Working night shifts - bad sleep

Arsenal2019

pinkshoes said:

I worked permanent nights for 3 months and HATED it!

I have never been good at sleeping (I'm still rubbish) and night shifts nearly sent me crazy with insomnia!

My only solution was going for a run once I got home followed by a hot shower, reading in bed, then some sort of radio program to send me off to sleep. I also played white noise in the background which helped. On a good day I got about 6 hours! 

Thanks for your response. Sounds like you did a lot after a night shift for very little reward hahaa!  But I guess 6 hours is still not too bad .

Arsenal2019

bamboo_socks said:

When I was younger I used to sleep 9-5, with a wee break, easy. Now I'm like you and am awake late morning. I try and have later nap but with others in the house it's really hard. Luckily I only do two nights in a row, maximum, so can just about manage it.

I'm going to try getting some exercise and going to bed a bit later, as well as having a more productive lunchtime. Thanks for the tips!

You’re the same as me with the two night shifts at the end of the set.  It’s extremely difficult with others in the house 

pinkshoes

Arsenal2019 said:

pinkshoes said:

I worked permanent nights for 3 months and HATED it!

I have never been good at sleeping (I'm still rubbish) and night shifts nearly sent me crazy with insomnia!

My only solution was going for a run once I got home followed by a hot shower, reading in bed, then some sort of radio program to send me off to sleep. I also played white noise in the background which helped. On a good day I got about 6 hours! 

Thanks for your response. Sounds like you did a lot after a night shift for very little reward hahaa!  But I guess 6 hours is still not too bad .

It was better than the 4 hours that was all I could manage otherwise, and very poor quality sleep!

I've never done nights again. I lost so much weight as I ate breakfast when I got in (as it was breakfast time), breakfast when I woke up (as that's what you eat when you wake up - not a big meal!) and then a sandwich at 2am as it felt really odd eating in the middle of the night when I felt I should be sleeping!

I've learned that sometimes when I feel I haven't slept much, I actually got more sleep than I thought - my Fitbit watch tells me so!

chubsta

I am just retiring from 40 years of shifts, 1 in 3 of which were nights, and my sleep pattern on nights - asleep for 8, always up just after 11, try again between 4 and 7 and may get an hour then - is very similar so here are my thoughts...

persevere with ear-plugs, and try a cheapo soft fabric eye mask from Amazon, one with a padded edge so your eyelashes don't touch the fabric. I know you said you don't like ear plugs but if you get the very soft squidgy ones you really can't tell they are in except for the complete absence of any sound at all. Blocking the sound and light means you are then able to leave the doors, window and blinds open and get fresh air running through the room which should help.

Any tablets just made me worse when I was actually at work, didn't help me sleep longer, I just felt more tired when I was supposed to be awake.

Unfortunately, all the above did for me is make my little bit of sleep 'better' - I didn't sleep for longer but my sleep was less broken and I didn't feel as bad when I woke up.

Bear in mind though that some people just don't sleep well during the day - I wasn't too bad when younger but was told it gets harder and harder as you get older and its has, it is just something I learned to live with.

MattMattMattUK

Arsenal2019 said:

Maybe that's the bit you need to start playing around with - going to bed later or having two sleeps. Or go to the gym after your nightshift instead of before.  You mentioned earlier about a later nap but it was unclear quite how that works for you?
Also think about what you are eating and drinking, and when - do you need to change the times you are drinking coffee, for example if you have one when you get home? 

Thanks again. 

I’ll usually sleep till 11ish then try have a nap between 4-7. Which can work sometimes but only if noise levels aren’t too high as in an extremely light sleeper.

I think you are largely getting this the wrong way around, day workers do not come straight home from work and go to bed, they spend several hours winding down first, then go to sleep. When they do wake up they wake up before work then start their day. You are trying to sleep straight after work not giving yourself a change to wind down, many people would struggle to sleep in that situation. 

Arsenal2019

I think you are largely getting this the wrong way around, day workers do not come straight home from work and go to bed, they spend several hours winding down first, then go to sleep. When they do wake up they wake up before work then start their day. You are trying to sleep straight after work not giving yourself a change to wind down, many people would struggle to sleep in that situation. 

Fair enough - I think you’ve got a good point there. I’ll try that, see if it helps