To think I simply cannot work a night shift on 4 hours sleep?

That's what I'm doing now, not a nurse, 4 12 hour nights and 4 off and I hate it. I'm only getting 4 hrs because I have to pick my daughter up from school and it's not a restful sleep. I'm determined to get off them, it's making me ill.

Depends totally on what you do. Drink coffee and pray that this utter shithead tiredness will at least mean that you can sleep after tonight.

Dh does 5 night on the row and to cut down on childcare takes the DC to school.

Next week when dh is on nights I will need to take the DC out a lot to allow him to get sleep. Then I have the lovely task of weekend work as an nhs worker myself.

Do t think I will ever get used to the rota but at least I'm perm days.

As a nurse I hear what you are saying I hate my nights especially this time of year with no sleep so depressing, it was good to hear another op say you can do this, we know we can because we do, no we can't call in sick and leave the ward understaffed and patients at risk because being tired and overworked comes with the job.

I'm hoping I can go onto days very soon I'm so tired and the kids get short shrift, we can do this op once I get to work it's fine I love my job it's just so hard to do it all.

Used to do 13 hour shifts too days and nights. By 7 am I could barely put a sentence together, never mind give handover. Then someone had the bright idea of night staff doing breakfasts at the end of their shift.

I left for the community soon after that. But I appreciate OP that even the community does shifts now, so that option might not be viable.

I did awful shifts when I worked at an airport. My body just couldnt cope and nearly fell asleep at the wheel once. It put me off for life.

Third night shift in a row for me tonight. My weekly pattern goes: Up at 7am on Saturday (dh works from 6am most Saturday mornings so I have to get up with dc), stay up all day, work 7pm to 7:30am, 5 hours sleep, work 7pm-7:30am, 5 hours sleep, work 7pm-7:30am then stay up all day on a Tuesday with dc (no child care on Tuesdays). It's crap isn't it? Counting down to September when dd starts nursery and I can get a few hours sleep on Tuesdays and then to September 2017 when she starts school and I never have to do another night shift ever again!

I hate nights. Four hours is shit OP, but what can you do apart from get on with it? Caffeine caffeine caffeine.

First night is the worst, being up all day with the DC then going to work.

Yes you can.

It's shit, and will feel horrible but you can do it.

Have a strong coffee and something nice to eat and get your game face on.

Have more coffee / nice food ready for when you get a caffeine/sugar crash.

yes, night shift is awful.

I hated nights and never got used to them. They are utterly shitty. To ad insult to injury, the day staff where we were used to complain that we weren't doing enough. Fuckers. On no extra money as well. I offered to swap... No takers.

I sympathise op. I worked 12 hour nights, every other night for 8 years. It nearly killed me, no sleep during the day just the in between nights. I often think I shouldn't have been driving (hour each way) but no choice.

I've never got used to nights and I'm 13 years in now! Only 2 more months to go before I give up permanent nights thankfully.

I have survived many time on only 3-4 hours sleep but it's no fun at all. Some cope better than others, I need my sleep.

This heat makes it so much harder to sleep and now it's the summer holidays, I can't keep the windows open.

Thankfully I only do 3 nights so by the second one I know I'm getting toward the end iyswim. 4 nights tips me over the edge!

No tips or advice but lots of sympathy

you can do it, but it'll be hard. I really feel for you, it's horrible.

To be honest though, day shifts can be much worse in terms of politics, being more busy etc. I would just like to leave Nursing altogether really.

There is a distinct lack of consideration for people who work nights. I used to do it 14/15 years ago.

Angle grinders/wood chippers early in the morning.

And my personal favourite .........my HA wanting to do the gas safety check only between 9 and 5 Monday to Friday and insisting on an all morning or all afternoon call which means i had the lovely choice of staying up and not going to bed or going to bed and having to set the alarm early after only 3 to 4 hours sleep. Because when you get home from a night shift you dont get straight into bed. You unwind a bit first ...have something to eat etc......no different from a day shift.

And you can imagine how fucking furious i was when the gas engineer was yet another no show.

Back when i was working nights i very quickly learned that night workers are treated like shit and expected to accomodate every other fucker.

Me too Still. I fantasise about a day job with regulalr hours but the money would be a big drop and I'd be paying loads out in childcare until my dd is older.

Sorry that should say horrible year !

I can usually cope if the nightshift is reasonably quiet, but when it goes manic with loads of confused patients or crisis happening I crumble and end up in tears which isn't very professional. i don't have much option other than to do mostly nights in the school holidays or I would be paying hundreds in childcare. I asked to take 2 months unpaid leave this summer as it has been a hoeeible year ( bereavements etc) and dh has already used most of his years leave up having to sort things out, but they said no. they ahve let me reduce my hours though.

You have my sympathies. I work 5 months of days (13 hour shifts) and average 4 hours sleep per night.

Then I do 1 month of nights when I sometimes only get 2 hours sleeep between shifts. It's a killer.

It can be done but isn't pleasant. I did 2 night shifts with no sleep inbetween then had 3 hours sleep and did an 2-10 (we were seriously short staffed) I didn't stay in that job long, it made me ill, but it is possible.

A lot of nurses do, unfortunately. It does become a bit dodgy by Night 3 though.