Transition to night shift

kim47 · Jul 2, 2023

When I first began working nights I would often get nauseous around 3am. Then I began to have a cup of tea and a snack around 2am. The nausea stopped occurring after awhile. I always take 50 mg of Benadryl around 45 minutes before I want to sleep. I have a quiet room and blackout treatments on the windows. I can usually get between 4 and 8 hours of sleep like this. Good luck!

Irving · Sep 16, 2023

Hello. While I was in HS I worked a few night shifts a month to get money and always felt ill afterwards. I swore never to work night shifts again. My first nursing job was night shift and I did it for 21 years. It took me a while to understand my body but I would need SLEEP and I would need REST and the two were not always the same. I also had to commute an hour each way so I lived in fear of falling asleep. Sometimes I would go for days without sleep between shifts then crash eventually. If I was home, even after a day of sleep, I would fall asleep as soon as I was warm and comfortable in a chair or on a couch. I had to stop going to plays and movies bc of this.

I have not worked nights in several years and I am happy and feel much better. I used to feel like I was hung over all the time. I still have problems with my sleep but it is getting better. I still have work dreams.

My advice would be to try to acclimatize to nights if you can. But foremost, listen to your body. It may be telling you that nights are not for you and while you can chose not to listen to it, you will pay if you ignore it.

It probably didn't but I do hope this kind of helped you. As I said, I still have sleep issues because of working NS. And if you find yourself in need of sleep meds, where you never needed them before, you should really think long and hard about it.

JBMmom, MSN, NP · Sep 16, 2023

Just like any other healthy habit, you have to set yourself up for success by planning for working nights. I LOVE my blackout curtains, white noise machine, bone conduction headphones headband, and bedside fan. Those are key for me for sleeping while the world is going on outside (and dogs barking inside). I also have figured out that eating at night doesn't work for me, it makes me feel worse. I realize that's not a strategy for everyone and you'll have to work that out. It IS important to drink plenty of water and stay hydrated.

Maintain healthy habits as much as you can. Get exercise regularly so your body is primed to sleep naturally. If you're having trouble I have lots of friends that have found that trazodone works for them to get restful sleep and not have the hangover feeling some people get with benadryl or other sleep aids. I'm fortunate that on rare occasion I can take melatonin and it works, but I've been on night shift six years and it's worked for me. I have also found, though, that I'm someone who can get 4 hours of sleep for multiple days in a row and still feel okay. I guess scientific studies would argue that I'm not at full capacity, but that's life. Someone's got to do it, right? Good luck finding a schedule and routine that works for you. I understand that some people can't physically handle night shift, but I think that sometimes people set themselves up mentally for failure.

DavidFR, BSN, MSN, RN · Sep 17, 2023

Melatonin is magic. Works for me. That plus chamomile tea before bed.

Blackout curtains, earplugs, phone OFF, no screen light in your room and no phone before bed. Reading a chapter of a book in bed is a good wind down.

Don't judge after six nights. The adjustment takes a while.

Been there,done that, ASN, RN · Sep 18, 2023

A lot of good advice. It's only been six days. Try those suggestions. I myself, could not adjust to nights. I feel it's all about individual circadian rhythm . Best wishes.

subee, MSN, CRNA · Sep 19, 2023

Nurse J said:

I have been a nurse for 1 1/2 yrs and recently accepted a position for night shift. I was working days prior on a med surg floor. Now I am working nights on labor & delivery. I am not adjusting well to the graveyard shift. I have done 6 shifts so far on nights and it has been hell. Staying up hasn't been the hard part, but coming home after my shift and trying to sleep has been a disaster. When I get home I am so nauseous I am dry heaving over the sink and shaking. I dream about being at work now, which I rarely did on days, with the little time of sleep I have been getting and it makes me anxious. I am not nervous or feel anxious about going to work and doing the job itself, but more of the fact of how my body is feeling. I am not sure if anyone else has felt this way and/or if this is my body just adjusting to night shift.
I do eat while working. I have tried having a "lunch" and snack & have also tried having small snacks throughout my shift without the big lunch. When I get home I will have something like oatmeal or a muffin then go to sleep.

if anyone has any tips or tricks for combating the night shift nausea & anxiety, I am open to all recommendations.

No one has mentioned using a sleep mask on top of making sure that no cracks of light enter you room. Keep it completely dark and when you have to get up and pee, keep your mask on. As soon as you walk into your place, put sunglasses on. Have a high protein small meal before bed. Muffins mess with your blood sugars while sleeping. Have some protein with all your night snacks. Hope there is something new here for you.

Been there,done that, ASN, RN · Sep 19, 2023

subee said:

No one has mentioned using a sleep mask on top of making sure that no cracks of light enter you room. Keep it completely dark and when you have to get up and pee, keep your mask on. As soon as you walk into your place, put sunglasses on. Have a high protein small meal before bed. Muffins mess with your blood sugars while sleeping. Have some protein with all your night snacks. Hope there is something new here for you.

Good advice... but how do you get the bathroom with a sleep mask on?

subee, MSN, CRNA · Sep 19, 2023

Been there,done that said:

Good advice... but how do you get the bathroom with a sleep mask on?

Haha. I know every step to my bathroom and it's a small one:) But if I have to do anything else, I peek under the mask to, as much as possible, stay in the dark. Once the brain detects that light, you can't fool your hypothalamus into believing it's night again.