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I have worked as a hotel night auditor for 7 years. Great job. I live in a resort area and week nights are quiet. Week end nights might have guests moving around until 1 or 1:30 and then it is peace. I spend hours on my lap top. Bad side is sleeping. One thing I would say for sure is stay away from Ambien. At the end of the shift I am very often confused about what day it is. A really bad thing is if you are off Thursday night and come home and go to bed after work Thursday morning it would be hard sleeping Thursday night. So you try to stay awake and are miserable. I think of my days off as the days after the nights I haven't worked. Of course then I am up 24 hours or so by the time I am off on the first night back.
I was stationed in Alaska, and can relate to that, in fact, you go to work at nearly sundown, get off at sunrise, try to sleep, if you awaken before you get 6 to 8 hours sleep, you look outside and it's as bright as it was when you got off, you look at a clock and you get zero information from that, then you go try to find out if it's tomorrow yet wondering if you slept through the shift you were supposed to work. Even worse during the winter months, it's dark when you go to work, and dark when your shift is over, totally confusing. What day is it??!!
I was stationed in Alaska, and can relate to that, in fact, you go to work at nearly sundown, get off at sunrise, try to sleep, if you awaken before you get 6 to 8 hours sleep, you look outside and it's as bright as it was when you got off, you look at a clock and you get zero information from that, then you go try to find out if it's tomorrow yet wondering if you slept through the shift you were supposed to work. Even worse during the winter months, it's dark when you go to work, and dark when your shift is over, totally confusing. What day is it??!!
I had a couple of incidents when I lived in Alaska. Waking up and not knowing what time/day it was! Really is it 6 AM or 6 PM??? Summer is a real trip up there. I never worked the overnight hours but I remember driving home from work at 11 PM in broad daylight, wearing sunglasses and seeing people out in full force on the golf courses and softball fields. I don't think people ever sleep in the summer up there. Then the total opposite in winter!
Third shift is hard. I worked overnight only a month or so. And I never got used to it. Now I like second shift hours the best, but overnight, way too hard. I would try to find something else with better hours.
I did when I was younger. Tough gig, your body is telling you that you should be asleep, and you do good until maybe 4 am and then it is like the clock stops dead. But my ex wife is an RN who worked 3rd shift for years and didn't mind it, so I guess it depends on the person.
I have seen very good results from taking a shred of a benzo to sleep. The stress of staying awake pours adrenaline through your system (after the 4am "death hour"). Benzos knock down the adrenaline and you can sleep. I haven't seen a need to take increasing amounts/habituation/addiction over my many years. Half a milligram of Klonopin and I can sleep. On nights off, I don't need anything, but sleep like 12-15 hours with heavy heavy dreaming, so I know this can't be good for health. But sometimes you have to do what you have to do.
Yes, darken your sleeping area as much as possible and of course have it quiet (ear plugs). No wild eating/drinking before going to sleep (good luck there).
I have worked every shift on earth, I now work 2nd shift 3 to 11 and like it , been doing that shift on n off for 16 years, as for 3 shift'' It was the worst for me, I worked a weekly shift of 1 day shift, 2 evening shifts and 2 over nights. every week, it was Insane I didn't know what day it was or up from down I was living out of vending machines, my health went to pot in one year and had gained almost 30lbs..crazzzy..
I forgot about forgetting what day or time of day it was .. and I gained even though I was eating less ... I used to put a pillow on my head to try and block out the light (didn't work) ... plugged my ears (especially in the summer with all the kids outside playing and screaming at the top of their little lungs) .. got ear infections so had to stop that ....my dream was to paint my bedroom windows black so there wouldn't be any light ... took the ambien (made me neurotic and psychotic) which didn't help me sleep anyway .. after so many years of screwing up my sleep I have to take vicodin and vallium both so I can sleep at night ... like I said before wish I could re-do my life ...
I've worked daylight hours only on a few occasions in my life becasue I'm turned off by the politicking and cliques that invariably seem to develop in that atmosphere. I've worked both second (evening) and third (overnight) shift -- note my "handle" -- and found the former much easier; you get a little time to yourself both before and after work, and only have to deal with afternoon traffic.
For whatever reason, changing from evening to overnight work sometimes caused sleeping issues -- but not always. It did seem to help if you got off duty before the sun rose too high. Non-prescription sleelping aids like diephenhydramine don't seem to work as well when the sun is out.
So it can be a challenge, but as Alexander Pope said, "All our knowledge is ourseves to know."; As I write this, I'm in the last two months before semi-retirement, at age 64, and working a ten-hour overnight shift (6:30 PM to 5 AM), four days a week; very few sleep problems after the initial change two years and three months ago.
