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As most of you may (or may not) know, in my “real life” I’m a Respiratory Therapist at a large hospital in central Arkansas. I have worked as a Respiratory Therapist for almost 10 years and I love my job! When I started my job as a new grad I went immediately to night shift and stayed there for about three years before finally getting to move to days. After spending six years working day shift I made the transition back to nights about six months ago for the opportunity to work exclusively in the Neonatal ICU.
Making that transition back to working nights actually wasn’t too bad! The worst part is getting your body used to sleeping during the day time again and as a person who likes there to be zero amount of light in the room when I sleep that was a bit of a challenge. HA! But I made it work and today I am going to share some of my “night shift necessities” with you!!
First things first I like to keep myself on a schedule. I’m not married and I don’t have kids so this really isn’t too hard for me. On my nights off work I find myself either staying awake when I get home in the mornings until about noon or 1pm and then taking a nap so I can still sleep that night if I need to switch back to a day time schedule for a few days.
If I’m only off for a night or two I usually just go to bed at my normal time and either sleep as late as I want or get up a little earlier if I have something to do. But on those nights I do try and stay up all night so my work doesn’t suffer when I go back. Luckily I have lots of friends who work nights with me so we keep busy!
Now let’s get to my actual night shift necessities!!
Dark Room
The first thing I bought when I found out I was going back to nights was a good pair of blackout curtains. I actually went through a few pair before I found a pair that actually blocked the night and looked cute…because let’s face it, a girl must have cute blackout curtains. HA! I am black and white striped obsessed and these are the blackout curtains I use! I actually have them in my bedroom, living room and kitchen/dining room. I used them all summer to block the light and I think that’s what helped keep my electric bill down!
The next thing I did was buy a new sleep mask. The one I had from being on night shift previously was big and bulky and I kept waking up because I took it off in my sleep. I did a little research and found this one on Amazon and have loved it so far!! It’s very lightweight, has an adjustable strap and has contoured eye spots so I can open my eyes and not wake up.
Routine
I mentioned earlier that sticking to a routine was key in helping me switch back to (and stay sane) while working nights. One thing I made sure to do was keep my skincare routine the same and keep the same “night time routine” as I did when I worked and lived on a daytime schedule. I have stuck to my same getting home from work, letting the dog out, taking a quick shower, doing my PM skincare routine, hopping into bed and using my favorite night time lip mask and nail mask and reading before bed. Staying on the same schedule has really helped me wind down, especially when I get home and it’s light outside and all I want to do is stay awake. Ugh.
Speaking of my PM skincare routine I did change a few things but only minor things! I added this eye mask (because these under eye bags are the work of Satan himself and no amount of sleep can help those) and switched up my exfoliator to this one and my facial oil to this one. I find the smell of roses soothing and I also heard that the Duchess of Cambridge uses a rose hip oil as a part of her skincare routine so if it’s good enough for her, then it’s good enough for me! And that exfoliator is fantastic and not only do I use it on my face, I use it on my underarms because since switching to a natural deodorant I have discovered the need to underarm exfoliation and this one is gentle yet effective. Never underestimate the value of good exfoliation.
Caffeine
And no “night shift necessitates” post would be complete without talking about caffeine. I consume more caffeine than I probably should but it’s a necessity, especially on my first night back at work after a few days off. I usually drink a Spark when I wake up and then coffee as needed throughout the night. I love this pumpkin spice McDonald’s coffee and the Brown Sugar Crumble Donut is a new fave! It smells sooooo good!!
So there you have it, my night shift necessities!! If you have any questions about night shift or any of these products then let me know!!
Do you work night shift??
What are your must haves for staying up all night??
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I worked night shift for a few months back in the day, and it was HARD! I had to cover the bedroom windows with aluminum foil AND wear a sleep mask if I wanted to get any sleep.
These are great tips. My daughter is going to school to be an RN. She has already been told by family members that are in the nursing field to be prepared to work the night shift. I’ll have to share these tips with her.
Oh yeah, caffeine would be a big one for me. I worked the night shift when my kids were babies ;) They loved the night life, so I’d be up for most of it. Caffeine was my best friend, let me tell you.
My husband works night shift 2 weeks on then 2 weeks days. It can be hard going back and forth! I agree that great blackout curtains are a must have! I also use the Volition Tumeric Brightening Polish! LOVE it!
One of my daughter’s friend’s moms just started working the midnight shift at a local hospital. I’m going to share your post with her. She’s been having a tough time adjusting to her new routine.
Wow what an amazing job you have! This article comes at the right time, as my fiancee is getting ready to start his night flights, as a pilot. Our home is so sunny, during the day. I love it, but we do need to make some changes for the vampire of the home haha.
I worked overnights for several years and I never had any issues sleeping during the day. I just felt that it aged me quicker, it might have been the stress from the job and the fact that I was a single mom. I ended up switching back to days because it was so much easier.
I don’t work night shifts, but have before. It’s a hard shift. I definitely agree with the blackout curtains. It is hard to find them and still look cute. I also suggest a white noise machine outside the bedroom door. It’s incredible how much noise those things filter out.
Yes you have totally nailed it these are all the best things to have when you are working night shifts! So smart!!
I have tried working night shifts too when I worked at this telecommunication company and my daytime was spent sleeping. I didn’t have any of those necessary things besides coffee. though :)
I love that you’re working on NICU. Yayyyyyyy! You’re taking care of the babes. I bought one of those eye masks and for some reason I would take it off during the night. I’m not sure why. I’m going to play around with the band to see if it was too tight. However, I wonder if it’s because I sleep on my belly. I hate how these cheap flat ones touch my eye but I actually keep them on during the night. So, I’m wondering if it really is my sleep position that causes the difference. – yolonda
I’ve worked night shift a few times and it’s not my cup of tea. Your necessities are spot on though, these would make night shift a lot more pleasant.
I don’t think I’ve ever worked night shift in that sense, but I am such a night owl and in days gone by I used to stay up all night. I would say the caffeine is especially important :)
Blackout curtains are a must! I have them and I don’t even work a night shift lol but that’s because I like to sleep in til 9:30 without the blaring sun in my eyeballs!