Conti shift workers -"bodyclock"- wasting my days off sleep

[CarbonXKR]

JumboBeef said:

I followed that link and the links in that page. It pretty much says what I said up there, it isn't so much the shift working that kills you, it is the lack of sleep caused by shift working. Because of this I really try to get 8 hours sleep in a 24 hour block. Staying awake for 24 hours straight is very unhealthy.

I do the same as you and aim for 8 hours in 24. I work 3 x 12 hr days then 3 x 12 hr nights followed by 6 off. Dayshift in bed by 10pm latest up at 0530, nights bed 0730 to 1200 then 1330 to 1700. Your body needs the rest or else you will risk damaging something seriously. Some colleagues I work with try and sleep minimum on nights and they're the same ones that always make mistakes on a regular basis.

[Brigand]

I feel the same OP, I've been working the two days, two nights, four off shift for over four years now, and this past two years I find it very hard to be in a state of "not tired".

Up until recently, on my swing shift I would stay up late, say one or two in the morning, then sleep in late to around lunch time before getting up then heading out to work at 1900. I was finding though that I was just as tired, if not more, for having so much sleep, so have recently started to go to bed around 2300 on a swing shift then getting up around 0900. I'm still tired by the time I start work, but it feels a bit different to what I'd feel had I slept until the afternoon.

I can't wait to find myself a new job and get back to normal working hours, not only am I sick of the damage shifts are doing to my health, they're destroying what tiny social life I have as most of my time off seems to be weekdays, and as everyone else is out at work I'm left mooching about on my own, praying for my next weekend off to arrive so I can re-integrate with people again.

In the past I have done something of a 'hard reset' of my body clock by sleeping the entire first day off away. I'd come home, jump into bed after a short while, then sleep all day, all evening and after I'm unable to force myself back to sleep normally around 0300 then I get up and feel full of beans for the rest of the day. My body then reaches a point of being tired by early evening and needing to be asleep by 2000, but then I wake naturally around 0500 feeling refreshed, and this will then carry on until I break that cycle by getting back onto shifts or something else.

I manage that sleep marathon session a couple of times a year and it works a treat, but I'm not sure if that's any good for me either after reading recently that any more than eight hours sleep a night is bad for you!

[rigga]

Been working shifts for the last 13 year's, never had a decent sleep pattern in all that time, usually like some on first nightshift I get up normal time and go about 21 to 24 hrs without sleep then get about 5 Max whilst still on nights, days I get about 5 or 6, more when I'm off shift, which luckily on my current rosta I only do 14 shifts a month like this
All 11.3 hr shifts
Days Thursday to Sunday (4)
Monday off
Nights Tuesday to Thursday (3)
Fri sat and sun off
Mon to wed days (3)
Thurs off
Fri to Monday nights (4)
9 days off
Repeat.
Surprising how fast the year passes these days.

[DervVW]

I too do shifts 12 hours, night and day, burt at least they are not too mixed up, I get two weeks of nights and two weeks of days.
I like the free time and knowing I only go to work like 15 times a month vs 20 (Assuming 4 weeks)
I have found that the commman mistake people I work with make is that they have free time where they should be sleeping and feeling they are wasting time...
I still average around 7 -8 hours of sleep but I split to 4 hours sometimes.

[audikentman]

I've done various shift patterns over 30+ years of work, you don't get used to them. Just try to think of the 4 days off.