Night Shift Sleeping Woes

eriksoln, BSN, RN · Jan 28, 2009

Hi everyone.. hoping some night shifters out there have some advice for me. I work 7p to 8a three nights a week and have no problems sleeping during the day after a shift. My problem is the rest of the week. I wish I could get back to a normal schedule the other four nights but it isn't working out no matter how I arrange things, it seems as though my body has completely accepted the fact that I should be awake at night. Which is ironic cause two months ago (I started nights four months ago) I could barely stay awake past midnight. The problem is that I am starting to feel lonely and isolated. I nap all the time cause I have no energy to do anything else, yet when I wake up I never feel rested. And it's starting to affect my relationship with my boyfriend. I haven't spoken to my friends in weeks and my skin is a wreck. I love working nights, love the people I work with.. but here is it 5 am and all I can think is I should have done overtime tonight cause I am lonely and bored and know I will be ready for bed in a few hours when the rest of the world is awake anyway. Its very disorienting and worse still I think I am gaining weight from eating, sleeping, eating. I feel like I am hibernating :) If anyone has any advice I would really appreciate it. Thank you for reading this.

Welcome to the woes of night shift. Different people, different ways of dealing with it.

For me:

1. I dont try to "get back to a normal schedule" on my off days. When working, I go str8 to bed when I get home. In bed at 9am, up around 4pm. Couple hours to get ready for work if I work again that night and off to work again. Now, if I dont work, when I get home, I still get up right at 4pm. Between 4pm and later at night, when I am not working, is when I socialize with the "normal" people. lol On an off day, I go to bed earlier, around 6 or 7 am and still wake up early enough in the day to do something.........around 2 pm.

2. I sleep bellow a window that allows a good bit of sunlight in. I have been told to do so by a few different people and it works for me.

3. Dont eat while at work other than water and a small snack that is not calorie heavy. Sliced apples, a piece of your fav. fruit, baby carrots etc.....

4. By all means, avoid avoid avoid caffeine. Its more important for us night shifters to do so than any other group. It'll help you stay up a little during the night, but it'll also cause you to stay up later when you get home. I cant follow my str8 to bed rule if I have caffeine at any time during the night.

5. Biggest rule, the one that I get the most help from and the one that was hardest to learn for me (because I have a playstation addiction). On off days, do not stay indoors. Go out, regardless of what it is you do, get out of the house. Wake up at 4pm, spend one hour primping and GET OUTSIDE. I'm working in Seattle right now, so I'll just take an hour walk around the city. Once I've done this, I feel more like doing other things...........shopping for groceries, laundry, cleaning etc....

ZoeMoe · Jan 28, 2009

JessieKRN, I am so in the same boat. I'm miserable. I hate the night shift. I've been up since 2 am and it's now almost 8am. I'm depressed, don't want to leave the house at all (and I need to b/c I have a dog to walk) and all I on my days off is sleep, eat and sleep some more. I've been nursing for almost 2yrs and this is my first night shift (ICU) and I'm thinking of quiting bedside nursing all together and getting a nursing job that's behind a desk somewhere (RM/managed care...something). I have nothing to offer - just venting. Sorry.

eriksoln, BSN, RN · Jan 28, 2009

Sorry to hear that Zoe.

Night shift is not for everyone. Its not natural.

I am a daylight nurse more so than a night nurse. I do nights because, well, as a travel nurse, you really cut down on your job options if you are not completely open to all shifts and flexible. But, when I go staff, I will be doing daylight.

I gets better. Like I said, the biggest thing is, on off days, do not stay in the house all day.

RN1982 · Jan 28, 2009

You should cluster your shifts together that way if you have say 3-4 days off you can get yourself adjusted back to days. I usually do that. I come home on my last day of a stretch, shower and sleep for about 5 hours and make myself get up. Like last night I was up for about 3 hours then fell asleep at midnight and here it's 8:30am and I'm wide awake and I don't feel exhausted.

