Night float: the month everyone dreads during intern year … Every intern has to work at night, but your schedule may vary depending on the type of intern year you do. Instead of doing 24 hour shifts during our inpatient medicine months, at my hospital, we have 4 weeks dedicated to night float. We work 6 nights a week during that time period, so you can imagine how tiring it can be. Whether you are a resident working a 2 week block of night float or a nurse who consistently works 2 nights a week, these recommendations should hopefully be helpful!
Here are some tips for how to survive [and thrive] while working nights:
1. Sleep! : sleeping during the day can be tough. Try to get at least 7-8 hours of sleep to feel rested. I have blackout shades so I can block out that FL sun. An eye mask helps too!
2. Healthy snacks: it’s so tempting during the night to eat sugar and unhealthy foods, especially because your body feels so out of whack. I try to pack carrots, peanut butter, and protein bars for when I get a craving. I still might sneak in a few gummy bears though! 😉
3. Exercise: working out during night shift can be very tough. Listen to your body! I try to do 30 minutes of yoga flow a day to get in a little activity without putting too much stress on my body. Alo yoga has amazing, and more importantly free, yoga classes on their YouTube channel.
4. Stay warm: it gets really chilly in the hospital at night and I can’t survive without my electric blanket and Patagonia fleece.
5. Comfy scrubs: Figsare my favorite scrubs! They are so comfy so you can go from coding a patient to taking a quick power nap (if you get lucky enough to get a little down time).
6. Caffeine: I love drinking green tea or matcha at night to give me energy without the crash of coffee.
7. Have fun! : having good co-residents can make the shifts go by so much faster!
*Follow this link for mug -> Here
Comment on this post if you have any other recommendations for surviving night shift!
Xo,
G
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