Exhausted

[Will2BLean]

I have just started working 2nd shift this week, and it's really wearing me out. I know that I'm getting enough sleep because I can't roll myself out of bed until I've had 8 or 8.5 hours sleep. I haven't been training hard this week either, so that isn't it... I'm convinced that it's the change in my shift. Whenever I worked my 8-4:30, I had no problem going to bed at 11:00 and waking up at 6am to run a couple miles and lift. Is there anything I can do to make it easier? It's so frustrating!

 

[*Bunny*]

I have just started working 2nd shift this week, and it's really wearing me out. I know that I'm getting enough sleep because I can't roll myself out of bed until I've had 8 or 8.5 hours sleep. I haven't been training hard this week either, so that isn't it... I'm convinced that it's the change in my shift. Whenever I worked my 8-4:30, I had no problem going to bed at 11:00 and waking up at 6am to run a couple miles and lift. Is there anything I can do to make it easier? It's so frustrating!

I apologize if you have already posted your diet...

But Are you eating? Eating enough? Skipping meals? Change of weather? Period? Environmental/Emotional Issues?

So I can understand better, can you give me a typical day from wake up till sleep? What exactly does 2nd shift consist of? 5pm - 1:30 am?

 

[Will2BLean]

I posted my diet yesterday, because I wanted some suggestions. Here's the linky.
http://www.elitefitness.com/forum/showthread.php?t=430512

Jenscats brought to my attention that I wasn't getting enough calories, and I was able to bump that up 200 calories yesterday. Hopefully that will help.

I set my alarm for 8:00am but the past couple days I roll out of bed at 9:30. I put on my shoes and get on the treadmill and only walk a mile, then do some light lifting or abwork, depending on the day. I eat breakfast right after that. I have to leave for work at 2:00, so I fit in a snack, lunch, errands, and housecleaning before then. Go to work and sit on my butt answering phones until around 11:15. I get home about 12:00 and go straight to bed. Usually I toss and turn for 30 minutes to an hour before falling asleep.

I just realized how uneventful my life was.

 

[Will2BLean]

Oh. I forgot. I never skip meals and the weather has been pretty consistent. The only big difference I've made is my shift change and that isn't anything I can control. I don't exactly like it (since I don't get to see my husband during the week at all), but I guess I'll have to deal with it until they change my shift in 3 months.

 

[*Bunny*]

I posted my diet yesterday, because I wanted some suggestions. Here's the linky.
http://www.elitefitness.com/forum/showthread.php?t=430512

Jenscats brought to my attention that I wasn't getting enough calories, and I was able to bump that up 200 calories yesterday. Hopefully that will help.

I set my alarm for 8:00am but the past couple days I roll out of bed at 9:30. I put on my shoes and get on the treadmill and only walk a mile, then do some light lifting or abwork, depending on the day. I eat breakfast right after that. I have to leave for work at 2:00, so I fit in a snack, lunch, errands, and housecleaning before then. Go to work and sit on my butt answering phones until around 11:15. I get home about 12:00 and go straight to bed. Usually I toss and turn for 30 minutes to an hour before falling asleep.

I just realized how uneventful my life was.

awww Here's a fake

I agree with Jens... up the cals, your ratio's look good, just gotta feed yourself a little bit more, maybe get some more energy

The sitting in an office, answering phones, INSIDE etc can really take a toll on you, I know this... Hang in there girl

 

[Will2BLean]

Thanks, Bunny!

I'll keep a close eye on my calories and make sure I keep them up even if I have to force feed myself.

Hopefully I'll get used to the later shifts, too. I know I haven't given my body enough time to adjust.... I'm just not happy that I have to make the adjustment. hehehe

 

[*Bunny*]

Thanks, Bunny!

I'll keep a close eye on my calories and make sure I keep them up even if I have to force feed myself.

Hopefully I'll get used to the later shifts, too. I know I haven't given my body enough time to adjust.... I'm just not happy that I have to make the adjustment. hehehe

I hear that! I MUST readjust my brain to deal with my current work situation otherwise I crack... and it's not pretty

One day, I will be doing what I love, what makes me happy *sigh* Until then time forr Meal # 2

toodles

 

[jenscats5]

Actually, I think I remember reading somewhere a while back that people on shift changes experience an effect similar to jet lag. So how you feel suddenly due to the shift change could very well be due to the shift change itself.

 

[Will2BLean]

Actually, I think I remember reading somewhere a while back that people on shift changes experience an effect similar to jet lag. So how you feel suddenly due to the shift change could very well be due to the shift change itself.

Ooh! Interesting! (and good to know!) I guess there is hope after all!

 

[jenscats5]

Ooh! Interesting! (and good to know!) I guess there is hope after all!

