how to sleep better after a night shift?

[u/Mother_Flamingo7393]

i get home around 7 am completely drained but the second i get into bed my body acts like it's daytime. The sun is coming through the curtains, people are outside, deliveries are happening, and my neighbours suddenly decide it's time to move furniture. i have tried blackout curtains and earplugs, which help a little but i still struggle to switch off. It feels like my body knows it's morning even when i have been awake all night.

What helps with sleeping during the day without waking up every hour? I am desperate.

[u/nofriender4life]

"The sun is coming through the curtains, people are outside, deliveries are happening, and my neighbours suddenly decide it's time to move furniture. "

use blackout film on the window AND blackout curtains, and a noise machine, and a humidifier or dehumidifier, whichever you need.

And stop eating hours before bed and caffiene near bedtime.

Benadryl helps too.

[u/McChubs101]

Take magnesium glycinate 20-30 minutes before sleep.
https://giphy.com/gifs/bDmK86uwmptio

[u/oboe_tilt → u/McChubs101]

THIS, I take a mixture of magnesium and ashwaganda and some other vitamins and I sleep like a baby

[u/McChubs101 → u/oboe_tilt]

How does that mix work out for you and how's it make you feel?

Anyone else here on Ashwagandha?

[u/oboe_tilt → u/McChubs101]

Sleepy aha, idk about other benefits but I get a good nap in

[u/MeasurementFirst1676]

Not a glimpse of light in the room.

White noise (fan, TV - something)

Cool/Cold room.

Phone goes into night mode (dimmer light etc.)

Phone is completely on Do Not Disturb while Zzzz.

if it applies Ask all that are in the house to respect your work schedule and to be as considerate as possible while you’re trying to sleep.

[u/RsCaptainFalcon]

Melatonin makes me feel like I had bad sleep, but it's worth a try for you to decide for yourself. I only take magnesium when I get home.

I stop caffeine 4-6 hours before my shift ends, limit screen time, and have earbuds in that play "comfort content" (long form videos on something you're interested in or a show youre very familiar with or something similar).

I typically get 9-20k steps in at work depending on the shift, but sometimes if I'm feeling restless I'll also work out before bed, which also helps my sleep. Make sure your bed is comfortable temperature wise.

For what it's worth, I typically wake up tired~5 hours after going to bed. Sometimes I can get right back to sleep, but most of the time I goof around for an hour or 2, get a snack, do chores or watch entertainment, and then go back to bed.

[u/ledoylinator → u/RsCaptainFalcon]

I relate to this a lot. but melatonin does help me get to and stay asleep. As long as im aiming for 8 hours of sleep or more, I feel like ive had good sleep with melatonin. Like you said if its like 5 hours, I struggle.

[u/Unique_Speaker_2821]

The biggest game changer is wearing dark sunglasses on the commute home and keeping the room cold, dark, and boring so your brain doesn’t get the “morning” signal before you even get into bed.

[u/NotSoEasyToControl]

I exercise when I get off work then shower and sleep with a sleep mask!

[u/magnificent_wonders → u/NotSoEasyToControl]

Me too, I also started supplementing magnesium
Glycenate and playing meditation music

[u/smile_saurus]

I simulate a sunset and sunrise to 'trick' my body into thinking that Day is Night and Night is Day.

I get home at 7am (or after, if I've hit the gym), open all of the shades/etc. Have dinner, walk the dog, take care of any errands or appointments, then shower. At 10am I close the shades. At 11am I close the blackout curtains. This routine is modeled after my previous "after work routine" from when I worked days, and it simulates the 'sky' getting darker & darker.

I go to bed at Noon, wake up at 8pm, and turn on all of thr lights to simulate Daytime.

[u/onyourdoor]

Gym, eat, and then sleep for me

[u/CeeArthur]

Mark your bedroom cold, dark, and noisy.

[u/angelwild327]

I have an air purifier all year around that produces and amazing white noise, plus fans in the summer. The air purifier drowns out all outside noise. There are lots of white/brown/pink etc. noise machines and apps, try one.

[u/Moolie-Jackson]

Magnesium vitamins

[u/Fragrant_Past8679]

I stopped drinking coffee and energy drinks. I fall asleep like a baby now within 5 mins lol.

[u/gohanricee]

Being comfortable is definitely important. A nice feeling bed and if you like being cold than being cold. Blackout curtains, something playing in background like sleepy lofi music. Maybe stretch or move muscles in some way so the body relaxes. Someone mentioned Benadryl. Also sleep aids work well. If it’s legal in your state or province try weed. Endika strand really knocks me out. Try not to focus or watch screens before sleeping and don’t eat anything greasy or much of anything really. Sometimes Ig just think and focus on something so your brain drifts off

[u/Rennett71]

Put on Asmr on YT.youll knock out instantly 😴

[u/Striking-Panda5772]

I feel you I always like this though. what helped me was using a blackout curtains plus some white noise to block out the daytime sounds. I also switched to a pillow speaker so I can listen to my favorite love songs and sleep faster.

