To ask for your advice for preparing for 12 hour night shifts?

[12hourshifts]

I will soon start working for the NHS so will be doing 3x 12 hour shifts followed by 3 days rest and repeat. I will be alternating between day and night shifts every fortnight.

Does anyone have any advice on how to adjust between day shifts and night shifts? I'm someone who needs 8+ hours sleep a night or I feel really groggy and nauseous.

Also, on night shifts do you treat it like a normal day and take "lunch" into to work to eat half way through the shift at 1-2am?

Thank you

Different people do different things. You need to find what works for you!

I stay up a bit late the night before and then try and have a lay in in the morning. I have a proper dinner before I go, and a light snack during the night. When I get in the next morning, I have something substantial and go straight to sleep.

Sometimes though the children get on the way of this!

Try to sleep before your first night, how when how long you slept are standard conversations on night shifts. Yes I used to take a meal in otherwise I would just eat junk. Also really important to drink, I try to drink plenty of water not just coffee, although can backfire when you have to keep getting up for a wee in the day.
I really struggled with 3 night shifts in a row 2 is my limit to do comfortably by 3 I am a mad woman! I would say that is quite a tough shift pattern with so much chopping and changing, but I'm sure plenty of others manage fine.
What's your set up for between nights, will you be able to sleep uninterrupted?

When I worked through the night, we were given an hours break. I managed to have some shut eye and felt better for it. Everyone is different though.

Alternating days/nights are hard!

Have a strict daytime bedtime/nighttime bedtime routine - try to keep them similar so it's not such a big shock to the system. E.g. cuppa, shower, pjs, bed. Set alarm for 8 hours (or however much you need).

On your rest days try not to deviate too much, as tempting as it is to lie in or stay up late. Routine is the key to your sanity here!

I used to try not to eat but would take some breakfast type food sometimes - I found that I ended up hungry in the middle of the night through habit 🙄

So make sure you exercise consistently and get enough day light

Eye masks and ear plugs are great

No caffeine before bed

Have a relaxing thing to unwind to in the car on the way home but not sleepy (I love the archers)

Keep your room cold, wear pjs

I totally reverse my day for night shifts. So breakfast before I go in, lunch and a snack at work, cooked meal (something quick) on getting in, then bed soonish thereafter. Black out blinds can really help.

Massive round of tea and toast at about 4am is essential if at all possible.

Definitely take food, and wear a vest. It's always cold in the wee hours.

Blackout blinds and eye mask for sleeping afterwards. Don't be tempted to reduce sleep to squeeze in activities.

I used to try to limit what I ate as I felt I would eat way too much, I would have tea got to work and take yogurt

You can get eye masks on Amazon that connect to the Bluetooth on your phone and you can play meditation, soothing music etc to help drowned out the noise of the day

I used to really struggle with getting any sleep, used to do 4 nights, 3 nights off, then the same again, followed by an early shift the day after my last night. I never was able to have enough sleep on nights. But I didn’t have any caffeine, it’s not my friend on nights. I used to have 2 small snacks and a light meal during the night, as I only had 30 mins break at a time, if I was holding the surgical bleep as well as in change of my unit.
I cycled 8 miles to work, and back, so didn’t struggle with exercise, but would come home, have cheese and biscuits, a cup of hot chocolate, wash, and bed. Whether I slept or not, I’d get up about 5.30pm, chill out, have toast and marmite, and head back to work again. When I came home on my last morning. I’d stop at the bakery, and get a huge iced Chelsea bun to celebrate.
It’s bearable, but you’ll need to find your own way and your own night rhythm. I’m an early bird who hated nights, but you have to find little treats to get you through.
Good luck!

Thank you all!

I have an eye mask and blackout curtains which should help. I can also sleep uninterrupted during the day when needed thankfully.

If I have 3 night shifts followed by 3 rest days followed by another 3 night shifts should I try and keep the night shift pattern (sleeping in the day, being awake all night) on those rest days to be consistent?

Does anyone find that with 12 hours working, 6+ hours of sleep and all the time spent getting ready and unready, commuting and preparing meals that you have no down time on work days? Is it something you just press through knowing you will soon have three days off for down time or do you make adjustments to your schedule to ensure you have some down time to relax once you get home from work?