I did a quickie Google search & found this:

Shiftwork is not innocuous. Despite this fact, shiftwork is predicted to grow in response to demands of a 24-hour society and economic globalization. Shiftwork is a major occupational stressor and has been linked with a myriad of social, psychological, and medical problems as well as increased rates of injury. Some studies report that night workers suffer a drop in alertness between 2-4 am. This drop is linked to a circadian nadir and corresponds to the time at which many major errors and accidents occur. Accidents at Three Mile Island, Bhopal, and Chernobyl, as well as the Exxon-Valdez oil spill, each occurred between midnight and 4 am.

I found it here:

http://www.emedicine.com/emerg/topic835.htm

 

[Will2BLean]

Oh my!

 

[buffalogal]

I have just started working 2nd shift this week, and it's really wearing me out. I know that I'm getting enough sleep because I can't roll myself out of bed until I've had 8 or 8.5 hours sleep. I haven't been training hard this week either, so that isn't it... I'm convinced that it's the change in my shift. Whenever I worked my 8-4:30, I had no problem going to bed at 11:00 and waking up at 6am to run a couple miles and lift. Is there anything I can do to make it easier? It's so frustrating!

I think you hit the nail on the head. I rotate shifts once a week and it is very similar to what you experience with jet lag. A very lethargic feeling like you're not all there and that you're moving in slow motion. I've found that on shifts that you have a hard time with, in your case 2nd shift, in my case 8am-4pm (wierd, I know!) you may have to up your sleep by another hour or so.

When I work mids and evenings I can survive on 5-6 hours. Day shifts, I have to consistently get 9-9.5 hours or I cannot function. The more you work it, the better it will get. I also notice that if I'm consistent with my workouts I can handle the shiftwork easier - at least that is somewhat of a routine.

Don't worry sweetie - your body will adapt. Especially since you have three months to get used to it. Wait until you switch again. I guarantee you'll go through the whole re-adjustment phase again.

And Jens quote she found is exactly right on. The mental and psychological toll of shift-work is something that is hard to explain except to another shift-worker. But it's there!

Just for kicks, check out this website: http://www.bio-chart.com/

Some of the people I work with have found it pretty reliable as far as predicting how we'll feel from shift to shift. I'm not sure how accurate it will always be, but I think there is something to it.

Feel free to pm me if you have any questions or need any moral support. I've done this for 4 years and counting so I know exactly what you're going through. Only 26 years to go for me...

 

[Will2BLean]

Buffalogal, 26 more years of shift changes?!?! I would go insane!

I stuck my birthday in that biorythms chart and my intellectual level is at critical. Hmm.. Anyways, I woke up at 9:40 today. That's the latest I've woke up all week. I haven't been setting my alarm clock, though. I have just been giving myself as much rest as I can get. Since I woke up so late, I thought I would skip today's workout, BUT since you said that being consistent with your workouts help you, I'll do mine too! It's an easy workout anyways.

I seriously don't know if I could function if I had to change shifts constantly.

 

[musclemom]

Will2, my son is in the service and is on mids. One of the first things he learned is that you can't get right home from work and go right to sleep, you have to have decompression time.

What you have to do (which is what his entire class was instructed) is essentially rotate your entire schedule but keep it the same ... does that make sense?

The other thing, it really takes close to a week to get into the swing of things.

Buffalogal ... OMG how can you do it??? Shift changes EVERY week, what kind of job IS THAT???

 

[Will2BLean]

musclemom, I have been trying to go to sleep as soon as I get home. All I do is toss and turn for a while.

As for rotating my whole schedule... that does make sense, but that would really throw off my weekends. Saturday and Sunday are the only times I get to see my husband at all (well, other than seeing him asleep when I get home ), and if I slept during the day I wouldn't get to see him at all. I'm really kicking myself in the butt for changing jobs right now... I just did it because it was a closer drive.

 

[musclemom]

As for rotating my whole schedule... that does make sense, but that would really throw off my weekends. Saturday and Sunday are the only times I get to see my husband at all (well, other than seeing him asleep when I get home ), and if I slept during the day I wouldn't get to see him at all. I'm really kicking myself in the butt for changing jobs right now... I just did it because it was a closer drive.

My son keeps his schedule when he's visiting with us; we get up around 7:30 in the morning and go to bed around midnight. He gets up around 1:00 p.m. and corks off sometime in the late morning hours (5:00 a.m. ish???) ... it's just too hard on him to try to keep up with us, and we can't function much after midnight. Think of it this way, you're putting your body through jet lag every time you change your schedule.

I can understand the marriage thing ... I'm not even going to try to be a smartass and give you a glib answer on that one. It's something you have to work out with your husband. Sit down, talk with him, see where his head is at.

