Give me a break
I finally get a break after a week's worth of twilight shifts. My annual leave are fixed by my rota (weekends not on shift count as annual leave too) - I d0n't get to choose when I get time off. The Powers That Be have built in days off into the shift rota so that we get enough rest in between shifts.
I've had rather a hard week - the twilight shift is usually one of the busiest (everyone comes into A&E after work), so I've been really looking forward to this day off.
I was really planning to do quite alot today - go grocery shopping, sort out some of the household utilities, reorganise the 2nd bedroom, update my CV...but I just woke up feeling so exhausted. I've hardly managed to accomplish anything on my to do list.
So let's see...I've been working the 6pm to 2am shift this week. That's 8 hours work, and I take a 10-15 minute break after 4 hours so I can get something to eat. I finally get to bed at around 3am. I try to sleep until 8am, and then take a catnap at about 4pm before work. So for the last 4 days I've been getting roughly 6 hours sleep.
Now a body needs a minimum of 5 hours sleep a day in order to maintain optimum function, and then it will make up the rest of the requirements by 'microsleeping' (that's when you doze off for a few seconds - I do that alot when I'm sitting in lectures). In my profession, I'm on my feet all the time so I can't actually microsleep - 15 minutes is not long enough for my body to become relaxed/bored enough.
I know that I normally need about 8 hours sleep in order to feel completely refreshed.
So I'm missing out 2 hours a day...that means I'm now 8 hours behind.
No wonder I feel so rough. I'm a day's worth of sleep short. And I'm working this weekend, so I need to catch up on my lost hours or I won't be able to concentrate when my patient talks to me.
I don't think sleeping time should be considered 'Time Off'!!
I've had rather a hard week - the twilight shift is usually one of the busiest (everyone comes into A&E after work), so I've been really looking forward to this day off.
I was really planning to do quite alot today - go grocery shopping, sort out some of the household utilities, reorganise the 2nd bedroom, update my CV...but I just woke up feeling so exhausted. I've hardly managed to accomplish anything on my to do list.
So let's see...I've been working the 6pm to 2am shift this week. That's 8 hours work, and I take a 10-15 minute break after 4 hours so I can get something to eat. I finally get to bed at around 3am. I try to sleep until 8am, and then take a catnap at about 4pm before work. So for the last 4 days I've been getting roughly 6 hours sleep.
Now a body needs a minimum of 5 hours sleep a day in order to maintain optimum function, and then it will make up the rest of the requirements by 'microsleeping' (that's when you doze off for a few seconds - I do that alot when I'm sitting in lectures). In my profession, I'm on my feet all the time so I can't actually microsleep - 15 minutes is not long enough for my body to become relaxed/bored enough.
I know that I normally need about 8 hours sleep in order to feel completely refreshed.
So I'm missing out 2 hours a day...that means I'm now 8 hours behind.
No wonder I feel so rough. I'm a day's worth of sleep short. And I'm working this weekend, so I need to catch up on my lost hours or I won't be able to concentrate when my patient talks to me.
I don't think sleeping time should be considered 'Time Off'!!
posted by tscd at 10:49 pm
4 Comments:
5 hours? Hmm. Doesn't sound like enough
I used to be able to take late nights and irregular hours, but increasingly I find I need exactly 7 hours of sleep per night. Any less, or more, and my body starts giving me problems. Must be age catching up. =)
My optimum is 6 hours of sleep, although these last few months, I find I can do 5 hours for several nights in a row before the body gives up.
But I had no idea that all the microsleeping helps! I usually fight off off the urge when it seems like I'm nodding off on the bus because I think it will make me feel worse not to have had a proper (i.e. at least 1-hour) nap. But it sounds like all those snatches of sleep really help a body out.
Wahj, you old man, you! :)
Hey, gotta face facts, we're not getting any younger = )
Soon you'll be wearing the bottoms of your trousers rolled, not daring to eat a peach. And no, I do not think the mermaids are singing to us anymore ... = )
wahj: The body needs less sleep as it grows older. Look how much babies sleep! Forever young, eh?!
tym: actually, when you are nodding off on the bus, those few seconds are microsleep. That's why after 4 or 5 times of 'fighting', you'll feel suddenly awake again.
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