Helping Staff Cope with Shift Work Sleep Disorder THIS ARTICLE IS EDITED FROM AN UPCOMING PODCAST INTERVIEW WITH HAYLEY LOKAN, AN ORGANISATIONAL PSYCHOLOGIST WHO IS RUNNING A SERIES OF WORKSHOPS FOR THE AHA|SA. Hayley is a former sleep technologist who did shift work while monitoring patients in various sleep clinics, so she brings academic insights as well as personal experience to the sleep issues caused by shift work. WHAT ARE THE SIGNS OF SHIFT WORK SLEEP DISORDERS? The two main symptoms are insomnia which is trouble getting to sleep and staying asleep, and excessive sleepiness. Now they may seem at odds with
each other but let me explain what's happening. Our bodies are naturally set to a 24hour body clock and our hormones support that. So the way that we're built is that we are awake during the day and sleep mostly at night, that's the way that we're wired. Our hormones enable that, so melatonin for example is secreted at certain times that naturally we would expect our body to become sleepy. What's happening with shift work is that you're working at opposite hours to when our bodies would naturally expect us to be working. When you are then trying to go to sleep during the day it can be harder to get to sleep or stay asleep because you might be trying to sleep at say 7, 8 or 9am in the
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morning. This can also then make you feel fatigued and have reduced alertness during the day heading into your shift that night. You’re kind of hitting yourself on both sides. You're sleepy because you're not getting enough sleep but the insomnia is kicking in because you're trying to sleep at times when your body is actually not wired to sleep. WHAT CAN PEOPLE DO IF THEY HAVE A SHIFT WORK SLEEP DISORDER? If this is a chronic problem for you, there are people such as sleep psychologists who I suggest that you talk to. But for some quick tips, make sure that you do make enough time for sleep - don't short-change yourself. If you're finishing your shift at 2, 3 Back to Contents