I can tell you after 21 years total marriage (to two different men) a sound marriage is built on the quality of the time you spend together as a couple, not the quantity.

 

[Will2BLean]

My son keeps his schedule when he's visiting with us; we get up around 7:30 in the morning and go to bed around midnight. He gets up around 1:00 p.m. and corks off sometime in the late morning hours (5:00 a.m. ish???) ... it's just too hard on him to try to keep up with us, and we can't function much after midnight. Think of it this way, you're putting your body through jet lag every time you change your schedule.

I can understand the marriage thing ... I'm not even going to try to be a smartass and give you a glib answer on that one. It's something you have to work out with your husband. Sit down, talk with him, see where his head is at.

I can tell you after 21 years total marriage (to two different men) a sound marriage is built on the quality of the time you spend together as a couple, not the quantity.

I can understand that. I just feel like I would be cheating both of us out of quality time if I followed a completely different sleep schedule than he does. Our weekends are always so jammed packed with things we love to do, and I don't want to lose any of that time. We've talked about it, and he's going to try to take naps when he gets home from work/gym in the evening, that way when I get home he can stay up for an hour before we go to sleep. He never has problems falling asleep, so I don't think it will affect him much. I, on the other hand, am a horrible sleeper. Hopefully that will take away some of the stress on the situation. For now, I'm thinking about buying a small pack (like a week supply) of thermos from Wal-Mart and taking them at around 7:00 or 8:00 in the morning. That way, when I do get up, I'll have energy to get my day going... at least until I get used to my new schedule.

 

[buffalogal]

Will2, my son is in the service and is on mids. One of the first things he learned is that you can't get right home from work and go right to sleep, you have to have decompression time.

What you have to do (which is what his entire class was instructed) is essentially rotate your entire schedule but keep it the same ... does that make sense?

The other thing, it really takes close to a week to get into the swing of things.

Buffalogal ... OMG how can you do it??? Shift changes EVERY week, what kind of job IS THAT???[/QUOTE]

I know it's hard for some people to believe, but my body (so far) has functioned well with rotating. I'm a meteorologist, and since the weather never stops, neither do we. It pays to LOVE your job - if I didn't, I couldn't do it!

I do the same thing as your son. I do rotate my schedule around the shift I'm working. On midnight, I eat breakfast in the afternoon, lunch before going to work, supper at 3 in the morning, etc etc. Sounds a little absurd but it works for me.

The main thing is finding what works best for you. That may take several weeks but, I promise Will2BLean, you'll get the hang of it.

 

[Sassy69]

Oh I'm sure the change in scheduled did you real good. Particularly if you have a schedule already in place. My little brother worked for at least 2 yrs as night shift as a systems administrator-- messed w/ his ability to sleep and general quality of life for quite awhile. Here's some stuff on shift work & your circadian clock:

http://www.stanford.edu/~dement/circadian.html

 

[buffalogal]

Just curious, Will2BLean, if you're body has adjusted to the shift change? I hope it has for your sake, or it'll be a long couple of months. Good luck!

 

[Will2BLean]

Awwie, thanks for asking! Last week my shift got changed AGAIN!.. but I'm loving my new shift, and I'm almost back on track. I'm working from 10:00am - 6:30pm. I took last week a bit easy because I was feeling lethargic since I was somehow used to staying up late (already)! This week I'm waking up when my husband does (6am), so I'll have plenty of time to workout before I go to work.. which reminds me, I need to get my workout planned out for this week!

 

[8x271]

i've been on a rotating shift for 17 years! every 28 days we switch. my bosses all know the hazards of rotating shifts but refuse to give us permanent shifts, (even though all the bosses have permanent shifts, go figure). their reasoning is that a rotating shift makes for a better employee. whatever...

anyway, went to the doc finally after 17 years and told him i had insomnia and i wanted something for it. he starting talking about meditation, etc etc. like i've never tried any of that in all those years. he finally gave me a prescription. i hate having to take it but i need my sleep.

so to all those who suffer the same bullshit - i feel your pain.

 

[Will2BLean]

WOW! I couldn't work a job where I constantly had to change shifts. I would be a miserable human being. I really admire anyone who can do that AND workout, all while staying awake and on track!

 

[buffalogal]

It's a lot of work to keep up but my body has adapted pretty quick to not having a set routine anymore. Glad to hear you're back on a shift you like and have time to spend with hubby.

 

[Will2BLean]

I'm glad that you adapted to it quickly. I don't have any patience and I was frustrated the first week!

I really am loving my schedule now! I wouldn't mind working a bit earlier, but I'm completely satisfied... now if I could only like my job! haha