Nightshift advice!

[Platypusfattypus]

I always try to have a nap mid afternoon before my night shift. Then after unless I'm back in that night I will try and only have a nap the next day so I can sleep at night. You will get the munchies, so take snacks. I try to eat my dinner before my shift, then have breakfast when I get in otherwise I wake up famished and eat crap.

You will also get mildly hysterical an hour before the end of your shift when things are hilarious, and the satisfaction of driving home to your bed when everyone se is driving to work is the best thing ever.

 

[CherryAcid]

I always try to have a nap mid afternoon before my night shift. Then after unless I'm back in that night I will try and only have a nap the next day so I can sleep at night. You will get the munchies, so take snacks. I try to eat my dinner before my shift, then have breakfast when I get in otherwise I wake up famished and eat crap.

You will also get mildly hysterical an hour before the end of your shift when things are hilarious, and the satisfaction of driving home to your bed when everyone se is driving to work is the best thing ever.

Finishing your nightshift monday morning is the best feeling ever!

 

[Meldrumlurker]

Where do you all work where you can watch Netflix? Another nurse here. Years ago we would able to have 2 hour breaks for naps and do cross stitch, read, etc, but those days seem to be long gone. I have to afternoon nap the day of first night shift. I have dinner and then have a snack and cuppa about 12. That's it til cuppa and teeth brush (essential) at about 5 and get going again. If I'm back on again that night I will basically try and sleep all day. If not, I sleep 8 til 11ish. You will soon get in the swing of things, think nights are the best thing ever and that going to bed in winter when everyone else is getting up is amazing and definitely the highlight of night shift. They aren't great long term however. One nurse I worked with ended up with bipolar disorder and the links to mental health and nightshift aren't great reading. The key is to make sure you get as much sleep as you would on days and you'll be fine.

 

[Smallpotato]

I used to work nightshifts and felt the same as you before I started, but then ended up loving them!

I used to do 4 12 hour shifts a week (6pm - 6am), but luckily it was only a 10 min walk from home so there was no commute either end which definitely helped. Once I was home at 6.15am I’d just treat it as my evening, have some food and then chill, shower, etc. In bed by 8am. Sleep for around 8 hours so I could be up again at 4pm. Then treat those couple of hours as my morning and back to work.

I used to take ‘lunch’ with me which ended up getting eaten around midnight normally (soup, toasty, etc) but then I’d always hit a bit of a wall at around 3-4am and would end up having to go a get a lucozade or something to try and wake me up a bit.

I enjoyed it as I’ve always been a bit of a night owl by nature and it was an exciting novelty tbh! The world seems like such a different place in the dead of night when most people are sleeping.

Hope you get on okay with it and good luck

I loved nights for the same reason!

The night before my nights I’d go to bed really late and then wake up around 5-6am. I’d clean the house, meal prep, go for a walk and then go back to bed around midday for a sleep. Then from that shift onwards I’d flip my days into nights.

i would also nap on my breaks during shift!

 

[ChloeW94]

Thanks so much guys!

It’s going to be a big change! I’ve gone from working on a reception desk 8am-5pm Monday to Friday then got put on furlough last May until October where I was told I was at risk of redundancy, but got a place doing security which is shift work but couldn’t do nightshift as my first aid had ran out and due to covid it wasn’t easy to renew it but that’s happening next month. I just keep reminding myself I am very lucky to still have a job, that’s 5 mins away from home and the job I don’t actually mind at all and like the people I work with. I know just now so many people are not as fortunate!

 

[Platypusfattypus]

Finishing your nightshift monday morning is the best feeling ever!

And the day staff smell like the best thing ever

 

[RedMagnolia]

I'm a nurse and I work occasional nights and I take a bag of low calorie snacks - I have a proper meal before I leave for work. So I have grapes, apple, satsuma, banana, cereal bar, yoghurt, carrot sticks, sparkling water and fruit tea bags. I don't drink caffeine during the night, it gives me a headache. It's usually busy and there's not a lot of sitting around, but I always have my Kindle e-reader and my Kindle fire tablet so I can read, play games, watch videos. I always clean my teeth around 5am - I work 7.30pm - 8am - because that wakes me up if I'm feeling weary. And when it gets to 6am, I know the day staff will be getting up and getting ready to come to work!