VORB · Jan 28, 2009

It sounds like you very well may be getting too much sleep -- which can have the very same symptoms as not enough sleep. I find when my naps are too long on my off days (like 2-3 hours instead of 1-2), I feel like I'm in a fog all the time. You may need to regulate your sleep times with an alarm. [i also feel much better in the summer than in the winter as far as rest/energy goes, so don't know if that has anything to do with any of this.]

You really should try to get back on a daytime schedule on your days off if its affecting other areas of your life, and that can only be done through consciously making a plan. Figure out how much sleep you need every 24 hours, schedule your sleep times accordingly, use an alarm if needed, and go from there.

Oh... and high thread-count sheets make all the difference in your rest. Really.

sweetlilnurse77 · Jan 28, 2009

I have been doing nights for 3.5 yrs and it is hard on the body!!!! I have gained weight and do miss out on friend time sometimes. I have a few friends that are early risers that sometimes I call when getting off at 8 am in the morning to catch up on my drive home. My boyfriend and I make the most of our days off and really do try to get outside even if it's not heavy exercise--just some exercise does help.

I usually unwind for about an hour when I get home and always wake up by 4 pm so I can do housework, bills, calls etc. Try to avoid fast food coming home in the morning. It's so hard sometimes I just want CARBS at 8am!!!

The girls who do best with night shift are the ones who go to the gym or who are on a regular exercise routine. (Wish I did better with this!)

I stay on nights because I love the girls I work with and the pace + the money. Most studies show that night shift work is pretty bad on the body (especially GI.) So you just have to weigh the benefits vs cons with the night shift! Though nursing is a huge part of my life--it isn't my whole life --so don't let it ruin your friendships and relationships! Be your own nurse and make sure you are taking care of YOU first and foremost! I hope it does get easier for you!:heartbeat

barbyann · Jan 28, 2009

3. Dont eat while at work other than water and a small snack that is not calorie heavy. Sliced apples, a piece of your fav. fruit, baby carrots etc.....

Keeping blood sugar trends consistent throughout the week is part of my secret too. I usually have a yogurt or fruit or broth around 2300 at work, then H2O the rest of shift.

RN1982 · Jan 28, 2009

Keeping blood sugar trends consistent throughout the week is part of my secret too. I usually have a yogurt or fruit or broth around 2300 at work, then H2O the rest of shift.

So do you eat before work?

carluvscats · Jan 28, 2009

I am not a huge fan of medication, but as a night shifter I do take a generic Unisom to help me sleep. It takes the edge off just enough so my brain can settle down. I can feel rested after 6 hours of sleep and not feel like I've slept the entire day away.

I agree with the poster who said to avoid caffeine during the shift. I've arrested the weight gain by refusing to take anything to work except a cut-up apple or some low-sugar cereal.

On my days off, I compromise with my body and stay up longer than my husband (usually 3-4 hours), but go to bed 2-3am, and sleep through the morning. I can be up by noon and feel ok.

Oh ~ another thing! Ditto to the poster who said exercise makes a difference! I started doing exercise DVD's in the late afternoon and I feel so much better. I have more energy and don't feel depressed like I did when I first started on nights. It is nature's stress reliever.

Hope you and ZoeMoe can start feeling better. :)

barbyann · Jan 28, 2009

Keeping blood sugar trends consistent throughout the week is part of my secret too. I usually have a yogurt or fruit or broth around 2300 at work, then H2O the rest of shift.

Yeah, when I wake up around 5pm I have a regular dinner that is low or no carb. That way it doesn't drag me down and gives me stamina to get through the shift. Some of my friends are touting the staying power of Irish steel oats, unfortunately I don't like hot cereal.

kellykelly · Jan 28, 2009

I've been on nights for ten years. By year three, I was completely unable to sleep at night. I got a prescription for Ambien from my doctor and I've been happy as a clam ever since. I don't need it when I'm sleeping during the day and I only take it on the nights I don't work, so I've never felt that taking it is a problem. I've never been good at sleeping at night anyway so if I have to take an Ambien to do it, and I sleep great, I'm happy with that arrangement. I got sick of spending endless nights lying there awake until 3, 4, or 5 AM while the rest of the house slept peacefully.