How to Prepare Yourself to Switch from Night Shifts to Day Shifts You put in years of working the night shift as a nurse, mainly because that is what newly hired nurses do. Now, finally you have the option of switching to day shift. As exciting as it is, there will be some transitioning, and you will have to make some adjustments until you are accustomed to working day shift. Related: How to Prepare for Taking Care of Chronically Ill Children Tips for transitioning Reset your sleep-wake cycle by refraining from eating for 12 to 16 hours before you want to be fully awake. When you begin eating again, your internal clock will reset as if it is starting a new day. Address your new sleep schedule. Create an evening routine that prepares you for bed instead of getting ready for work. Establish a comfortable and quiet activities that your brain associates with going to sleep, such as brushing teeth, reading, deep breathing or listening to relaxing music. Prepare breakfasts that kick-start your day. Many people have trouble eating first thing in the morning, but it is beneficial to put this meal in place when you are adapting to your day shift. Include foods that provide sustained energy such as oatmeal with fruit or whole grain bread with nut butter. Drink a cup of coffee or tea to ward off drowsiness. Caffeinated drinks can provide a temporary lift, but don’t overdo it. Refrain from consuming drinks with caffeine at least five hours before going to bed. Get back into the world of the daytime worker. Begin planning activities in the evenings. Participate in activities during the day when possible. Buy a calendar and write down dates, times and commitments monitor your progress in adapting to the day shift. During the day, schedule health checkups or other appointments you put off when you were sleeping during daytime hours. Call friends you haven’t seen in a while and schedule a time to meet. Evening shift work often gets in the way of social activities, and evening shift workers lose contact with friends and acquaintances. You might find yourself fading early after a full day’s work, but your body adjusts over time. Adjusting to Shift Change You are likely to feel some effects both mentally and physically when you transition from night shift to day shift. It may seem like you have finally
lucked out being switched to day shift, and you may have, but accept that there will be some adjustment time involved, and there is no way around it. Some symptoms you might experience during the first 60 days of transitioning from night to day shift. • Insomnia at night- you may experience the inability to sleep during your new sleeping hours. Some of this is obviously because you have stayed up at night for a prolonged period. You may also have some subconscious concerns about what may be happening during the night shift that you just transferred from. You may not be there at the hospital, but your mind may indeed still be there. You’re working conditions and environment becomes a part of you, so it’s natural you are going to miss it, even if you are completely ready to transition to day shift. You cared for the patients during the night, and now here you lay, not helping anyone, and unable to sleep. You will adjust to night time sleeping, it will just take some time, so be patient. Try to focus on your new shift responsibilities and patients. Day shift for a nurse is very different from night shift, so there may be a pretty significant learning curve. Eventually you will learn to leave the night-shift behind and focus on your new day shift responsibilities. •Day Shift Responsibilities- day shift is very different from night shift. Not that one is more difficult than the other; it’s just that they are very different to work as a nurse. Night shifts involve patient interaction, charting, stocking supplies and updating notes. Day shift has much more interaction with patients, families, and the patient’s physician. It can take a toll on your stress level until you have adjusted to your new responsibilities. In the interim, you may experience headaches, sore muscles from tension, anxiety, uncontrolled daytime tiredness, depression, and general body aches. Many of these symptoms will come from the very big change in your routine. You have to allow your body and mind some time to transition. Don’t push yourself, and allow an adequate adjustment period. Related: What does a Diabetes Nurse Do?
Tips for a Successful Transition • Providing you have ample notice of your shift change, start to prepare about 3 weeks ahead of time. Begin by waking up an hour earlier than usual after working the night shift. Increase that hour as the time approaches the actual change. You may feel as though you are lacking sleep; however it will help you once you have made the switch. You have to retrain your mind
and body to an entirely different lifestyle and it is going to take some time to be content with your choice to work days. •Plan to work into the day shift if possible. If you have vacation days saved up, this would be a great time to make use of them. Working one day shift and taking the next day off, followed by working 2 day shifts and then taking one day off. This would give you the chance to adjust without pushing yourself to work 3 or 4 day shifts in a row. •Rotate your meal schedule slowly. You may find that you have intestinal problems for the first couple months of your transition. Your entire body is making the adjustment to the new schedule, and the digestive system is often the first part of the body to react to a big change. It may be a good idea to stick to a lighter than usual bland diet for the first couple weeks of your transition. Also, consider taking over the counter stomach medications to work in case you need to rely on a remedy to help you complete your shift. Also, don’t forget the probiotics, they can help with the balancing of good bacteria and help get your stomach back to normal. •Be patient with your new co-workers- it may seem like you are being pushed and pulled in a thousand different directions when you first switch to a day shift. Daytime hours on a hospital floor are much busier than night hours. You have a variety of staff that are not present at night, and you often have volunteers, and administrative staff that are not present at night. You also have the attending physicians that will be present during the day shift, and not often seen at night. It is just an entirely different scenario than what you are used to, and if a day shift nurse transitioned tonight, they would encounter the same issues. Accept from the beginning that it is going to be a while before you are comfortable in your new surroundings, and feel as though you are part of the day shift. It’s like starting an entirely new job, and you are most likely aware it can be a slow process, but in the long run you end up happy and love your job. Don’t be too hard on yourself, it’s a different environment, and you are out of your normal element. You are still the same nurse, and you can still do the same job. Ask If you can have a mentor for the first few days working day shift, just so you can see what the normal daytime procedures are on the floor. You will slowly be introduced to the administrative staff that generally does not work at night, and you will see volunteers and therapy dogs, it will be a great experience once the initial transition is over. You will be tired for a while; after all you are working the hours that you are accustomed to sleeping through. After the first 3-4
weeks, you will notice that your body is adapting to day hours, and you will be happy that you made the transition. Related: International Nurses Association - What's Your Superpower? T-shirt Please follow us on Facebook, Linkedin, Pinterest and Twitter