 

[Moosie]

I used to work nightshifts and felt the same as you before I started, but then ended up loving them!

I used to do 4 12 hour shifts a week (6pm - 6am), but luckily it was only a 10 min walk from home so there was no commute either end which definitely helped. Once I was home at 6.15am I’d just treat it as my evening, have some food and then chill, shower, etc. In bed by 8am. Sleep for around 8 hours so I could be up again at 4pm. Then treat those couple of hours as my morning and back to work.

I used to take ‘lunch’ with me which ended up getting eaten around midnight normally (soup, toasty, etc) but then I’d always hit a bit of a wall at around 3-4am and would end up having to go a get a lucozade or something to try and wake me up a bit.

I enjoyed it as I’ve always been a bit of a night owl by nature and it was an exciting novelty tbh! The world seems like such a different place in the dead of night when most people are sleeping.

Hope you get on okay with it and good luck

 

[josie22]

I’m a nurse and have done lots of nights over the last 8 years. You will find what works for you eventually, I used to feel sick on nights and dread the thought of them and now I quite enjoy them! Before I start my nights I’ll get up as normal, and then I’ll usually head to bed between 1 and 2pm and try and nap for at least a couple of hours before getting up at about 5. My top tips:
- Stay hydrated, yes coffee is a must for me but you will feel so much better drinking lots of water.
- Eat what you fancy. Don’t force yourself to eat a whole meal on nights, bring little bits of what you fancy and see how you feel. I can only eat toast, cereal or fruit.
- You will always hit a wall, mines usually around 4am. Try and get moving if you can.
- Invest in a good eye mask and ear plugs to sleep in the day!

best of luck and welcome to team night shift

 

[CherryAcid]

I sit in an office alone on my nightshifts, I have about 30 mins worth of work. I tend to eat on a night purely because my body doesnt want to. I do have something small with me though just in case, like crackers or fruit. I usually start my shift with a coffee and then have a few glasses of water and then nurse a zero sugar monster haha
I cant nap unless im ill so I tend to try to stay up as late as possible the night before my shift so I can have a lie in. I have tv in my office so I try and find things to watch or I look online and go on netflix. I always have my kindle on me but I cant read until after 5 am as I get too tired. I also spread my work out. So at 3 I will do my work and around 5am i will tidy around. If I do all mywork at the start then I find I'm just waiting to go home. I really enjoy listening to podcasts during my shifts too so maybe thats something you would like?

ETA invest in a decent sleepmask, its a godsend when the days are lighter.

 

[Hinchhater1442]

Depending on your job.. the best way I found to get through night shifts was to try not to sit down / keep myself busy. If I sat down I just wanted to sleep which of course isn’t ideal. Lucozade and sweets also helped

 

[SunshineDreamer]

I’ve never done night shifts but I’ve pulled all nighters when I was working for the CPS and we had a big case. My biggest advice would be to eat little and often. I always found I would struggle more hen we had a big meal.

 

[CherryAcid]

And the day staff smell like the best thing ever

I also love finishing on a summer morning, I usually go get my shopping and have a little walk in the woods near my house.

 

[CherryAcid]

I'm a nurse and I work occasional nights and I take a bag of low calorie snacks - I have a proper meal before I leave for work. So I have grapes, apple, satsuma, banana, cereal bar, yoghurt, carrot sticks, sparkling water and fruit tea bags. I don't drink caffeine during the night, it gives me a headache. It's usually busy and there's not a lot of sitting around, but I always have my Kindle e-reader and my Kindle fire tablet so I can read, play games, watch videos. I always clean my teeth around 5am - I work 7.30pm - 8am - because that wakes me up if I'm feeling weary. And when it gets to 6am, I know the day staff will be getting up and getting ready to come to work!

I forgot to mention the teeth cleaning. I keep mouthwash and toothbrush/paste in my locker along with body spray. It makes you feel really fresh around 4am.

 

[Scragbags]

You'll find your routine eventually. I am constantly moving in my job but I listen to podcasts and audio books.

Have snacks for throughout the night just to keep you going and maybe don't eat anything too heavy!

