Start 12 hour Night shift tonight

Tweety, BSN, RN · Sep 9, 2006

Good luck to you. I did 12-hour nights for a few years. Long hard nights on the old body.

eevie3940 · Sep 9, 2006

hello!

i absolutely loved night shift. days are crazy. nights can be crazy too but with structure. you'll get your routine down. from start of shift until about 1 am you'll be busy. quiet time for about 2 1/2 to 3 hours then about 4:30, you'll start picking up again. some nights were tough to stay awake, thats when i got addicted to mt. dew and popcorn. of course, all my time on nights were in acute care, so the routine may be different, but you'll find your way. good luck and have fun!

traumamomtx · Sep 9, 2006

You will do fine. I've been doing nights since 1998. The two things that keep me going are staying busy and the staff I work with. If the staff is friendly, talkative, and busy it help sssooooo much!

nuangel1, BSN, RN · Sep 10, 2006

you will do fine i worked 7p -7a for 6 yrs .you'll find a system that works for you and fall into a routine.

oneLoneNurse · Sep 10, 2006

Good luck with it. The twelves are great. I work 2 then 1 off then 3 then 2 off then 1 then 5 off.

If I want 8 days off q2weeks I just ask for that 1 off. With 4 weeks of vacation I can get 8 days off almost every 2 weeks.

allnurses Guide · Sep 10, 2006

*sigh* I miss my twelve hour shifts. I miss being able to sometimes arrange my schedule to have several nights off in a row if I wanted to, without actually having to take any vacation time. Now I work eight hour shifts, nights. I have a much less stressful job both mentally and physically, so I guess it's a trade off.

SmilingBluEyes · Sep 10, 2006

So, how did it go?????

HannasMom · Sep 12, 2006

Well, the shift went okay. It went faster than I thought it would. We were busy all shift, from 6pm to 6:30am. I didn't sleep well the first day off, then slept really well last night. It will be awhile before I adjust. Plus right now, my Mom isn't doing well physically, she is in a rehab unit in Salem, so on one of my days off, we drive the 45 miles to Salem to see her. Plus we are selling the house, so we have at least one showing each day.

I'll let you know how it goes tomorrow, one more orientation night and I plan to do everything, so I'll be ready to work on my own on Friday. I have two CNA's on the night shift who don't like each other, so on their down time periods they sit in opposite sides of the facility. Odd behavior. :rolleyes:

LTC can be interesting!

SillyLilly · Sep 12, 2006

[Good luck with it. The twelves are great. I work 2 then 1 off then 3 then 2 off then 1 then 5 off.

If I want 8 days off q2weeks I just ask for that 1 off. With 4 weeks of vacation I can get 8 days off almost every 2 weeks.]

That is EXACTLY what I want. I applied to 6 different places in the past few days. I cannnnot imagine working 5 days a week, every week, alll year long. No way.

This is one of the perks of nursing.

Good luck to you Hannas Mom and let us know how it goes. You will get to know if you like it over time.

meownsmile, BSN, RN · Sep 12, 2006

I love 12 hour shifts,, but i dont necissarily like nights. Mainly because i have trouble adjusting my sleep schedule so i actually get enough. If you are working a straight shift though it might be better. Good luck, i hope you enjoy your new job.