Today, I’m sharing how I survive night shift by giving you the tips that I have found helpful, but also giving you a vlog of a week in my life. I felt like I couldn’t capture everything I wanted to say in a post, so I made a vlog to go along with it 🙂
If you’ve ever had questions about how I structure my week and sleep schedule, the vlog will hopefully help it make sense.
If you work night shift, and have other tips, share them in the comments so we can all benefit and get through the graveyard shift a little easier!
1. Work consecutive days if possible
Obviously this may not be possible for every person and life scenario, but if you self-schedule, try and cluster your days together. Plus then you get to enjoy a bunch of days off in a row! Working every other night sounds absolutely miserable unless you are a literal vampire and live your life nocturnally.
But for us normal people, it makes it so much easier to work night shift half of your week and then switch back to normal life for the other half of your week.
I don’t self-schedule, but I did get hired to a specific schedule. I work Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday 7 pm-7 am every week for 3 weeks, then I work a split week of Monday, Wednesday, Thursday for just 1 week, and then switch back to my regular 3 in a row.
2. Figure out a sleep schedule that works for you
What works best for me, and most people I work with, is napping for about 3-4 hours prior to my first night shift of the week, working my twelve hours, getting in bed by 8 am, and sleeping 7-8 hours until about 3 pm or 4 pm. After my last night of the week, I sleep about 5 hours to try and reset my body and be able to be productive for the rest of the day. So here’s what my normal work week looks like:
Monday: No work– live my normal life
Tuesday:
Sleep from 12 pm-4 pm
Get ready
Clock in for work at 6:15 pm
Wednesday:
Get in bed by 8 am
Wake up between 3-4 pm
Get ready
Clock in for work at 6:15 pm
Thursday:
Get in bed by 8 am
Wake up between 3-4 pm
Get ready
Clock in for work at 6:15 pm
Friday:
Get in bed by 8 am
Wake up around 12-1pm
Attempt to be productive for the rest of the day
Go to bed at ~10:30 pm (it’s always hard for me to sleep this night, so I sometimes take ZzzQuil to help.
3. Don’t just coffee– french press coffee
I work with a girl who literally drinks no caffeine, and I don’t know how she does it. I personally try to limit myself to one cup of coffee a night, but the cup that I drink, I prefer to be french press. Not only is french press coffee smoother tasting, but it contains more caffeine.
4. Eat well– pack plenty of snacks
I normally don’t pack a lot of food with me, because I often don’t have a huge appetite. I eat a good meal before I go into work and then will pack stuff like a RX bar, an apple, hummus, carrots, crackers, etc to take with me to work. They are all things not super heavy and things I can pick at throughout the night. I also try to take my supplements before I leave because, let’s be honest– Night shift is NOT good for your health, so I try and do what I can to attempt to keep myself healthy.
You can read about the supplements that I use and why here:
The Supplements I Take / Cheaper Alternatives to Plexus Triplex
5. Black out curtains
So if you watched my VLOG, you can attest that my black out curtains are not THE BEST, but they are cute, and I manage to sleep regardless lol. Here are the ones I have, but these are ones that are constantly recommended to me!
6. Keep yourself busy on your shift
I will find something to chart every hour, find something that needs cleaning/organizing on the unit, walk a lap around the unit (lol), read some articles for school, do CEs, etc. Anything to keep myself busy, especially during the slow nights.
7. Take care of your skin
Again: night shift isn’t great for your health. And it can show on your skin!
You can read about my skincare routine here:
8. Enjoy your days off and enjoy your extra $$$
One of the major perks of the unit I work on is that they always have a well-staffed weekend crew, so I have ZERO weekend requirement. IT’S GREAT. I try to always plan something for the weekend to look forward to during the week, whether it’s small like lunch with a friend, or a little bigger like a quick weekend trip with my husband.
It’s okay to treat yourself with that extra night shift incentive money 😉
9. Limit the amount of shifts you pick up
AGAIN. I completely understand that this may not be possible for every person in every scenario. BUT, if you can help it, please don’t burn yourself out quickly from over working yourself!
10. Surround yourself with positive people
So important! Cut off the toxic friendships and surround yourself with people who have positive energy! Night shift is draining enough, you don’t need to be drained in the other areas of your life.
(P.S. if you buy anything from any of the links above, I may earn a small commission that helps support my blog. Thanks!)
For example, patients are likely to feel vulnerable at night: they are in unfamiliar surroundings, they are trying to sleep in a strange bed, they are usually in discomfort if not outright pain. And as any nurse who has worked the night shift will tell you, patients are as likely to be awake through most of the shift as they are to sleep through it. Counterbalancing the challenges faced by night shift nurses are the many benefits that come with working through the night, such as spending days pursuing outside interests or advancing nursing careers. The resources and tips in this guide are intended to keep night shift nurses healthy, rested, and ready to provide their patients with high-quality care. As a great number of happy night shift nurses can attest, it is possible to enjoy time with family and personal pursuits while working the night shift.