New job working nights

20aday

z1a wrote: »

School holidays soon, so 6 weeks of kids playing out on street and back gardens all day. That is if any of them play out now, or are they all glued to XBoxes?

It depends; where I live they play football on the grass outside where I live (despite it being No Ball Games :rotfl:)... they can't be much older than nine/ten and need their mouths washing out with soap... every second word starts with eff!

so_very_confused

I have been working full time nights for about 5 years. Would agree with advice for blackout curtains, also use a sleep mask. I can't get on with ear plugs but have a fan on as soon as i get into bed. It is needed in summer but all year provides some white noise that seems to minimise external noises. Talking with other night workers they also use fans. Good luck. The positive for me is no more stuck in rush hour traffic!

mustbemad

20aday wrote: »

It depends; where I live they play football on the grass outside where I live (despite it being No Ball Games :rotfl:)... they can't be much older than nine/ten and need their mouths washing out with soap... every second word starts with eff!

I noticed at the weekend that the small children that play on the green in front of our house are very noisy, that's not going to be fun 😓

Mbm x

mustbemad

so_very_confused wrote: »

I have been working full time nights for about 5 years. Would agree with advice for blackout curtains, also use a sleep mask. I can't get on with ear plugs but have a fan on as soon as i get into bed. It is needed in summer but all year provides some white noise that seems to minimise external noises. Talking with other night workers they also use fans. Good luck. The positive for me is no more stuck in rush hour traffic!

Thanks for the tip 😀. The thing I just can't get my head around is my first night. I will most likely be awake from 6.30-7 and I know I won't be able to sleep again before my shift, so I'll be going 24 hours straight 😐 How would you manage your first shift back if you had been on holiday or something?

Mbm x

gaz_moose

when I roll onto my first nightshift I try to get up late and then just plough on through till my shift ends and I can go home to bed, this will ensure you will sleep, which sets you up for the next shift.
transitioning back onto days is the struggle for me.

vroombroom

Good luck with your new job :-) I've worked a mix of nights and evening shifts since our eldest was 6 months old. I currently work 3 or 4 5pm-11pm for a call centre. My hubby works 8 till 4 so some days we're literally passing each other. It's not ideal but I'm there at school drop off and pick up, plus if any one is off school poorly. No childcare either x

sazaccount

mustbemad wrote: »

Thanks for the tip 😀. The thing I just can't get my head around is my first night. I will most likely be awake from 6.30-7 and I know I won't be able to sleep again before my shift, so I'll be going 24 hours straight 😐 How would you manage your first shift back if you had been on holiday or something?

Mbm x

When i worked nights (on and off for 6 years) I would have a nap before my shift on the first night back eg from 6-9pm in the hotels I would start at 10:30 or 11 so would get up at 10 and in Mr T's I started at 10 so would get up at 9.

Saying that though I don't have children and worked permanent full time nights I would completely revert my sleeping pattern so would go to sleep around mid day, I do know people who would go to sleep straight after work and get up mid afternoon but I'm more of an "evening" person doing stuff after work as to before. I would get really messed up if I was working both nights and days within a week at one point I was doing 4 nights and 1 day shift. It was not good!!!

If you can make it work though with getting enough sleep it defiantly saves on the child care and spending the evenings with the family.

Lokolo_2

I work permanent nights usually 4 a week but up to 6 sometimes. I find the best tip for getting back into the normal sleeping routine after the nights is to only sleep 4-5hrs when you finish the last night. Yes you feel rubbish when you get up but it makes you tired enough to then sleep at a normal time that evening!

Regarding rest before starting nights I agree with a previous poster who said just wake up as late as you can on the first day of nights and then power on through as it does indeed make you tired enough that you will sleep well after the first night shift and it helps get into the routine of nights!

I can see why some people don't like them, but as a young person with no commitments I find them idea, the work is easier and as another poster said no driving in rush hour traffic which is great! Hope you get on well with the nights when you start.