Switching off of Overnight Shifts

[Jonathon_Parker]

Anybody have advice how to get back to sleeping at night?

I started college and came off working overnights for the past year. Im having trouble getting back to a normal sleep pattern, I am so tired at 3 oclock that I wind up taking a 4 hour nap then staying up until 4 in the morning.

On the upside, I get a lot of studying done.

 

[4est_4est_Gump]

Stay awake for 36 hours and then go to bed after drinking a Green Hulk.



(Nyquil and scotch)

 

[Bidin~Time]

Stay awake for 36 hours and then go to bed after drinking a Green Hulk.



(Nyquil and scotch)

Lord, just the nyquil would put me down.

 

[Laurel]

Anybody have advice how to get back to sleeping at night?

I started college and came off working overnights for the past year. Im having trouble getting back to a normal sleep pattern, I am so tired at 3 oclock that I wind up taking a 4 hour nap then staying up until 4 in the morning.

On the upside, I get a lot of studying done.

Skip the 3 o'clock nap. Drink (moderate amounts, not excessive) of coffee, whatever it takes to stay awake until nighttime. Stop caffeinating 4 hours before you want to go to sleep; eat your last meal around that time as well. Unwind about 2 hours before you want to sleep; relax, but don't let yourself go to bed. Take a hot shower, drink warm milk, watch TV/play on the Internet, etc - but not in your bed. Once it's bedtime, turn off the lights, THEN lay down in bed, and close your eyes.

This will be REALLY hard to do at first, but be diligent. DO NOT NAP and you will retrain your brain to feel sleepy at night. Good luck!

 

[4est_4est_Gump]

Lord, just the nyquil would put me down.

You have to fight jet-lag with jet-lag.

 

[Lancecastor]

Hot bath with a glass of red wine before bed.

Baby go bye bye.

 

[Aella_]

I've always been reluctant to ask my doctor for sleeping pills ,
so I use the beer remedy if I have to. 2-3 days of passing out after 2 maybe 3 cans of beer, and my body clock gets readjusted.
Some people say that melatonin helps, but I never tried it.

 

[Laurel]

Alcohol will make you sleepy, but drinking before bed results in very poor quality sleep.

http://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/286827.php

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ethan...ate_alcohol_consumption_and_sleep_disruptions

http://pubs.niaaa.nih.gov/publications/arh25-2/101-109.htm

 

[4est_4est_Gump]

That's why you Hulk it up...

 

[SweetErika]

A long nap at 4pm is enough to screw up just about anyone's sleep schedule. If you can't get by without some sort of nap while you're adjusting to a diurnal schedule, then at least push it up in the day/afternoon and cut your naptime way back (if you can get it down under an hour, that should help quite a bit). Think of it as a quick refresher, then get to bed at a reasonable time.

I'm a big fan of Melatonin (we most often use the Schiff Melatonin Plus brand from Costco, which also has some other ingredients that promote sleep and repair), and I'd suggest you give that a try an hour before bedtime, at least until you're on a good schedule.

And make sure you're getting some good exercise during the day.

 

[4est_4est_Gump]

...

And make sure you're getting some good exercise during the day.

I recommend frequent masturbation too.

 

[juttjaw]

I am on call 24/7/365.. I have not set schedule. When the phone rings I have an hour and a half to be to work. I have to reset my schedule 3 or 4 times a week. I have found a few tricks that work.

1. If you've been on nights and have to go back to days, sleep only a little bit during the day. Its still gonna suck trying to sleep at night since your body wants to be awake.

2. DO NOT NAP IN THE EVENING UNLESS YOU HAVE TO WORK OR BE UP AT NIGHT!! Even if you have to be a zombie... most of my days are spent being a zombie......

3. Do whatever you can to get to sleep at night to reset your clock. I know people are saying not to drink or take pills... fuck that.. whatever you need to do to kick your body clock in the nuts and start sleeping at night.

3(b) I agree with Laurel, NO CAFFINE! Don't wake up from your nap and start drinking soda or coffee or energy drinks or meth or cocaine. Suck it up and tough out the disconnection all us insomniacs suffer from..

4. One day or night isn't going to reset it.. It takes time... I'm constantly in a state of not knowing what time it is.. Time is of no consequence.. Unless you're my friends or family and get a call at 4am because I forgot not everyone is awake at wacky times...

5. STAY IN SCHOOL! This night or shift work schedule is proven to shorten lives and cause medical problems... Stay in school so you don't have to do this for the rest of your life...

 

[juttjaw]

I recommend frequent masturbation too.

hmmm... she didn't respond.. shocking.

 

[Jonathon_Parker]

Okay, I managed to stay awake all day, feel a little loopy, tried to sleep, but just tossed and turned. So I ran to the drugstore and got something called Zquil. Not in the mood to wack off, so gonna go ly down.

 

[4est_4est_Gump]

I recommend Zhulk!



And a good porn link...

 

[Jonathon_Parker]

Slept 10 solid hours. Finally feel wide awake today. Was able to concentrate in class. I even offered a comment.

 

[tishadomina]

I find that forcing myself back into regular sleeping hours usually takes a day or a night of 'oh hell, why am I forcing myself awake' before it settles down. While my work ends at 9pm, I'm a natural night-owl so getting home at around 9.30 - 10pm is of no significant issue and I'm still up around 8am.

 

[oddity83]

Spent a year on graveyard, took me 10 weeks to get back into working day shift. Its just sucked for me, never could find that magic trick to disrupting sleep patterns.

 

[jaF0]

Worked midnights for too many years.

Quit several years ago. Haven't worked since.

I still wake up at 3 or 4 AM most days.

 

[Aella_]

I'm a big fan of Melatonin (we most often use the Schiff Melatonin Plus brand from Costco, which also has some other ingredients that promote sleep and repair), and I'd suggest you give that a try an hour before bedtime, at least until you're on a good schedule.
y.

Agree. A friend of mine uses melatonin - she said it's the best option.

But… Melatonin… at Costco!
That's what puzzles me about the States.
Where I currently live, you can get phenergan or melatonin by prescription-only. On top of that, they ask you for an ID for anything even remotely addictive.
Whereas on my last visit to the US, they were selling gigantic bottles of phenergan, over-the counter, at Walmart…