Here's an odd question to ask fellow Buick nuts. How do/did you who have worked night shift(3rd) manage yourselves? I've worked 2nd's for a few years but never 3rd, and I just got moved. It is absolutely kicking my butt! Miserable all night, almost fall asleep driving home, but can't sleep once I hit the pillow.
USAF and lots of mids, as well as back and forth TDYs through multiple time zones in the back and forth. Both maintenance and flying duty. I found working, then staying up until I could sleep until "normal waking and getting ready for work" Usually about 45 minutes before roll call/briefing was the easiest to adapt to and best sleep/wake cycle. Trying to get off work, and hit the sack, I would always wake too early, never got enough sleep, and always fighting off fatigue and foggy brain. The last two are killers on duty, literally. A darkened, quite and cool room help. And try to do the same things you would normally do before bedtime, like eating when you get off, relax watching TV or reading a book. Some people cannot adapt to shift change. Good luck.
Working 3rd as I type this (on break). I get home, read the news and relax a bit. Make something to eat and handle chores (laundry, etc). If yard/car work is necessary I handle that. Lay down around 1:00 unless there’s an appointment for something. Get up at 9:30 and start over. 4 1/2 more years to retirement. I handled chemo and everything it entails, so think I can do this.
When I started my job 14 years ago, the put me on 3rd shift. Actually, the Post Office calls it tour 1. My first night, I went in on a Sunday night at 11 after getting up at 6 am as I did for 25+ years. When I got home a 7:30 am, my neighbor was having new windows installed. I got less than 2 hours sleep the entire day and went to work at 11 that night. The next day, I got maybe 2 hours sleep and went to work again. Wednesday, after I got home from work, I waited for my doctors office to open at 9. I stopped in without an appointment. I could barely talk or walk. I was prescribed Ambien. I took the highest dose, I think 12mg for the entire 3 months that I worked 3rd shift and I still got no more than 4 hours sleep a day At the same time, I was taking driving lessons to get my class A cdl, which I had to have within 90 days. I barely remember most of those days and if they would have kept me on 3rd shift after my 90 days, I would have quit. At the end of the 90 days, I could take an ambien and not go to sleep at all. I also had split days off, Sunday and Wednesday. And the way the Post office has their schedule, going in Sunday at 11 pm is actually your Monday and Wednesday at 11 pm is Thursday. Having split shifts on midnights means that you work every day. I've now been on afternoons for over 13 years. I sleep better than I did in my entire life.
I've worked shift work for 32 years. Graveyard was one of my favorites. I hit the sack after a rum & coke, and wake up usually around the time the kids get off the bus. Mess around the yard or shop for an hour or so, take a nice nap before heading in again. Currently working swing shift, gonna do this one til I retire!! I love the no rushing around, I guess the wife working afternoons at Costco helps, we're both getting ready at the same time and have a good routine... I have known folks that just couldn't get used to it at all. Can I ask what you are doing? I'm a boiler operator, working Saturday through Wednesday. Good luck with your sleep, it DOES get better!!
Make sure your bedroom has room darkening blinds or curtains, not just light filtering. It makes a huge difference in sleep
My shift is 3 days (6:30-6:30) then switch to 3 nights (6:30-6:30) and then 6 days off. When I am on nights I have block out curtains and I wear ear plugs. It normally works well.
16 years on third and love it. Go cruising anytime i want. Tin foil on the windows keeps all the light out and a box fan on high helps to sleep.
Could not adapt to it (11pm-7:30am), but fortunately it was less than a year until I was back on dayshift.
Same here. It was the funkiest year of my life. I never could enough rest. Luckily I was in my mid 20's at the time and had plenty of energy. No way I could handle it now.
I did it for two years. 6 pm-6 am. only needed about four hours of sleep for some reason. I had no trouble falling asleep when I got home. my brain did not adapt well tho. could not think straight, felt like I was getting dumber by the day. took me about six months to get back right after I went back to day shift. I did not like nights...….
I am not loving it at all right now, BUT I do know a few things I did wrong yesterday according to everybody. The window is darkened, I have stayed up a little later after arriving home, and I sleep with a fan anyways. The annual fall sinus infection has been upon me as well, which I'm sure is not helping. I took one of those night time cold and sinus deals for that, perhaps today will yield better results. I do hope I get it nailed down, I need more time and energy to attend to the more important things, like getting these danged headers on. Thanks for the advice all!
My brother worked for AT&T Long Lines (quite a few years ago) in Chester, Massachusetts. This was the eastern terminal of AT&T's transcontinental communications network. The facility was underground, and designed to survive a Nuclear bomb explosion as long as it was not a direct hit. He loved the graveyard shift and voluntarily worked it for probably 15 years before he retired. He kept the same schedule as our well-known member. When AT&T decided to move him off the third shift, he took early retirement.
Someone above made the comment about a box fan for noise, I have found some kind of ambient noise helps alot. During the day you are more likely to have outside noises interrupt your sleep, I use a "relaxing thunderstorm" loop on my Amazon Echo Plus premium. I had trouble with the dog hearing day sounds and and barking, it even fools him into hearing nothing
I've been fortunate enough to never have to work thirds, I dont think I could do it. But I've seen it first hand, my wife has worked nights in a level 1 trauma ER for a few years now (12's), and it's definitely an added toll on her. Hopefully when our little guy gets older and starts school she can switch to days.
Been working 12 hr. shifts for 30 yrs. We work 4 on 4 off, alternating between days and nights. Some guys it is a killer, I guess I am a lucky one, it's never been too bad for me. Do get tired of getting up at 3:30 a.m. sometimes.
In a prior life when I worked at Kroger I would work 3 days 3:30 to midnight and then Friday and Saturday 11 pm to 7:30 am. I was in my early 20s and I believe that was the only way I withstood the schedule. Went to college full time at the same time too. Walking zombie I was.
When I was a single guy I preferred to work 3rd. + I got a .25 shift differential that bumped my pay up to 5.25 an hour. Making the big bucks back then (1985) Id get home before 8 and could sleep then and do stuff in the early evening prior to going to work or stay up until 3pm and then crash to get up at 10pm. After marriage and having kids I had to work 2nd for awhile and totally hated it
I worked 3rd shift for about 5 years, survived much better than when I worked 2nd which really messed my body clock up. My co-workers seemed to be divided into 2 camps, go to bed around 8-8:30am and wake up around 3-4 pm (like me) or stay up until 2 pm and wake up around 10 and get ready for work. Need to figure out what works best for your internal clock. Room darkening shades and a fan for "white noise" made a world of difference.
