Anyone work nights?

[Dontbestupidagain]

I really want to get a job. The problem is I have four dc (6-13) and a husband who is out of the house 07 30 - 18 00. The DC do a lot of extra curriculars, some to a very high standard so require the committment, which means we are out most evenings and the days at weekends. We are currently renovating our house but we are going to run out of money soon and I would like to get it finished.
DH and I have a company and are self-employed although my role is very minor to his contribution.
A jobs has come up which is a night shift from 20 00 until 06 00. It is a decent jobs in a field I have some training in and am interested in.
Everyone I speak to think it is a terrible idea. In my head I could get in at half six and sort DC and house out, sleep after drop off, get up at pick up time and continue as normal until work time again.
I don't think it would be a long term position but would be good to get back to the workforce and has the least impact on my family.
Does anyone else do a permanent night shift? Am I being completely unrealistic in my expectations?
TIA

I used to work nights. What time is pick up time for you? That seems like too little sleep, it really knackers you and you get a much more disturbed sleep then at night with people chapping the door and just general day time noise.

How many shifts in a row and how many per week?

I work some nights as part of a varied shift pattern. I occasionally stay up when I get home (just after 7) and take the kids to school, it's a killer though and I couldn't do it day in day out.

I think it's five nights per week. DC get picked up 3 15 but I can access after-school club until 4 15 most days.

It sounds like too little sleep to me as well. It takes some time to get in the swing of night work, so you will sleep badly at first anyway. I remember lying awake during hot sweaty summer days with all their outside noises, and arriving at work totally knackered. Believe me, night work can be hell. However, you could always try it and see how you get on. I would never do it again though - it's very bad for your health too.

DH did it for a few years, it's really hard. It would be better if he lived a night-shift ie kept doing it weekends and holidays.
It's the transition from night working to day living at the weekend that's the hardest especially with a family.
If you have help for school pick up and your DH can be with the children Saturday morning and into the afternoon it might be OK, not for long though.
Also if you can drop off to sleep easily then you might be fine, if you ever struggle to sleep at night then working nights isn't for you.

My biggest problem with nights is the lack of sleep between them, I haven't learned to sleep in the day and often struggle to get more than four hours sleep between shifts.

Perhaps see if you could do two nights to start with?

I think this sounds pretty good with plenty sleep.
Wld have to be pretty organised with meal prep etc though.
What time do u think u wld get into bed & what time wld u get up?
I work nights & love it.

50 hours a week every week though is quite a lot of hours regardless of it being night shift or day shift.

DH works days & nights but when on a night shift, he gets in at 6.30 but could no way do the school run at 8.30. Sometimes he's hallucinating driving home as he's so tired and passes out when his head hits the pillow. He only tends to average 4-5 hours sleep after a night shift, hence the tiredness the next night. I do wonder if it would be easier if he worked permanent nights as it must be easier to get into a better sleeping pattern but then we'd hardly see him which would be rubbish.

Let's face it, night shifts are awful and nobody would do them unless they had to!

How would you cope during the school holidays?

I did night shifts at a supermarket. 12am till 8am 3 nights a week.
I'd get home just after 8, take dogs out then try to get some sleep.
I could only ever manage about 2-3 hrs.
Lots of disturbance during the day.

In the end it made me very unwell. My mental health has really suffered, though lack of sleep.
I'm now on anti depressants.

Think carefully before you door especially as you have children. Some people can do nights without a problem and I applaude them.

However it's not for everyone.

Nights kill me, I only do three at time as part of my six day week and rarely get much sleep. If you sleep ok during the day then go for it. Do read up on the health effects though, night shift is high risk.

I don't permanent nights for a couple of years. It was fine, although I felt better when I stopped doing it! You have to be really good at sleeping during the day, no getting distracted by doing odd jobs or running errands. However, I think 5 nights is far too many - I only every did 3 a week. Any more than that on a regular basis and it's just miserable IMO. You have no down time, you never see your partner and you're always shattered.

I did not don't!

I work part-time nights and love it, but am very tired when I'm driving home and it's a challenge to do it safely sometimes. Noises outside mean interrupted sleep and, when I get up to go back to work, I can't really be bothered to do anything other than concentrate on my upcoming shift.

I think you could manage it on two, perhaps three, split shifts a week, but no way five.

Thanks for all the replies. Realised I made a mistake on the timings in the OP and it's a 22 00 to 06 00 shift. I did once do a 04 00 - 12 00 shift and that was okay but appreciate this would be different. Need to get the job first too!

I have worked nights for many years to fit around four kids. I finished them recently now that my kids are older. It's only since I've stopped doing them that I have realised what a toll it was taking on my physical and mental health.

I work permanent nights. My advice is don't underestimate how tired you would be. I work 2 12 hour shifts and I'm exhausted. I had to reduce my hours due to the affect on my mental health. Vainly, the effect of permanent nights has made me face age as well. The idea sounds good in principle but the reality needs to be thought through.

I think nights do suit some people though, I'm a night owl and only ever sleep about 6 hours max day or night anyway.
I love sleeping in the day time, I put an eye mask on & wear earplugs so nothing disturbs me.
I used to do 7 nights on then 7 off.
Now I do a mix of shifts & 3 nights in a row is my max as hard to go back to a day shift afterwards.

Nights are really gruelling where I work (NHS) so that wouldn't be enough time to get over them properly for me. People with kids don't do well on them, the people who love them tend to be people without children in my experience.

I do 2 12 hour nights shifts a week and I have two primary aged children. I'm so exhausted after my shift I just go to bed immediately and am asleep within seconds. If I have to do the school run then I do it but I'm almost hallucinating by the time I get home as by that time I've been awake for well over 24 hours.
When I go to bed after a shift I manage 4/5 sleep and feel like shit when I get up. I then wade through the pick up and after school stuff and am so tired by 7pm I usually go to bed. It's not just the actual nightshift that's the problem for me it's the after effects and recovery in between

I used to do one or two per week and I hated it. Constantly in a brain fog, tired and grumpy. It took me days to feel normal again and then I'd be back on nights. Some of my hardcore colleagues thrived working nights though.

It sounds horrible, I would only do it if I were desperate for the money and had no other option. I work 1 night shift every fortnight and I dread it.