me in the background.

I think I checked on my patient 1000 times, she must have felt I was a pretty creepy nurse walking by that many times. She told me at one point that she wishes she was sicker so I would have something to do.(I love patients with a solid sense of humor)

I wrote a record amount of nursing notes. I mean seriously, I had time to proof read them all, Charles Dickens ain't got nothin on my nursing notes.

I would pray for a call light to get me up and moving. It was like a race between me and the other nurse when one did go off, like the chair caught fire beneath us both at the same time. I'm pretty athletic, I usually won.

I played with the ventilator with the RT for about 15mins to try and learn some more settings and things. If I was a little more bored I might have intubated myself and set up the vent just for giggles. Or research....I've always want to know how awful it must be to be on a vent.

I drew some pretty good art on the back of my kardex. Mostly of 3D cubes and blocks with shadows, I'm still drawing at a 1st grade level.

I wiped down every surface there was in the whole ICU.(again I'm the farthest thing from a neat freak), It was gross how brown the wipes would be. Seriously, I might turn OCD after that night.

In the end we got an overdose at about 530am and it got me wide awake and saved me.

I really hope the review this chart and documentation of mine because it was immaculate, I mean, Florence Nightingale never charted or gave patient care the way I did that night.

I do rotating shift so it seems like I go through this the first shift on my rotation through nights every time, and looking at all the things I do, I find them hilarious, almost embarrassing, but mostly awesome.

SO..........what do you guys do on those days that its not that busy and you didn't get much sleep, I know you all are usually busy as 99% of the time we are too, and never face this, but when you do, what crazy things have you done to stay awake and alert?

[lvnnars1]

lol funny post, i worked the noc shift for about a year, and i always had an interesting CNA to talk to so never really had a boring shift haha

[regularRN]

My advice, regardless of which shift you work - prepare yourself and get some sleep beforehand... even if you only have one pt., which is not uncommon in a MICU, they deserve your undivided attention.

[Whispera, MSN, RN]

Read a journal related to your specialty. If your facility allows it, web surf for information about your job or the diagnoses and treatments of the types of patients you see. Drink caffeinated drinks. Sort and update patient education files. Decorate if it's a holiday season.

[Pepper The Cat, BSN, RN]

Well, if things we that quiet you could have called around to see if another unit was working short handed. You could have gone and given them a hand - not necessarily take an assingment, but "help out" with rounds, etc. I know our unit is almost always full - an extra pair of hands to help with rounds, etc would be nice.Just alert your co-worker that you will be an Unit X and if something happens you head back ASAP.

[TylerDurdenRN]

Hospital states 2 RN's on any ICU floor at all times. Orientee RN's don't count. We only had 2.

Come on guys I don't need a lecture, I was hoping to hear what other funny things you guys did in this type of situation.

[Pepper The Cat, BSN, RN]

Hospital states 2 RN's on any ICU floor at all times. Orientee RN's don't count. We only had 2.

I wasn't lecturing and I'm sorry you took it that way. I don't know what your hospital regualates! You asked for suggestions, I gave you one. That is all.

[dthfytr, ADN, LPN, RN, EMT-B, EMT-I]

I always found that the hardest time to stay awake was from 3 AM til sunrise. When dispatching EMS, I saved a big stack of computer entry billing stuff to keep me occupied. As a nurse, I tried to save something for those same hours, charting, stocking, cleaning, whatever to make the time pass till sunrise. Others seemed to have trouble during the exact same hours.

[0402]

I like to check the news (sleeping during the day and heading straight into work makes me feel disconnected from the work some times). The other night, one RN was reading Jane Eyre- she was going through a list of the books "everyone should read." When my mom worked nights, right out of nursing school (back in the early 70's), she said she would get all of her needlepoint done. We have 4 very nice, hand made Christmas stockings as a result. I have found myself doing 1/2 hourly rounding instead of the required hourly rounding (I'm on regular med/surg), which just leads to disappointment, because there's nothing to initial. Perhaps you could take up sewing/ cross-stitch/ needlepoint- you could have some lovely handmade gifts for everyone you know.

[suiteums, MSN, RN]

lol your post was entertaining!

[Kooky Korky, BSN, RN]

How about taking your break during this time and getting some sleep in the break room close by the unit, so you can jump up if hollered for?

sleep, blessed sleep

Or at least let your eyes feel some darkness for a few minutes, even if you can't actually fall asleep. Set an alarm.

Crossword puzzle, read, stretch, plan your life, plan your retirement, plan your grocery list.

[Forever Sunshine, ASN, RN]

You can come help us in LTC. Our night shifts are slow some nights but.. not that slow.

Food helps me get through the night. And I pay for it when I go put jeans on. lol