Light therapy for night shifters?

Nurses General Nursing

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Specializes in ICU.

Any night shifters use light therapy and/or sustained release melatonin? Just curious about your experiences with it, especially if you switch back and forth or live in a darkened climate.

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I tried melatonin one time and did not find it to be helpful at the time. Have considered light therapy, but have never got around to trying it.

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Specializes in ICU.

I had used melatonin and also found it to be useless. However, I was taking 3-9mg at a time before going to bed. I've been reading that this is way more than the pineal gland ever secretes, and sometimes taking a lower dose (1-2mg) in the sustained release version, and 5-6 hours before you go to sleep, is better at mimicking a natural release and can improve your sleep. Additionally, it's cheap! I may try that in addition to my light box.

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Specializes in Telemetry, IMCU, s/p Open Heart surgery.

to help me sleep, I have light blocking shades that I bought at Home Depot for $20. They totally black out my room and I love them. :) I use Melatonin 1mg every once in a while... maybe once a month. I don't usually have trouble sleeping on work/non-work days.

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Specializes in Med/Surg/Onc, LTAC.

I started out taking melatonin, and I'll take 3-9mg on my first day sleeping (after the first night shift) of a stretch, and then my first night sleeping when I want to flip back after working my shifts. I think it *kinda* helps, but maybe I'm just dead tired too. I find the more you take it, the less effective it is. I was having such problems sleeping for so long (about 2 years), that I finally went on Ambien, and I've had great luck with it, but I'm trying to get a day shift job, so I hope to be totally off of that soon too!

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Specializes in Med/Surg/Onc, LTAC.

Oh, I've also heard Valerian Root helps too, I tried taking the liquid, but it was pretty nasty. I believe it comes in pill form, but I'm not sure.

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Specializes in OB-Gyn/Primary Care/Ambulatory Leadership.

Nope, I just use Ambien. :)

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Advil PM works great for me

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Specializes in PP, Pediatrics, Home Health.

I usually don't have trouble sleeping as I have low iron levels(not anemic)just low iron levels.I am always tired so I never have a problem getting a nap or two in during the day.But I usually block out all the light and keep all lights off so I can get my sleep in.

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Specializes in thoracic ICU, ortho/neuro, med/surg.

I'm going to revive this thread to see if anyone has any more input on this subject. Have any of you night-shifters used light therapy? How did you do this? What were your results?

A co-worker and I were wondering if it would be possible to take a small, portable light box to work and sit by/in front of it while charting. Is that possible? Or do you have to be looking AT the light? I'm not sure. Just wondering!

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Specializes in ICU.

I started taking mine to work to use it during breaks and charting and 5 or 6 other nurses ended up buying their own lights. :) I use it mostly during the winter and also take a massive dose of supplemental Vitamin D. Does it help? I dunno...I did feel like I slept better but I struggled with a depressed mood most of the winter. Where I live, you could go weeks on night shift and never see the sun, at least during the winter. However, the depressed mood could have been caused by a lot of other contributing factors. I felt like it was a worthwhile purchase, all in all, and I'll definitely be pulling it out again this winter. It's better than nothing!

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Specializes in thoracic ICU, ortho/neuro, med/surg.

Thanks so much for your reply! I'll continue to look in to this.

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