Doing 12hr day or night shifts means you generally have very little down time anyway. I always have a nap in the afternoon before my 1st shift then have a meal before I go and another lighter meal around 1, a nap on break if possible then straight to bed when home and sleep as long as possible (6 odd hours) Its not great as you get older, I have to switch straight back onto 'day mode' as I have young children so feel permanently hungover!

I used to do 7-7 so
Get in, eat "breakfast", watch some TV/read, asleep for 9.30. Get up at 4.30pm, shower, makeup, eat tea and prep food for work, leave for work
At work have "lunch" as usual on break. Keep something sweet/carbs/fizzy drink for the 3-4am drop where you get tired
Turn the doorbell off/disconnect it and put phone on DND
Last day of nights I would do the same pattern but only sleep until maybe lunch time

Ah I worked nights for many years - sometimes did 8 x 12 hour nights in a row. Some people are fine, others never get used to them - I was in the latter category but it fitted around my daughter. I tended to try to get a little sleep the afternoon of first night and just slept until 12ish after last one (some people just stayed up but I could never do this). I used to get up and have breakfast then take my main meal to work to eat it there. When I got home I had a shower, cup of tea and bowl of cereal and went to bed. Like others have said see what works best for you. It is very annoying when someone comes and knocks on your door or rings you up - if you can put all phones on silent and a note on the door.

My top tip is to stop drinking any water or anything at about 4.30 am - just after the cup of tea to get you over the 4am tiredness hump. Otherwise I found I didn't sleep as deeply once I got home and to sleep.

I'm a 8hr night shift worker, 10pm-6am 3 nights on and 4 nights off.

My pattern is sleep at 6:30pm-9. My "lunch" is at 12am. I don't eat again until breakfast- 7am and then I go to bed 7:30-1:30pm and repeat! I find it works better for me having broken sleep x2 rather than a full 8hours! Its exhausting but your body will get used to it.
Also take Vitamin D and drink plenty of water.

I just have snacks on a night shift - I feel nauseous if I eat too much. Drinking lots of herbal tea really helps keep me awake for some reason, caffeine is crap because you will crash after a couple of hours.

My tip would be to treat the days as nights when you’re on nights. Some people expect you to be getting up at 2-3pm but would you get up at 2am?? So set your alarm for a reasonable time and be strict about getting enough rest.

I have dinner at home before going to work. Porridge at about 3.30am and straight to bed at 7.30 when I get in. Sleep to between midday and 2pm generally.

Before the first night I may be lucky and grab an hours snooze late afternoon but its not unheard of to come off of late, have 5 hours sleep get up at 7am and then have to go a straight 24 hours.

Sounds daft but I honestly try to stay in lime with normal family hours and just consider the 7.30am bedtime to be a very very late night.

On waking up from the last night I get up about 11am and get straight back into normal routine but have an earlyish bedtim that night.

Just forget how it is to feel energised and you will soon get used to it lol! Discipline is the key. Exercise and fresh air even when you don't feel like it. Avoid the temptation to scoff biscuits at 5am etc.

I don't eat after at all on a night shift, otherwise I find that when I'm back on days I wake up about 3am because I'm hungry and my body is expecting food. I eat in the morning when I get in from work, and before I set off. Sometimes have 3 meals and sometimes 2, depending on what time I wake up.

Just make sure people respect you are on nights,when I was a nurse i used to rotate onto nights ,without fail my mum would ring about 11 am when I was sleeping after a night shift and express surprise I was still in bed !

Used to do 12hrs with 1hr break so 7pm to 8am. 1hr commute each way. By the time I’d got home and slept, got up, eaten showered and got to work there was little time for anything else.

Prep before your shifts if you can, good to have food ready to eat and take to work. I found breakfast at 7pm, a big meal at midnight and then a “lunch” type meal at 5am worked best for me. If you don’t take food you will eat shit! Also I found I was hungrier when tired, so lots of healthy snacks.

I used to do three on two off, and it was best to stick as closely to night shift time as possible. I might get up a few hours earlier and go to bed at 6am, but too much messing screws your body clock.

Manage other people’s expectations. Keep your phone on silent, and plan calls to parents etc on good days to keep them off your back on night shifts.

Some people nap on their breaks on night shifts. Great if it works for you, but it left me feeling so groggy and awful I couldn’t. Power on through and keep active. Sitting down will do you right in!

I wont lie, I feel totally hungover at times but I find it easier in summer when its lighter longer and earlier.