Overcoming the Challenges of Daytime Sleep for Night Shift Workers
Shift work can be difficult to adapt to, especially during the daytime when colleagues are used to sleeping. For shift workers, daytime sleep is essential both for productivity and for optimising overall wellbeing. This article will explore the challenges associated with daytime sleep for night shift workers, and how best to overcome them.
Having to arrange daytime sleep can be difficult, and shift workers may need to manage their sleep times in order to ensure they get refreshment and rehabilitation. Further, the dark, quiet environment that is ideal for a quality night’s sleep can be hard to come by during the day. In these cases, shift workers will need strategies to make daytime sleep as comfortable and restorative as possible.
Finally, after disruptive, unnatural sleep patterns become so habitual it can be difficult to adjust and stick to a regular routine to get quality sleep, even when there is adequate opportunity. This means revising techniques and shaping behaviours in order to get the most from daytime sleep.
Setting Up the Ideal Environment
Though quiet, dark, warm places are not always available, there are certain steps that can be taken to improve the environment and ensure better sleep:
- Long, blackout curtains or a sleep mask can be used to block out light.
- A relaxing, sleep-friendly atmosphere can be created with calming smells of lavender or peppermint oil.
- Noise levels can be reduced by using a fan or ear plugs – both of which help improve the quality of sleep.
Scheduling and Efficiency
For those who struggle to find the time and motivation to sleep while working night shifts, it’s best to come up with a workable plan. Scheduling allows the flexibility to fit daytime sleep in, making it easier to adjust to unnatural sleep patterns.
Setting alarms or using timers can help with organisation, and being prepared for when it’s time to sleep will ensure nothing comes in the way. Furthermore, minimising distractions like leaving devices out of the bedroom can help increase the efficiency of daytime sleep.
It’s important to give yourself time to relax and rest, and this won’t always be possible during the day. Shift workers should plan for any obligations, appointments or commitments and arrange to have enough time to get adequate rest in between.
Developing Healthy Habits
It can be hard to make the most out of daytime sleep when shift workers become used to the unnatural patterns of staying up in the day and sleeping at night. It is important to reset the body and this means developing healthy sleep habits.
As shift workers adjust to sleeping during the day, a gradual approach is best. This may include slightly extending sleep or waking times each day until a normal pattern is achieved. Establishing daily activities that can help signal to the body when it’s time to sleep and wake, for example eating lunch or dinner, will help set this routine.
Setting the setting an environment before going to bed can also help the body’s internal clock adjust to shift work. This may involve improving lighting and eating habits during night shift hours to encourage alertness, as well as avoiding bright screens an hour or two before, to get the body ready for sleep.
Conclusion
Succeeding at shift work while getting enough daytime sleep is not easy, but following the steps outlined above can make the adjustment easier. Developing a healthy routine and setting up the ideal sleep environment help reset the body’s internal clock and ensure more satisfying daytime sleep.