I am considering accepting a job working nights... Is it very difficult adjusting to sleep during the day?

Question

My shift will be from 11:30pm-7am. When is the best time to sleep and eat? Any insight from those with experience please share!! Thanks...

Well it's not a great paying job, it's ok but I'm just not sure... I have 3 kids 3 and under. I just can't decide if it will be worth all the change.

Answer 1

well I worked midnights for 12 yrs,while my wife worked dayshift
and I stayed up during the day with our kids(no daycare).
I used to sleep in the afternoon and evening.

I started work at 11:00 p.m. finish at 7:00 a.m.
go home sleep till my wife left at 8:30 a.m. about 1 hr
eat with the kids at lunck small meal,then when my wife came home i;d go to bed at 5:00 p.m. sleep till 10:30 p.m.
get up go to work,eat at work around 4:00 a.m. again small meal
shower during day with kids.it took about three months to get used to it,but it is vitally important that you get into a routine.
sleep and eat at the same time,all the time easier on you
and your system.
on the friday stay up all day(24hrs) go to bed at 10:00 p.m.
get up at 10:00 a.m. on saturday 8:00 a.m. sunady,
go back to bed I hr ealier at 4:00p.m. sunady

you would probably have it easier than i did
but remember routine-routine-routine
or you;ll never survive...

Answer 2

It's going to be really tough with 3 kids so young - who's going to look after them during the day so that you can sleep? If you don't have anyone to help look after them, then the only sleep you're going to get is when they nap, and what are the chances of all 3 napping at the same time? Slim to none, and Slim just left town! The night shift is okay for some people, but it sucked the life right out of me - I lived in a noisy apartment complex, and you can't expect the neighbors to be quiet during the day just because it's your night. Think extra long and hard about this, especially if the money's not very good - what you'll be giving up may be more than you're able to spare.

Answer 3

Work nights forget about a social life for a lot things, but if you like peace and quit its not a bad shift to work. The sleep part sucks in the summer because of the long days. Winter time is the roughest part working the night shift when the temps dip to around -10 or -20 in the depth of winter that is where its mentally and physically the roughest. Finally, get off work eat a meal to put you to sleep and lay off caffeine the last half the shift. Days off can be hard because the people are working and your sleeping, but you shut off phones till 2pm most times works. It varies from person to person some people do alright at work working the night others will fall asleep during the shift. The night shift is not everyone, but I hated 9am to 5pm shift, have to get up at 730 to shower get out the door by 8am to make it to work at 9am, and then it takes a hour to get home because of traffic. Its a trade-off 99% of companies will pay you more to work those hours and supervision is less most times than during the day.

Answer 4

Will you being working your shifts in a stretch? If you are, that is one way to make it easier. For me, it helps to go to bed within 2 hours, after the end of my shift. I use dark blankets to cover the windows and sometimes use a fan, or even run a load of laundry, because I then seem to be able to sleep through other noises. I can't help you out regarding the eating thing-I eat all the time. Some people do really well working nights, but for me, even though I kind of like it, it creates some issues. If you suffer with any mental health issues-these may become aggravated at times. I feel if you follow your gut-you will make the right decision.

Answer 5

I worked a shift like that one time. 7 days on 7 off. I adjusted pretty well the first 6 months I would get off at 8AM. run a few errands and go to bed about 10AM sleep as long as I could usually 5 to 6PM. It can be a lonely shift most of my friends had day shifts. After 6 months I stopped sleeping well in the daytime. That shift put me in the hospital. If you are a night owl maybe OK. but you need to maintain that schedule all the time to really make it work. not just on the weeks you work.

Answer 6

I work 11pm to 7am and I will say that at first you should have no trouble sleeping because if you are not used to staying up all night you will just drop when you get home. LOL
Now my situation might be a little different but here is what I do.. I get home from work, get my 2 older daughters off to school, crawl into bed with my 3 year old daughter and catch about an hour nap till she wakes up, then we have a normal breakfast and lunch and when my older daughters arrive home from school I go back to bed and sleep until about an hour before I have to leave for work.
Supper you ask? Depending on how hungry I feel I usually end up taking it with me and warming it up at work. The best thing I have found to sleep during the day is make sure your bedroom is pitch black, then your body thinks it is night :)

Answer 7

I use to work the 7pm-7am shift in the ER. When you flip your natural sleep/wake schedule like that, you never really get use to it. You're life changes dramatically...if you still want to do all the things you did before...forget it..b/c you need to find people with the same schedule as you do, or you'll be up all night the day's you're off and everyone will be sleeping...then also, you'll be sleeping during the time everyone is awake. I finally had to quit when I was going to get married and didn't have time to see my wife and family anymore b/c the change...i was a night person and they were a day people.

Answer 8

I worked nights for 7 years, it was OK, but I never truly got used to it, I felt sick during the night and even though I slept well during the day I used to wake up feeling like I had a hangover, which I think was due to the sleep being unnatural. I usually had breakfast on waking in the afternoon and just picked food during the shift. But it was convenient with small children, you have to weigh up the pros's and cons

Answer 9

i work 10p-6:45a, and have been working that schedule since May. i have no problem getting to sleep as soon i get home you just have to train yourself to do that. and sleep till 1p. i still have enough time during the day to do errands and take care of my family. eating i do when i'm hungry usually around 4p and at work at lunch i have a snack, don't eat heavy meals because it will cause you to get sleepy. on days off i go to sleep at around 10p consider it catching up on some sleep, don't feel you have to stay up. just train yourself , it works out great for me. i love being able to take my son to school and to pick him up. and being there for dinner w/ my family.

Answer 10

I never managed to get used to getting up in a morning for day work. Night work is a natural time to be awake.