How to sleep for first night shift?

I regularly work different shifts Mostly nights but some days My body honestly never knows when to sleep and when to be awake I normally sleep the whole night before a night shift get up on time and do what needs to be done Then I will sleep from 2-430 during the day before my night shift. It works great for me I use Advil PM almost every night as well to maximize sleep time.

I have worked nights for 6 years now. I only pull 8 hour shifts. Every 2 weeks I get 4 days off in a row and a lot of those times my body reverts itself back to something like a 2nd shift schedule, and then I have to start all over again. What I generally do is wake up around noon or so, stay up for the day and get a nap in from about 6 or 7 until 10. I have to be at work at 11 so switch your hours to fit your schedule. I find a nice 3 or 4 hour nap right before I have to start getting ready for work is the best suite for me.

Everyone does it differently. I switched from working day shift to night shift and it was trial and error for me to come up with a regimen to help me survive working nights.

If I worked Sunday night, I go to bed as normal Saturday night and get up around 7:30a-8a Sunday morning. That's the time my body naturally wakes up without an alarm clock. After eating breakfast and doing what I need to do during the day, I then go back to bed around 1p-4p. Those three additional hours of "nap" time keep me fully awake at work for 12hours+. I have coworkers who don't sleep the night before. I personally couldn't do it.

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I agree with iPink. I have tried staying up late and sleeping in the next day. That was probably my worst night of work ever. I have been on nights for a few months now and I find that taking a good 4 hour nap before work is all I need. I would try this first and then make adjustments where you need to in order to find what works for you.

Good luck.

I work 3 12 hour night shifts a week. The key for me is to eat and sleep as if I am working 7 days a week. I force myself to stay up as late as I can (usually until dawn) on my nights off, then sleep most of the day until 1600 or so every day. I eat meals at the same time a day whether I am working or not. It took a couple of weeks to get my body used to it, but it works and I don't feel any more tired than I would if I worked days.

I go to school weekday mornings and work graveyard shift weekends usually try to stay up as late as possible the night before. Doesn't always happen but I try to stay in bed as long as possible the morning of night shift.

I always try to just take a long nap the afternoon before my night shift. So if I'm going in for a Sunday night, I would try to sleep from 1-4 or 2-4, get up and have some dinner, then head in to work.

Tonight is my first night and honestly all I did was nap two hours before and I feel fine. I still have four hours left but did not expect to feel this alert regardless. If you're a caffeine consumer I'd suggest some beforehand. I did have a red bull and carry around caffeine supplements if I need a pick-me-up but haven't had to yet.

Tonight is my first night and honestly all I did was nap two hours before and I feel fine. I still have four hours left but did not expect to feel this alert regardless. If you're a caffeine consumer I'd suggest some beforehand. I did have a red bull and carry around caffeine supplements if I need a pick-me-up but haven't had to yet.

Sometimes it's those last 2-3 hours that are killer.

Sometimes it's those last 2-3 hours that are killer.

I really don't doubt it, but I feel like knowing it's temporary will make it bearable. I'm only working nights this weekend for orientation then I'm in the clear :)