Switch Theme:

Shift work  [RSS] Share on facebook Share on Twitter Submit to Reddit
»
Author Message
Advert


Forum adverts like this one are shown to any user who is not logged in. Join us by filling out a tiny 3 field form and you will get your own, free, dakka user account which gives a good range of benefits to you:
  • No adverts like this in the forums anymore.
  • Times and dates in your local timezone.
  • Full tracking of what you have read so you can skip to your first unread post, easily see what has changed since you last logged in, and easily see what is new at a glance.
  • Email notifications for threads you want to watch closely.
  • Being a part of the oldest wargaming community on the net.
If you are already a member then feel free to login now.




Made in gb
Growlin' Guntrukk Driver with Killacannon




Reading, England

I have now been doing shift work for 5 months and my body is starting to feel more and more tired from the changes in sleep patterns. A good example is this week. I went from an early to a late, 2 days off and an early today. As of tomorrow I begin the first of 3 night shifts and with 2 days off after before going back to mix of early and late shifts. My question is how do you guys deal with changing shift patterns? Is there a way of overcoming this fatigue or is it just a holiday needed?

Bruins fan till the end.

Never assume anything, it will only make an ass of you and me. 
   
Made in gb
Storm Trooper with Maglight





West Sussex, UK

I've done shift work for a few months now an I've found the best way to beat fatigue is to force yourself to wake up early after a night of work. So if you get to bed at 7am try and wake up about 2pm. Always found it helps in being able to sleep the next night instead of having to stay up as you can't sleep. And yes it is essential to get time of, depending how much time you get of a year trying to take a week off every 2-3 months helps. But yeah, overall its just something you'll get used to, though it only took me about a month or two to adjust, eventually your body will find a way to cope.

This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 2013/03/22 17:06:23


Illeix wrote:The Eldar get no attention because the average male does not like confetti blasters, shimmer sheilds or sparkle lasers.


DT:90-S+++G+++MB--I--Pw40k02++D++A+++/WD301R++(T)DM+
 
   
Made in gb
Blood Angel Terminator with Lightning Claws





terra

I admire you guys i really do.I did a few weeks of rotating shifts years ago and it truly fethed me up,having young kids running around the house when i was trying to sleep was a real killer.In the end i had to leave.I've stuck with my monday to friday eight till four thirty for nearly ten years now.


 
   
Made in us
Lone Wolf Sentinel Pilot




WA

 shingouki wrote:
I admire you guys i really do.I did a few weeks of rotating shifts years ago and it truly fethed me up,having young kids running around the house when i was trying to sleep was a real killer.In the end i had to leave.I've stuck with my monday to friday eight till four thirty for nearly ten years now.


Half hour lunch?

"So, do please come along when we're promoting something new and need photos for the facebook page or to send to our regional manager, do please engage in our gaming when we're pushing something specific hard and need to get the little kiddies drifting past to want to come in an see what all the fuss is about. But otherwise, stay the feth out, you smelly, antisocial bastards, because we're scared you are going to say something that goes against our mantra of absolute devotion to the corporate motherland and we actually perceive any of you who've been gaming more than a year to be a hostile entity as you've been exposed to the internet and 'dangerous ideas'. " - MeanGreenStompa

"Then someone mentions Infinity and everyone ignores it because no one really plays it." - nkelsch

FREEDOM!!!
- d-usa 
   
Made in au
Chaplain with Hate to Spare






Ah shift work! the bane of the normal person! I have been a shift worker for the past 11 years and pure graveyard shift for the past 3.5 years working 10 hours a shift, it's not easy, and don't let anyone tell you that you get used to it! you don't, you get to find your own coping mechanism with it, I like to work out how many hours sleep I need to be rested and function normally, then experiment with differing things before you head to bed, I like to drive home and pretty much hit the sack straight away for at least 6 hours, whereas my colleague doesn't sleep until the afternoon and only for a few short hours, and when i was doing different shifts each week a few years ago I started at either 4:30am or 6:30am, to cope i'd plan a nanna nap for about 30 minutes each afternoon when i got home, this helped a lot with feeling normal and i still felt tired enough to go to bed early and rest for the early starts, you may need to herbal calmative to help you relax too, valerian is good as it calms your body down, one problem with shift work is that you find yourself thinking too much about it and you inadvertantly work yourself up about resting and feeling tired.

Flesh Eaters 4,500 points


" I will constantly have those in my head telling me how lazy and ugly and whorish I am. You sir, are a true friend " - KingCracker

"Nah, I'm just way too lazy to stand up so I keep sitting and paint" - Sigur

"I think the NMM technique with metals is just MNMM. Same sound I make while eating a good pizza" - Whalemusic360 
   
Made in us
Battlefield Tourist




MN (Currently in WY)

Do not watch The Machinist.

Support Blood and Spectacles Publishing:
https://www.patreon.com/Bloodandspectaclespublishing 
   
Made in sa
Longtime Dakkanaut





Dundee, Scotland/Dharahn, Saudi Arabia

I've been doing shift work for 20 years.
You don't get used to it.

You just have to learn to embrace the suck....

If the thought of something makes me giggle for longer than 15 seconds, I am to assume that I am not allowed to do it.
item 87, skippys list
DC:70S+++G+++M+++B+++I++Pw40k86/f#-D+++++A++++/cWD86R+++++T(D)DM++ 
   
Made in gb
Storm Trooper with Maglight





West Sussex, UK

Yeah I may of used gotten used to a bit too liberally, when I said gotten used probably should of also mentioned the energy drinks. Which I must admit really help when it hits three. But I've always been a night person anyway so the adjustment wasn't AS bad. Still sucked.

