Want to know how you can survive night shift? These are the best tips that every night shift nurse needs to know for beating that night shift slump!
If you feel anxious, nervous, and lost before your first night shift, welcome! You are not alone.
Working the night shift as a nurse is not at all uncommon, especially as a new graduate nurse. Most hospitals prefer to have new grads orient for a few months on day shift so they can see how the hospital runs when everyone is just a call away, then once off orientation, they will switch over to night shift.
I started as a new grad orienting on day shift and then I transitioned to night shift, I worked as a night shift nurse for 2+ years before going back to day shift. During those couple of years, I learned some life-changing hacks along the way that truly helped me stay on track and get through those endless rough nights.
This post is all about the best tips for every night shift nurse.
8 Life-Changing Tips For Night Shift Nurses
1. Schedule your 3 work days close together
This one is extremely important!
On night shift your circadian rhythm is completely out of whack and you will need to have allotted times to recover post-shift, so you will want to have as many days off as possible.
Most nurses like to work 3 days in a row, to get them all over with, and then be able to have 4 (or even more!) days off before their next 3-night stretch. This allows you to have one full day of recovery, as well as gives you time to switch over to a day shift schedule for the rest of your days off and enjoy your life as a normal functioning human.
If working 3 in a row is too hard on your body, you can do a split schedule such as:
2 days on, 1 day off, 1 day on (or vice versa)
Your days will still be fairly close to each other but scheduling yourself this way means you will have at least one day off to rest, and mentally prepare yourself, before your final shift of the week (and then have a few days off before starting all over again the following week).
Another way you can schedule yourself is by doing 2 days on, 2 days off, 2 days on, and so forth. Having 2 days off in between your shifts can help you adequately rest, as well as enjoy a little bit of life before having to go back to work without feeling guilty!
(Note: although this method works, I would suggest not doing it too often, as only 2 days off on night shift for a long period of time can start feeling draining, and as if you are not getting enough sleep).
One way I would not recommend scheduling yourself is 1 day on, 1 day off, and 1 day on.
For example: WORK Monday, OFF Tuesday, WORK Wednesday, OFF Thursday, WORK Friday.
When you are on night shift, your life will be turned upside down so you want to make sure you have enough time to sleep, eat well, and spend with your loved ones without feeling like a zombie at all times.
With just scheduling your shifts correctly, you are ready to conquer night shift!
2. Keep a routine!
This advice is just as important as knowing how to schedule your shifts correctly.
I’ll be honest, a lot of the times I fell short on my routine, especially during my last 6 months of night shift, life kept getting in the way and I just couldn’t keep up anymore.
BUT if you are just starting off, keeping a routine is VITAL for surviving night shift.
What this means is:
- You will know exactly what days and times you work
- What time you will be home
- How long you will have to shower and eat
- How much time you are giving yourself to sleep before and after your shifts
I, personally, could not wake up at noon or 1 pm on my last shift of the week (especially after 3 in a row) to start flipping back to a day shift schedule.
The times I did attempt to do this, I quickly realized I was more irritable throughout the day, I felt tired until I fell back asleep again at night, and I was definitely more difficult to get along with.
Instead, I decided that 3 pm was the right time for me. I had enough sleep after my shift and I still had some time to spend with my loved ones.
(Pro tip: Do not beat yourself up if you can’t wake up before 2 pm, you need to listen to your body, and if your body needs to sleep until 5 pm that is okay too!)
Also, if you love working out and absolutely need to hit the gym on the days you work, I recommend allotting at least 30 minutes before you start getting ready for your next shift or getting ready to enjoy your day off.
Find what works best for YOU!
Everyone is different and what might work for others does not necessarily mean it is right for you.
3. Always start your first shift of the week on the right foot!
How you start your first shift will determine how you will feel for the rest of the week. Working night shift isn’t for the weak, so this is where having a perfected routine will make a huge difference.
Remember to:
- Sleep well the day before!
- Eat a nutritious meal before the start of your shift
- Have all your lunches and snacks made before the beginning of the work week
4. No coffee after midnight!
If you are a coffee aficionado like me, this is probably the hardest tip of them all.
As you, and most of the world may know, caffeine is a stimulant – this means you will feel wired for some time after drinking a cup of coffee, so if you are drinking 1-3 cups a night, or having a cup of coffee around 4 or 5 am before your shift ends, you can end up having an extremely hard time turning your brain off and falling asleep.
Especially if you are already sensitive to caffeine!
I started cutting off coffee at 2 am but I shortly realized this was still too late for me, so midnight ended up being the sweet spot!
5. When that 3 – 5 am slump rolls around, get moving!
We’ve all heard of the dreaded hours of the morning – 3 to 5 am.
These are the times that every night shift nurse will tell you are the HARDEST, this is when your body starts getting confused and starts trying to figure out why you are not in bed already.
Your eyes will get heavy, your body will feel more and more drained, and all you will want to do is to go home and sleep.
When this happens, instead of going for that next cup of coffee, you need to get up and start moving around! When we walk, we are increasing the oxygen flow going to our brain, which in turn makes us feel more awake.
You can start by just walking up and down the hallway, you can change your patients or help your coworkers with their patients, and the easiest task you can tackle is starting on your lab work since they are usually due around 4 am anyway.
Before you know it, the sun will start coming up and you will see all the day shift nurses coming in!
6. Hydrate, hydrate, hydrate!
You need to take care of yourself first before you can take care of anyone else.
Besides eating a good meal and healthy/nutritious snacks, always remember to have water with you and constantly be sipping on your water bottle throughout the night!
7. Use your downtime to study!
Nursing is a never-ending learning profession.
Things are constantly changing and I can guarantee you there will be diagnoses on your shift that you have never heard of before.
The great thing about night shift is that, for the most part, your patients will be sleeping so you will want to bother them the least amount of times as possible – this can give you some downtime once all your charting is done.
Use your time wisely; research new topics, learn some of the diagnoses your patients have, and write stuff down that you would like to learn more about later!
My last tip for night shift nurses is an easy one but one that made my nights better
8. Bring an extra sweater!
We all know hospitals are freezing, and on nights it can become unbearable.
When we are tired, we tend to get cold, and you will be miserable trying to warm yourself back up for hours on end.
Take that extra sweater and leave it in your locker or backpack, believe me, you won’t regret it!
This post is all about the best tips for every night shift nurse.
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