Living like a vampire....

[BabyLady]

I have been on night shift now for about, oh, 5 months or so.

I like the staff much better that works on nights versus days....so much more laid back. Fewer admissions, fewer discharges, more pay, tons of benefits.

My problem is that I come home and go to bed at 7 or 7:30, but every day, I am up at 11:30 or 12:00 and can't go back to sleep.

I worked 4 days straight like this and I didn't feel safe to work because I was so sleep deprived. I kept having to really stop and think about IV drugs I was giving to make sure sleep deprivation didn't alter my thinking and cause me to make a mistake.

I have tried to take some OTC sleeping meds to help during the day..but it seems like I am the Goldilocks of sleeping pills....if I take a whole one it knocks me out for too long to where I feel like I'm going to work drunk and if I take a 1/2 a pill, it doesn't seem to do any good.

Anyone have any suggestions????

[Crux1024]

When I am within 15 min of home, I take a benadryl and melatonin cap. Pull into garage, strip off uniform in laundry room, get in nightgown and go to bed right away.

MauraRn

Id be terrified of being stuck in traffic, or an accident or anything else that would prolong the trip home.

Ive seen a few traumas that were caused by people driving while under the influence of sleep aides.

[ChasingRain]

First of all...Vampires are awesome, just saying (twilight fan).... With that being said, I'm def not one b/c no matter how hard I tried to make my body adjust to third shift it wouldn't. I tried everything for months to no avail... So I finally had to accept the fact that it wasn't going to work out for me.

All the good ideas have pretty-much been suggested, with the exception of taking sleeping aids while driving...Big No No!! I'm not knocking the person who suggested it, but I don't want to be on the road with him/her either

Maybe you could try going to sleep a little later than you usually do( a couple of hours after you get home), take a hot bath before bed, and settle in with a good book. Hope it works out for you; it didn't for me but it's worth a shot... Best wishes :redbeathe

[canoehead, BSN, RN]

What worked for me when I got used to nights. It took at least 6 months, and some days I still backslide.

Dark room and mask, fan for cooling and white noise, don't even look around when you get up to pee, and go right back to sleep mode. The last one is hardest.

When you still can't sleep, (and it will happen), try a book for an hour, then lie with your eyes closed and don't try to sleep, just let your mind wander. When you do it right it's almost as good as sleeping, so you don't even have to worry about the rotten shift you are going to have. Worrying, and then not sleeping, and worrying about that can be a vicious circle. I used to get so wound I couldn't even sit down, I'd be pacing and worrying. An ativan will break that cycle for you, and then you lie down and RELAX! I only really needed it once a month or so.

I also didn't drink coffee unless I was having a difficult shift, then it would give me enough pep to get me over the hump.

[MauraRN]

Id be terrified of being stuck in traffic, or an accident or anything else that would prolong the trip home.

Ive seen a few traumas that were caused by people driving while under the influence of sleep aides.

I am able to do this on the way home because the first 30 minutes of my commute is highway, the last 10-15 min is rural, thru cranberry bogs right to my house. I could almost walk it home thru farmland, the rural road goes around a big circle. So if I did crash, or felt I could not drive, I could walk. But for me, the benadryl and melatonin take at least 45-60 minutes to kick in, and another 30 minutes to get me to sleep, so it works for me. I would not suggest this method for anyone who has to drive in city traffic.