Last edited by 2nd trick op; 11-21-2013 at 12:13 PM..
Hi - you did mention you are 62? I worked the graveyard shift for about 20 or so years (can't remember anymore) and for the last 8 years it was 12 hours (6pm to 6am) ... I was finally laid off almost two years ago at 63 ... I never got more than three hours of sleep a day (and even on my days off I couldn't sleep) .. I developed high blood pressure a long time ago and have been on meds since. It was a 'sitting' job (computer operations) so had developed spinal stenosis, osteoarthritis and major degenerative disc disease mainly in my neck from 'sitting' for 12 hours each night. During that time I never was able to socialize with anyone .. even co-workers (and never mind the 'day-ladies' .... never got to know them) ... when you work during the day people 'see' you and will at least acknowledge your work ... when you work nights you don't exist .. the work gets done but no one knows you did it. There was never any time to continue my education (believe me I tried) so I could get out of working those nights. Now at 65 I can't even get a part time job ... I'm limited by my disabilities .. (even tried walmart once - didn't last long as I can't stand for longer than ten or so minutes - or sit or walk without a cane) ... so now at 65 I have no friends .. I don't even know what I like to do anymore ... can't remember the last time I went out for anything other than groceries ... if this is only a 'temporary' or part-time job maybe you can try it but at 62 I would probably stay away ... unless you already have friends and family that you are connected to. Wish I could go back and re-do my life ... too late now.
My heart goes out to you!! I just had my first MRI, have spinal stenosis, DDD, and osteo-arthristis. I am now in the high pain level of the degeneration, its crushing. I worked for 30 years nonstop and never went to the doctor for it , I just took ibruprophen or 'toughed it out' till finally the day came this year in October, when I lost balance and hit the ground. Theres no toughing it out now. I've lost all range of function in my left arm and am plagued with neck pain/headaches. Now, can't even brush my hair. Every hour is a struggle physically now, I'm shocked at how my life has completely changed, I cant even watch a movie in a movie theater. And I can relate to when you said 'I dont know what I like to do anymore"..and its such a huge task for me to get groceries, I'm too exhausted and in pain to do anything else, except cook and clean at a slow pace..
The med process has been soooooo slow, my PCP hasnt even submitted her referral to my insurance company for a orthopedic and pain specialist, its been month!! I went in Monday and todays Thurs, they still didnt send it... I know they dont care, and with 'thanksgiving' and christmas holidays it'll be forever to get something happening. My PCP wont give pain meds, I can only sleep propped up because of my neck. I'm 47 and still have my 16 and 18 year old living with me. I'm hoping PT or orthopedic or somebody(chiropractor?) might be able to help me function. Meantime, I'm looking into upping my Life Insurance policies to get my children thru college if need be. I dont know whats going to happen.
My fall tore my shoulder apart, MRI terms like tendinosis, bursitis, ect. If I twerk it to hard the intense pain is so sharp I lose my breath and almost pass out. I dont know if its an injury or what, my pcp knows nothing and the first fall happened in beginning of October...I'm thinking of going to an ER for pain meds to cope. I'm thinking of changing my PCP, mabey someone who knows a bit more...
I have a new appreciation for disabled people, it's like no one believes you and no one cares, at best they pretend to..
I actually don't mind working night shift but my body doesn't particularly respond well to it.
I worked night shift at my last job and I work night shift again at my current job. I have drastically changed things so it doesn't turn me into a zombie as much this time around.
(1) You need to get on a schedule and stay on that schedule as much as possible. That means I usually take a little nap at some point and stay up most of the night on my days off even. (Find something to occupy yourself with while the rest of the world is asleep.)
(2) Buy curtains/shades that block most of the light for your bedroom. I didn't have them at first---what a mistake.
(3) Do not get up HOURS before your shift. It will kill you. You need to sleep as late as possible before you need to get up and go to work. It's hard but it's so much better for you.
(4) Do not make excuses to stuff your face. Because my sleeping schedule was so erratic, I started eating all kinds of things at all kinds of hours. If you're eating meals before/after work, bring something light for the overnight shift. Don't make excuses to run to 7-11, BK, etc. most nights. That, coupled with a lack of ANY type of exercise (I basically stopped doing anything after the first year of night shift) meant a fifteen pound weight gain in a few short months. I've lost it all now (and then some) but so many people put on weight when they start working night shift.
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... like I said before wish I could re-do my life ... 
