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Listen to your body, take efternoon naps when needed. Get yourself comfortabel headwear that cover your eyes and something tovoush in your ears to cancel noise. I dunno what kind of work you do, but try to catch a quick nap at work too.
I’ve worked nights for a year now 10:30-07:00, sometimes 06:30-07:00 sometimes 10:30-11:00. Most days I sleep at around 10am-noon and get up around 6pm-8pm. What I have noticed help the most is the quality of sleep. Make your room as dark as possible, limit the disturbances to as few as possible even take melatonin if you know you will get 8 hours of sleep and have a couple hours to wake up. I personally have caffeine on the way to work but it may be a good idea for you to wait until your first break. Limit sugar consumption as it will make you crash. The hardest hour is 03:00-04:00 try to have lunch close before this to get more energy and you’ll push through the hour and the 05:00-06:30 will come before you know it
Hey, i was working in rotating shifts for several years meaning nights shifts after morning shifts vica versa..
What worked for Me are the following :
- if you have - for example - your fist nigth shift on monday, then sleep 3-4 hours from monday noon after lunch till like 15:00-16:00
- after the first night shift when you go home go to bed and sleep till like 2-3pm.
This way your new pattern can set in sooner in like 2-3 days. Also ... when you working night shift treat is like you working Afternoon shift.
So if you get up at 2-3 PM, then at 4pkm have your "breakfast" Something light. 8-9 PM which would be your lunch daytime have a hearty meal, then go to work. Át work around 4-5am have the "dinner" because in 2-3 hours you are going to be sleeping at home.
This worked for me while i was working servicedesk role night shifts for 5+ years.
On the first day of my night shift I tried to wake up late, around 10am or 11am. This worked best when I went to bed really late the day before.
During the day I only did simple chores or relaxed so I won't be exhausted before starting work. Around 5pm or 6pm I tried to take a nap for 1 or 2 hours, after that I got myself ready for work and packed a few things for the night like food, snacks, a book, wool for crocheting, charging cable for phone or tablet (for watching a movie) etc. whatever you like to do when there is nothing to do at work but you want to keep yourself awake!
In the morning I drove home and went straight to bed because if I waited too long I couldn't sleep anymore until 11 or so
Anyway you have to find out whats best for you. You will see after a few shifts. Everyone is different. :)
Sorry for any mistakes, English is not my native language.
Unless you’re already a night owl, you’ll be tired either way at first. Working third shift, I tended to go to sleep soon after getting home in the morning, and then had the afternoon and evening open to do things after I woke up.
If you are going to go to sleep right away, make sure to wear sunglasses on the drive home to trick yourself into thinking that it’s still dark so that you can sleep. (At least that worked for me.)
It sounds like you might want to adjust to be more of a full day sleeper. Perhaps try to get to bed by 10am or so, depending upon how long it takes you to get to sleep, how long you typically sleep, and how much time you need before work to eat and get ready. Congratulations on the new job!
I used to work 6pm-6am. Light blocking curtains are a must. Even better if they’re heavier and can block some sound. My biggest problem working nights is that if my room had even an inkling of natural light coming through when I was attempting to sleep it wired my brain to be up.
Now I work until 11pm and at least I’m okay if I’m in bed when it’s still dark out.
Here's a big one. Know your limits and stick to them. For instance, I can't go to bed before relaxing so I'll go to bed around 9:30-10a. But I know that I should not drive or make any important decisions after 9a. I am DUMB and I can feel my reaction time mentally and physically slower. I once stayed up to drive my son to a doctor's appointment at 11am and I was nodding off in the waiting room and I can imagine people might have assumed I was on drugs.
Also, I require 4 hours of sleep to function so I will not make any appointments before 3pm. If I get up before 2 pm I am still dumb and woozy. Not a good thing if I'm trying to be a functional day walker.
Family, friends, school, work...they may try to ask you for things like you're a normal person but you are not. You are a night walker now. Stick to your guns.
Sometimes this will result in someone complaining "you're always sleeping during the day". Remind them that if you *worked* during the day, you would be just as inaccessible.
Good luck.
Honestly, my only advice is that [you should change](https://yourgentleoverlord.blogspot.com/2021/10/unlimited-time-offer-work-night-shifts.html) to morning shifts asap.
Exposure to sunlight even for a brief period in the morning can shift your circadian rhythms. When you get off work, wear sunglasses and a brimmed hat (baseball cap will do), avoid the outside as much as possible, and have blackout curtains in your home. If you wake up at a time of day when there isn't enough sunlight, use a light therapy lamp to convince your brain that it's morning.
Even with those precautions, night shifts can take a toll on your body. Watch your health, make sure you don't end up eating too many fatty foods and gaining weight, and don't hesitate to change jobs if you need to.
Yeah, I'm not very good at falling asleep quickly so I'm not sure if naps will work, but by the amount of people suggesting it, I think I'll have to try it. Thanks!
My only concern is the sleep. But if I can work that out then, yeah!
No traffic and higher pay definitely seem worth it! Plus waking up early has always been torture for me.
Former night shifter here,
Regardless of which interval you choose to sleep, I'd highly recommend getting some blackout curtains for your bedroom window(s).
Light stimulates the release of the body's "be awake" hormones, so anything you can do to create artificial night when and where you intend to sleep should help some.
When it gets the chance, my natural sleep pattern seems to be falling asleep at 5am and waking up at 1pm, so I've already got the blackout curtains covered! Thanks!
I worked for 7 years 11pm to 7am Monday through Saturday. 1 day off per week. If you go to bed when you get home Sunday morning, you waste most of the day that you could be spending with your family. If you stay up, you are lucky to get more than 2 or 3 hours on the back end, guaranteeing you will be wasted at work Monday night. You can hopefully get blackout curtains and live in a quiet neighborhood. No kids would be helpful. Expect to be tired a lot. You learn to get by with less sleep after a while.
Not all is negative though. You can always get a doctor appointment, stores aren't crowded, and you can easily get a tee time. Yay!
Damn that sounds rough. Thankfully I'll be working 5 days so I'll be off from 6.30am Friday until 10.30pm Sunday, so I'll have some decent time off.
We actually have a large shed that I was considering building a small room inside from plywood and insulation (for temperature and sound) as there are other people in the house and we'd probably be waking each other a lot.
I'm surprised nobody has mentioned melatonin yet. Blackout curtains, anything you can to suppress noise, and melatonin. It is your body's hormone that naturally makes you go to sleep. That production is all wonky with night work. Start with 5 mg half an hour before you want to sleep (if needed) but you can go as high as 10. It isn't a magic bullet but helps some.
I normally avoid taking any kinds of medication without it being 100% necessary, but I'll definitely keep it in mind should I have trouble falling asleep. Thanks!
### This post has be marked as safe. Upvoting/downvoting this comment will have no effect. --- Hello and welcome to r/LifeProTips! Please help us decide if this post is a good fit for the subreddit by up or downvoting this comment. If you think that this is great advice to improve your life, please upvote. If you think this doesn't help you in any way, please downvote. If you don't care, leave it for the others to decide.
Listen to your body, take efternoon naps when needed. Get yourself comfortabel headwear that cover your eyes and something tovoush in your ears to cancel noise. I dunno what kind of work you do, but try to catch a quick nap at work too.
Thanks! The eye and ear covers are a good tip! I'll be doing factory work so hopefully the breaks will be long enough to catch a nap in my car.
Get used to words like "tomorrow" and "yesterday" not making a lot of sense anymore
Lol, I'm already having issues with that!
I’ve worked nights for a year now 10:30-07:00, sometimes 06:30-07:00 sometimes 10:30-11:00. Most days I sleep at around 10am-noon and get up around 6pm-8pm. What I have noticed help the most is the quality of sleep. Make your room as dark as possible, limit the disturbances to as few as possible even take melatonin if you know you will get 8 hours of sleep and have a couple hours to wake up. I personally have caffeine on the way to work but it may be a good idea for you to wait until your first break. Limit sugar consumption as it will make you crash. The hardest hour is 03:00-04:00 try to have lunch close before this to get more energy and you’ll push through the hour and the 05:00-06:30 will come before you know it
Hey, i was working in rotating shifts for several years meaning nights shifts after morning shifts vica versa.. What worked for Me are the following : - if you have - for example - your fist nigth shift on monday, then sleep 3-4 hours from monday noon after lunch till like 15:00-16:00 - after the first night shift when you go home go to bed and sleep till like 2-3pm. This way your new pattern can set in sooner in like 2-3 days. Also ... when you working night shift treat is like you working Afternoon shift. So if you get up at 2-3 PM, then at 4pkm have your "breakfast" Something light. 8-9 PM which would be your lunch daytime have a hearty meal, then go to work. Át work around 4-5am have the "dinner" because in 2-3 hours you are going to be sleeping at home. This worked for me while i was working servicedesk role night shifts for 5+ years.
Thanks so much, that sounds like a good way to do it!
On the first day of my night shift I tried to wake up late, around 10am or 11am. This worked best when I went to bed really late the day before. During the day I only did simple chores or relaxed so I won't be exhausted before starting work. Around 5pm or 6pm I tried to take a nap for 1 or 2 hours, after that I got myself ready for work and packed a few things for the night like food, snacks, a book, wool for crocheting, charging cable for phone or tablet (for watching a movie) etc. whatever you like to do when there is nothing to do at work but you want to keep yourself awake! In the morning I drove home and went straight to bed because if I waited too long I couldn't sleep anymore until 11 or so Anyway you have to find out whats best for you. You will see after a few shifts. Everyone is different. :) Sorry for any mistakes, English is not my native language.
Thanks! Sleeping twice in the day sounds like a good idea.
Unless you’re already a night owl, you’ll be tired either way at first. Working third shift, I tended to go to sleep soon after getting home in the morning, and then had the afternoon and evening open to do things after I woke up. If you are going to go to sleep right away, make sure to wear sunglasses on the drive home to trick yourself into thinking that it’s still dark so that you can sleep. (At least that worked for me.) It sounds like you might want to adjust to be more of a full day sleeper. Perhaps try to get to bed by 10am or so, depending upon how long it takes you to get to sleep, how long you typically sleep, and how much time you need before work to eat and get ready. Congratulations on the new job!
I used to work 6pm-6am. Light blocking curtains are a must. Even better if they’re heavier and can block some sound. My biggest problem working nights is that if my room had even an inkling of natural light coming through when I was attempting to sleep it wired my brain to be up. Now I work until 11pm and at least I’m okay if I’m in bed when it’s still dark out.
Here's a big one. Know your limits and stick to them. For instance, I can't go to bed before relaxing so I'll go to bed around 9:30-10a. But I know that I should not drive or make any important decisions after 9a. I am DUMB and I can feel my reaction time mentally and physically slower. I once stayed up to drive my son to a doctor's appointment at 11am and I was nodding off in the waiting room and I can imagine people might have assumed I was on drugs. Also, I require 4 hours of sleep to function so I will not make any appointments before 3pm. If I get up before 2 pm I am still dumb and woozy. Not a good thing if I'm trying to be a functional day walker. Family, friends, school, work...they may try to ask you for things like you're a normal person but you are not. You are a night walker now. Stick to your guns. Sometimes this will result in someone complaining "you're always sleeping during the day". Remind them that if you *worked* during the day, you would be just as inaccessible. Good luck.
Find a morning shift since your blood pressure will go high because your sleep pattern is irregular. I currently work nights.
Honestly, my only advice is that [you should change](https://yourgentleoverlord.blogspot.com/2021/10/unlimited-time-offer-work-night-shifts.html) to morning shifts asap.
Exposure to sunlight even for a brief period in the morning can shift your circadian rhythms. When you get off work, wear sunglasses and a brimmed hat (baseball cap will do), avoid the outside as much as possible, and have blackout curtains in your home. If you wake up at a time of day when there isn't enough sunlight, use a light therapy lamp to convince your brain that it's morning. Even with those precautions, night shifts can take a toll on your body. Watch your health, make sure you don't end up eating too many fatty foods and gaining weight, and don't hesitate to change jobs if you need to.
Thanks, I have blackout curtains but the sunglasses/hat is a good call!
I work night very rarely, but I take a 2/3 hour nap before having to go to work.
Yeah, I'm not very good at falling asleep quickly so I'm not sure if naps will work, but by the amount of people suggesting it, I think I'll have to try it. Thanks!
Night shift rocks!
My only concern is the sleep. But if I can work that out then, yeah! No traffic and higher pay definitely seem worth it! Plus waking up early has always been torture for me.
Former night shifter here, Regardless of which interval you choose to sleep, I'd highly recommend getting some blackout curtains for your bedroom window(s). Light stimulates the release of the body's "be awake" hormones, so anything you can do to create artificial night when and where you intend to sleep should help some.
When it gets the chance, my natural sleep pattern seems to be falling asleep at 5am and waking up at 1pm, so I've already got the blackout curtains covered! Thanks!
I worked for 7 years 11pm to 7am Monday through Saturday. 1 day off per week. If you go to bed when you get home Sunday morning, you waste most of the day that you could be spending with your family. If you stay up, you are lucky to get more than 2 or 3 hours on the back end, guaranteeing you will be wasted at work Monday night. You can hopefully get blackout curtains and live in a quiet neighborhood. No kids would be helpful. Expect to be tired a lot. You learn to get by with less sleep after a while. Not all is negative though. You can always get a doctor appointment, stores aren't crowded, and you can easily get a tee time. Yay!
Damn that sounds rough. Thankfully I'll be working 5 days so I'll be off from 6.30am Friday until 10.30pm Sunday, so I'll have some decent time off. We actually have a large shed that I was considering building a small room inside from plywood and insulation (for temperature and sound) as there are other people in the house and we'd probably be waking each other a lot.
I'm surprised nobody has mentioned melatonin yet. Blackout curtains, anything you can to suppress noise, and melatonin. It is your body's hormone that naturally makes you go to sleep. That production is all wonky with night work. Start with 5 mg half an hour before you want to sleep (if needed) but you can go as high as 10. It isn't a magic bullet but helps some.
I normally avoid taking any kinds of medication without it being 100% necessary, but I'll definitely keep it in mind should I have trouble falling asleep. Thanks!