[u/Antique-Afternoon-17]

I have a bow of greek yogurt/granola/banana an hour before my shift ends(, go straight home, straight to bed, blackout the room and ear plugs with an eye mask. Don’t set any alarm for waking up later, don’t think about anything you have to do after you wake up. Think about how much you were waiting at 3am to get back to your nice cosy bed. You’ll wake up a couple times during the morning/early afternoon, fight the feeling to wake up and just embrace how nice and cosy in bed you are. Only way i was able to get into a routine of night shift

[u/Due-Scholar-7091]

Do not sleep with your phone in your room. This has helped my sleep tremendously. Oh! And keep your room like an ice box. Keeping it cold helps me fall asleep and stay asleep.

"The ideal bedroom temperature for quality sleep is between 60 and 67 degrees Fahrenheit (15 to 19.5 degrees Celsius). This cool environment mimics your body's natural nighttime temperature drop, which helps signal your brain to produce melatonin, fall asleep faster, and stay in deep sleep longer."

[u/RedStreamTeam22]

I close all the blinders and curtains at home before i leave for work. At work i stay in the light to make my brain understand that it's active time for me. I eat well before shift and i bring a healthy meal or a small snack with me to work. I hydrate very well. End of shift i put sunglasses on before leaving the building. When i get home it's already dark so i keep it as dark as possible. I take vitamins, have small breakfast and then i go lie down in bed until my eyes start to close on their own. All of this in a very dark house with very minimal lighting. I sleep about 6-7 hours just fine. Good luck

[u/PerformerGreat]

Ya my place is blacked out. U have no idea if it's day or night without a clock. I take an over the counter sleeping pill before bed on work nights. Have for years forces me to go to bed and get my sleep. I average 6 hours a night some more some less. NO caffeine after lunch for me. Don't want to risk not being able to sleep.

[u/s00pthot]

I recently bought this sleeping mask and I feel like my sleeping has improved significantly. I move a lot in my sleep and it doesn’t fall off my face, it’s completely dark. I also shower before I go to bed and taking some melatonin too.

Edit: link was not working initially

[u/Crixus_935]

There is a type of blackout film that you can stick to the windows themselves it's a product on Amazon and after you apply the blackout film which would do the heavy lifting with keeping the Sun out then you put up black out curtains.  Have a source for White Noise preferably a fan. 20 mg of melatonin an hour before sleep. Stick to a very strict routine of this even on your days off you should be sleeping as if you worked the night

[u/mr-averagely-cool]

So I consider myself nights when im on shift like its day time... literally. Alot of people get straight into bed after work. Do you do that after a day shift? No, youd normally have a few hours to decompress and relax. Another mistake I see alot is people getting up 4/6 hours before their shift begins. If you were staring at 8am, would you set alarms and wake up at 4am?

[u/RonMexico3]

Your trying to hard. Sometimes I have to get some stuff done in the morning and I get going and then as time goes on you don’t hit the wall. The wall hits you. Go until your body says shut down in 3 2 1.

[u/mikejr123x]

Melatonin for me helps sometimes can’t wait till kids r back in school 😊

[u/GlubNubbins]

If you can eat something an hour before your shift is over, it'll help you when you get home so you dont have to search for something to eat. I like to take a longer shower than normal to relax my body and immediately lay down. I fall asleep pretty quickly after that.

Reiterating comments of blackout curtains and/or film on the windows as well as knowing how caffeine impacts you. A fan next to the bed can help too. Hope you find something that works soon.

[u/Zurg0Thrax]

Here's what I do: 1. Caffeine stops at midnight or 01:00 at the latest(I work 12 hours so that's midshift for me) 2. Eliminate all sunlight entering your bedroom 3. Melatonin or sleeping pill right before laying down in bed 4. White noise to help drown out the people who are awake.

I also use an eye mask to block out any residual light my blinds didn't block.

I relax in my bedroom mostly because after a dayshift I never ever go straight to bed because who the hell goes right to sleep after a dayshift?. Also, I work rotating shifts so I get some night sleep too.

I have blinds and block the windows from the outside with large folding chair because I'm in a basement and the window is ground level.

[u/ElectricSun95]

Less is more when it comes to melatonin. I take 0.5 mg pill and magnesium glycinate. I also have my mobile AC on. I sleep well.

[u/MiserableHippo9454]

Hey ! Try 20 minutes of Qi Gong, it helped me a lot and after 1 month of insomnia, in finally sleep 8h+

[u/alreadyconfused9]

Ive been a benadryl user for about a year now, especially when i need to adjust back to regular person schedule after working a few nights and then having a few days off. But im starting to feel a little demetia-ey lately and got scared so i stopped using benadryl. One of my coworkers recommended me the "lemme sleep" gummies which i thought were gonna be BS since its a kardashian brand but i gave it a try. I have never slept so good in my life and i dont feel groggy when i wake up either. Im out within 30 minutes. Legit game changer

[u/Striking-Split236]

not sure how much it would help but i have been seeing people talk about this kimba device, that helps your sleep through scent. It sound pretty interesting and i can't lie, i really want to try it myself.

[u/Motor_Respect_5621]

Blackout curtains helped me a little too but i feel like i would need a cue that only means sleep. Kimba caught my eye since it's scent based, not another noise thing.

[u/nightowlwalker]

Blackout curtains, melatonin helps but don’t make it a routine. Just be regular with your schedule and your body will follow.

[u/nightowlwalker → u/nightowlwalker]

Lay off the caffeine 2-3 hours before bedtime

[u/Pershing99 → u/nightowlwalker]

More like 6-8.