Illeix wrote:The Eldar get no attention because the average male does not like confetti blasters, shimmer sheilds or sparkle lasers.


DT:90-S+++G+++MB--I--Pw40k02++D++A+++/WD301R++(T)DM+
 
   
Made in gb
Steadfast Ultramarine Sergeant





Liverpool, England

I used to do shift work around 6th form, and the only way I could find to deal with it would be to try and get two, four hour sleeps instead of one ~8 hour sleep. I'd split my day in two, with an hour free time to eat/shower/shave/travel either side of work, then 4 hours sleep before/after this hour period. The final 6 hours between the sleeps are your actual free hours.
It's by no means the answer, but it makes it more bearable. I work nights now, and I'm constantly shifting my sleep pattern back and forth to keep me able to do things on my days off (which come in a solid block, thankfully) But I always end up losing 2 days of the 4 due to just being so exhausted from lack of sleep.
I'm 21 years old, and all I want is a nice 9-5, so I can get an early night whenever I want and have time to write my book and paint my toy soldiers.
   
Made in us
Nihilistic Necron Lord




The best State-Texas

I got used to doing shift work a while ago, it's not a big deal to me, but everyone is different.

How healthy are you? Are you in good shape? I found it much easier in fit shape, than when I was heavy.

4000+
6000+ Order. Unity. Obedience.
Thousand Sons 4000+
:Necron: Necron Discord: https://discord.com/invite/AGtpeD4  
   
Made in gb
Longtime Dakkanaut






Cheltenham, UK

I did 12 hours on and 24 hours off for four months and loved it. I spent quite a lot of my off time (when I wasn't asleep) in the gym, though, which might have helped.

R.

   
Made in us
Decrepit Dakkanaut






Omadon's Realm

Just finished two years of shiftwork, variable from day to day. So I might have a 3am start one day followed by a midnight finish the next day, shifting rota so weekends, holidays etc all worked. I had always worked 9-5 prior to it and it screwed me up a great deal.

You forget what day it is, you eat and live mechanically. Most of all it was incredibly pressuring on my marriage, we had perhaps 1 day off together a month and any other time together was either one or the other of us falling asleep or waking up, we passed each other like ships in the night. Given we'd only been married a few months prior to taking the job, it was not good for us. Not being able to find other work in the area than this was the reason we left the central PA area. Retail is a wicked bitch.



 
   
Made in gb
Blood Angel Terminator with Lightning Claws





terra

 Gentleman_Jellyfish wrote:
 shingouki wrote:
I admire you guys i really do.I did a few weeks of rotating shifts years ago and it truly fethed me up,having young kids running around the house when i was trying to sleep was a real killer.In the end i had to leave.I've stuck with my monday to friday eight till four thirty for nearly ten years now.


Half hour lunch?


Yes mate just the half hour.Never really bothered me unless i'm knackered from the gym.


 
   
Made in gb
Major





Did shift work (including nights) for 5 years. Never really got used to it, but didn't realize just quite how much it was messing me up until I got a normal job.

Wouldn't go back to shifts now unless I was desperate.

This message was edited 1 time. Last update was at 2013/03/24 19:25:34


"And if we've learnt anything over the past 1000 mile retreat it's that Russian agriculture is in dire need of mechanisation!" 
   
Made in sa
Longtime Dakkanaut





Dundee, Scotland/Dharahn, Saudi Arabia

When I was working offshore doing survey work I would do Six weeks on/six weeks off, when we were on the boat it was 12 hour shifts, midday to midnight, or midnight to midday.
No days off during that six weeks.
By the end of it, and after we'd flown home, I'd spend the first week of my six off mostly asleep.

If the thought of something makes me giggle for longer than 15 seconds, I am to assume that I am not allowed to do it.
item 87, skippys list
DC:70S+++G+++M+++B+++I++Pw40k86/f#-D+++++A++++/cWD86R+++++T(D)DM++ 
   
Made in us
Decrepit Dakkanaut






Omadon's Realm

 marv335 wrote:
When I was working offshore doing survey work I would do Six weeks on/six weeks off, when we were on the boat it was 12 hour shifts, midday to midnight, or midnight to midday.
No days off during that six weeks.
By the end of it, and after we'd flown home, I'd spend the first week of my six off mostly asleep.


Money for that gig is usually pretty sweet though yes?



 
   
Made in us
Hallowed Canoness





The Void

The nice thing about rotating shifts is you get some variance and chances to do other things or stuff because you aren't committed to one schedule. I worked night shift for roughly a year and it just about killed me, I also worked a stupid amount of over time (even got a fancy certificate for it!) so that didn't help, but nights are brutal, killed me social life with "daywalkers" as I've come to call the rest of you, and it made getting anything done brutal because I either had to wake up early or stay up later to go to the bank or store.

I beg of you sarge let me lead the charge when the battle lines are drawn
Lemme at least leave a good hoof beat they'll remember loud and long


SoB, IG, SM, SW, Nec, Cus, Tau, FoW Germans, Team Yankee Marines, Battletech Clan Wolf, Mercs
DR:90-SG+M+B+I+Pw40k12+ID+++A+++/are/WD-R+++T(S)DM+ 
   
Made in gb
Growlin' Guntrukk Driver with Killacannon




Reading, England

So just finished night 2/3 and its been ok so far. As for the breaks I get 20 mins on my early and late shifts while I get 90 mins on my nights. Now, after dinner I'm off to a nice 9 hour sleep ready for the next one.

Bruins fan till the end.

Never assume anything, it will only make an ass of you and me. 
   
 
Forum Index » Off-Topic Forum
Go to: