How to Get Good Quality Sleep as a Shift Worker

Approximately 16% of all full-time employees in the United States work shifts that fall outside of traditional daylight hours. Occupations in medicine or factory work involve working random hours that can range from mornings to evenings to night shifts.

Working on a rotating shift schedule can increase your risk of insomnia by making it difficult for you to establish a healthy sleep-wake routine. Studies also show that shift workers are at an increased risk of accidents and absenteeism due to having poor sleep.

Working shifts can also impact your social life. This is especially the case if you work the night shift, where you are forced to sleep during the day when most of your friends and family are awake.

Although shift work is often unavoidable in certain occupations, there are things that you can do to reduce its impacts on your sleep. Here are some top tips to help you improve your sleep if you are a shift worker.

• Try to establish a regular shift pattern. If you can, try and work similar shifts so that you aren’t constantly changing your work hours.
• Limit your caffeine intake, especially towards the end of your shift, as this can impact your sleep quality and quantity when you get home.
• Head right home after your shift. Establishing a consistent sleep schedule will help improve your sleep quality.
• Sleep somewhere quiet when you get home. You can use earplugs or listen to white noise to drown out sounds.
• Stay in the dark when you get home. Sleeping somewhere that is bright can stimulate your circadian rhythm and make it harder to get good sleep during the day. Hang up blackout curtains and wear an eye mask when you are trying to drift off.