Just can't do nights and I am finally accepting it.

poppycat, ADN, BSN · Oct 17, 2015

I have been doing straight nights for 9 months now, ever since returning from maternity leave. I love the flow of nights and the pay. However, my body hates it and I feel awful ALL the time. My manager just told me I can go back to days soon and I cannot wait.
So my point is: some people can do nights some can't. Nights are not for everyone. So never feel guilty or weak for not being able to adjust. No matter how many tips you try , nights are not for everyone.

You're absolutely right. By the same token, day shift isn't for everyone, either. I've worked nights since I started nursing school in 1975. About 8 years ago I decided to take a day position. I only lasted a month! I felt the same way on days that most people feel working nights: exhausted & feeling ill all the time.

canigraduate · Oct 17, 2015

That's the truth. I thought I would love night shift, as I've been a night owl all my life.

I found out that my body needs daylight, just not mornings.

3-11 is my happy place.

Iknowwha2du · Oct 17, 2015

It is interesting because some of the nurses I worked with were telling me to stay on it but I would catch them sleeping, and even snoring a few times during the shift. I would be too afraid to fall asleep during the shift and or make an error because I am not alert enough to perform my duties. The thing that did me in was driving home in the morning. I had way to many close calls and almost hit someone's car on my way home.

turnforthenurse, MSN, NP · Oct 17, 2015

You're right. I loved nights...mostly because of my coworkers. I miss them dearly. I didn't like the effects of night shift on my body, though. I have switched to 11-11 and even though it's a very busy shift, I feel better overall. You need to do what is best for you!

kidsmom002 · Oct 18, 2015

I definitely agree that working nights is not for everyone. When I worked nights I remember everybody saying that I'd adjust as time went on. That was not true for me. As time went on I felt worse and NEVER felt rested. I pretty much stopped sleeping all together. When I was able to work days I never looked back. Working nights I'd drive home in the morning and have absolutely NO IDEA how I got there. And during work I'd be in a haze from about midnight until the end of my shift. I was definitely not cut out for night shift.

Scottishtape · Oct 20, 2015

That's the truth. I thought I would love night shift, as I've been a night owl all my life.
I found out that my body needs daylight, just not mornings.
3-11 is my happy place.

3-11 used to be my happy place too when my daughter was young. Now that I have a baseball team of critters, I can't make 2nd shift work anymore I miss those days.

Night shift is tough too, but I was able to adjust well to it. The only time I had a hard time was when my facility would switch me back and forth between days and nights... every.. week. It was awful.

Yay for you getting back to days soon!

joanna73, BSN, RN · Oct 23, 2015

Not everyone can adjust to nights. I worked nights for four years and loved it. I'm the opposite......I feel lousy working day shift, which is my current schedule.

TerpGal02, ASN · Oct 24, 2015

Count me in as well. Just started on days this week after a year of working nights. At my last job, I worked 2nd shift and loved those hours as I havent always exactly been a morning person. I picked up a few nocs there and thought that night shift would be just fine when I applied for my current job. It was not. I loved my night shift crew for the most part. I loved the laid back feel. Yep we got super busy, but no doctors or management or case managers breathing down your neck.

My body just couldnt take it. And it drove me crazy when I jeard people sau, "well of you really have to do it, you will force yourself", as if there was something wrong with me. I DID force myself. The problem was that every morning when I walked to my car and that sun hit my face, my brain would say "wooohooo time to be awake" and no matter the dark curtains or eye masks or fans or sleep aids either I simply could not get to sleep or if I did Id wake up feeling like I never slept at all. I constantly felt like I had the flu and my mental jealth suffered so much. I became depressed and anxious. I had no social life.

Sure Im tired after a 12 hour shift now on days. But when my jead hits the pillow at night, I sleep, and stay asleep. And feel rested when I wake up. With that said though, I think there is a HUGE difference between 12 hour nights and 8 hour nights. Not tjat I would really want to work 8 hour shifts again, but if I had been on 8 hour nights I reckon I could have held off the move a little while longer.

quiltynurse56, LPN, LVN · Oct 24, 2015

3-11 used to be my happy place too when my daughter was young. Now that I have a baseball team of critters, I can't make 2nd shift work anymore I miss those days.
Night shift is tough too, but I was able to adjust well to it. The only time I had a hard time was when my facility would switch me back and forth between days and nights... every.. week. It was awful.
Yay for you getting back to days soon!

This is true for me too. Last winter, I would go to work and it was dark, I would come home in the dark and when I woke up, it was getting dar. Didn't help my SAD or ability to get anything done. Working evenings, I get the sunlight AND I can get stuff down such as errands and phone calls during business hours.

kbrn2002, ADN, RN · Oct 24, 2015

Good thing for me I don't suffer from SAD. When I am working nights during the winter months I rarely see the sun. Go to work at 6 pm, it's already dark. Get done at 6 am, it's still dark. Go in the house, relax for an hour or so the sun might just be coming up when I go to sleep. Get up for work, yep...it's dark again.

This is definitely not for everybody.

joanna73, BSN, RN · Oct 24, 2015

It's the same for days too. I go to work for 7am and it's dark. When I'm finished work it's dark by 1630 in the winter.

Nights are definitely not for everyone, but I found it much easier waking up in the evenings.