Working nights with a family?

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Do any of you find working nights BETTER for family life? I have always been a night owl, and I have always LOVED having days off during the week to do the things that I really need to get done - grocery shopping, errands, making phone calls, etc. It's so much more relaxing for me to run errands when the rest of the world is working or at school, and I feel like I come alive and am truly the most "myself" at night when other people are sleeping. I know there are others out there like me, so my question is, do you think it is easier or would be easier or harder to maintain a good family life while working nights, say 3 12s at night? I mean I've always thought it would be harder to be away at night, but really, what is your family doing from 7 to 7 at night - mostly sleeping right? Do any of you make nights work with your families? Do your families dislike you working those hours? Do you have any trouble getting enough sleep during the week?

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Specializes in Perinatal, Education.

I have worked per diem nights (1-2 12s a week) and liked it very much. My husband didn't love it but got used to it. My kids really didn't notice. The key is that your family must respect your sleep time and not interrupt you or make it difficult for you. You must also respect your sleep time and get childcare if need be to get the sleep you will need. I had no trouble getting sleep. I would do it again!

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Specializes in Geriatrics and Quality Improvement,.

I love the 12 hour, did 12 to 12 on 2 different jobs when I needed to... It worked for me to be there in the day for the kids, they napped I napped...(having 2 different jobs helpoed me to 'make' my own schedule, as one was firm and the other was pick up/per diem.

If I could do what Im doing now on nights, Id be there in a heartbeat!! As it is, I schedule a 'down shift' to come in at night/eves to night and have off the next day whenever I need to do something. Seems I have alot to do!

It can work, and the thing that makes it work most is the cooperation of the family! My husb. handled it for years. the only thing I was missing was 2-3x week bedtime story, and the arguements that happen between a 3 and 8 year old for being too tired.

As long as you dont have reistance, it can work great!

Good luck!

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Specializes in ER/Critical Care.

I actually think working nights works BETTER for my family, because I'm gone at night while they are sleeping like you said.

The way we work it is I usually work Sunday and Monday nights (I'm only part time), so Sunday I nap with my 1 1/2 year old, get up, make and eat dinner with the family, go to work. I get home the next morning and hang out with her, make her lunch and send her of to daycare with my husband. He picks her up in the afternoon and brings her back home to me, so I've usually gotten about 6 hours of sleep. Then he goes back to work until 5:30 while I hang out with her and make dinner. He gets home, we eat and I'm out the door again. The next day she only goes to daycare for 4 hours, so I sleep 4 hours then try to nap with her that afternoon and then flip back to a day schedule. It leaves me a bit more sleep deprived than I would like, but it works really well for our family.

If I worked days my daughter would have to be in daycare for 11 hrs at least 2 days a week since DH works 10 hour days, which I just think is too much at this age. The plan is to stick with nights for the foreseeable future for our family.

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Specializes in PP, Pediatrics, Home Health.

I work 9 hour nights at a children's home.I absolutely love it,and my husband has gotten used to the fact that I work night shifts.He misses me sleeping in the bed beside him,but he does takes naps with me during the day when I come home from work and that is our time together.It works much better with our schedule with me working at nights and him working days.

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I like nights also, my kids holler goodnight to me when I leave out at 10:30. My job was really close to home, I drive them up the street to wait for the bus, when I arrive home at 8. We talk for 20 minutes, they go school, andcwhen they come home at 4 I am usually just getting up. I am looking for another night shift job now.

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I'm still a student, but my "dream" hours would be Friday, Saturday, Sunday; evenings/midnights, 12 hour shifts. That way I can have most of my weekdays free to spend hanging out with my husband and kids doing family stuff. Of course, no matter what hours/days I work, there will always be some sort of sacrifice that goes along with that.

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LOVE working nights with a family! But I agree that your family MUST appreciate your sleep time. My husband is a stay at home dad right now so it's perfect. Working days I didn't see 3 of my kids (they go to bed early since they have to be up early for school) the days I was at the hospital. Now, I get up by 4:30, we all have dinner together around 5 and I head out to work about 6:15. I get home after they've already left for school. If I go back to work that night, I go straight to bed and sleep til 4:30ish but if I'm off, I take a nap til 1 or 2, get them from the bus, have a normal afternoon and go to bed like normal that night. I LOVE my shift!

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I actually see my kids more when I work nights. If I do days, I'm out the door at 0545 (before they get up) and the earliest I'm home is 2030-2100 (after everyone is asleep; I occasionally see my 7 yr old, if she's up reading). But on nights, I sleep while the older 2 are at school and someone else watches the 3 yr old when he gets out of school at noon until about the time the other 2 are done, so I get to see them all for a couple hours before I go to work. If I worked closer to home, it would be totally feasible that I'd be home in the morning to take them to school, but the way it works right now, I walk in the door about 15 minutes after they all leave. I'm dreading going back to days (we rotate).

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OK - another question. Do you guys have any "special" considerations as far as your relationships with your SOs? I want to be able to give my all to my kids and my spouse as well - working nights, do you still have a good relationship with your SO? I know some of you mentioned your SOs - do you feel like you are able to give them the attention they need and want? Do they ever complain that they wish things were different?

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Specializes in Nurse Leader specializing in Labor & Delivery.

I do find working nights to be better than working 7a-7p. As long as you have the opportunity to get 6+ solid hours of sleep during the day (such as when kids are at school) IMO it works out very well. I get up right around the time the kids get home from school, we do homework, have dinner together, and then I go to work. I get home in time to see them off to school again in the AM. I figure that's three hours of their evening I miss, compared to 5 hours if I worked 7a-7p.

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Specializes in Nursing Student - LAST YEAR!.

I've been working night for a few months now and love it! The only complaint is from my SO about intimate time. Because he works 5a-5p and I work 7p-7a the block of days that I work we don't get personal time but the four days I'm off its great. We have both gotten used to the schedule and it makes for a very good four days off ;).

Good Luck!

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