Blackout curtains are a godsend for sleeping during the day.

 

[Girlinabubble]

Due to Covid my job role and shifts have changed and I’ll now be doing nightshift starting in a months time! I’ve never done a nightshift in my life and rather nervous about it.

What’s you guys advice on sleeping, eating/what food to take etc? It’ll be a boring 12 hour shift so going to take my iPad with me and had the idea (and wishful thinking that I can be arsed!) of taking some gym gear and doing a wee workout sometimes to stay active.

Any tips would be so appreciated!

I did runs of three nights together for a few years - I think it’s ok for some people and for some it’s awful - my job was still fairly busy at night - it’s a hospice. I never got used to it but it was made more bearable if whenever I woke the day after I stayed in bed reading and dozing for a few hours more. I tried to stick to day mealtimes so had breakfast when I got home - usually skipped lunch then had a light meal before work. I used to eat sweet stuff during the shift because I felt sorry for myself! I think you just have to grit your teeth and get through it. One thing though - I had to be very careful driving home after as my reactions and perceptions definitely affected. Good luck - looking back the thought of them was worse than the reality hit still so grateful I no longer work nights!

I always try to have a nap mid afternoon before my night shift. Then after unless I'm back in that night I will try and only have a nap the next day so I can sleep at night. You will get the munchies, so take snacks. I try to eat my dinner before my shift, then have breakfast when I get in otherwise I wake up famished and eat crap.

You will also get mildly hysterical an hour before the end of your shift when things are hilarious, and the satisfaction of driving home to your bed when everyone se is driving to work is the best thing ever.

So true about the hysteria and driving home!

 

[Isa Drennan]

Bring a cardigan as your bodies temperature drops to its lowest between 3-5am!

Your stress hormone (cortisol) increases production between 5-7am, which explains why people often struggle falling asleep after a shift. Personally I use melatonin or nytol for a deep sleep!

Don’t eat anything too heavy, the best thing I’ve ate is slow releasing carbohydrates e.g oats, stay hydrated and keep busy

 

[Lynseyp]

I work nights in a supermarket and have done so for nearly 10 years and still struggle to sleep in the day mainly because I have kids at school so sleep when they are at school (not now though as I'm keeping them at home until safe to go back).
My job involves heavy lifting so i always make sure i have a decent meal just before I start work and some snacks as you need the energy. For drinks I would say tea/ coffee or energy drinks.
We are allowed to take sweets on shop floor so they are a must too.
Invest in some blackout curtains as well.
Good luck, you'll be fine. Let us know how it goes x

 

[ChloeW94]

Omg I didn’t think I’d actually get replies thank you so much for you advice guys!!!

 

[lime]

I did night shifts for 3 years in a desk job. 4 shifts a week, 8pm-6am. From 8 until about 1am there'd be plenty of work to do then I would start to crash from 2-6 because there was rarely any work so you'd be watching Netflix or even napping on the sofas in the designated lounge areas which makes me laugh looking back. Sounds very relaxed doesn't it but actually when it's the middle of the night and you're knackered in a brightly lit office and all you want is your bed it was hell at times. I only agreed to do it because it worked out about £200 a month extra in my pay after tax which I needed at the time.

As for advice... honestly it's very difficult to have any sort of "normal" routine working like that. I'm being very negative, I didn't hate it, actually I enjoyed the laid back way of life, living as a night owl away from the rat race and enjoying my 3 days off (Sat, Sun Mon). But I think it's something you can do once for a temporary period and never again. I would sleep from about 8am until 3-4.30pm (and tell myself every day that I would get up earlier but never did). I'd have about 2 hours before needing to start my commute into work. I wouldn't be ready for a big meal so I'd end up eating at about 10pm in work (usually Ubereats). Meal prepping and taking your own dinner would be good advice I guess, but eating pattern on those shifts is so temperamental. A lot of the time I felt very lazy and part of the team environment was us ordering our food together so I got sucked into that.

I have fond memories of my nightshift days but you couldn't pay me to go back to that pattern. I think honestly a lot of it is accepting that it's not natural to do those shifts and to be easy on yourself if you're not in some perfect eating and sleeping routine.