Any of you guys work 3rd shift jobs? I may be getting a nightshift job soon and I'm not sure how I feel about the shift.
How do you reconcile your sleep schedule on weekends/days off?
Not sure if you're still about to take the job, but I recently left my night shift position as a proofreader/disseminator of press releases. Worked nights for two years out of a two-and-a-half year tenure.
It wasn't as bad as they say, I worked 10:30 PM to 6 AM Mon-Fri and midnight to noon on Sundays. I didn't believe what people told me as far as it negatively affecting my health; I just saw it as another time to sleep and wake up. I slept from 7:30 AM - 1 PM and took a 1-2 hour nap before my shift, so I averaged the regular 6-8 hours of sleep. I never took any pills or aids or anything. Still though, I was concerned about my health.
Weekends were odd b/c I had Friday nights off, had to work Saturday nights, and had some Sunday nights off (long story). I was actually able to sleep at night during my weekends, it was just a matter of staying awake enough. My body was probably trying to retain its circadian rhythm.
It was also definitely difficult to keep the same sleep schedule if I went on vacation or anything like that, and toward the end of my job, I wasn't getting enough sleep. That's a downfall. Plus I would periodically get cluster headaches behind my left eye as a result of my sleep being disturbed/warped. I think I got out in time - if I had done it for a few more years, I could very well have started to suffer health issues.
I left the job two months ago and have been sleeping fairly normally since. It's still a bit hard to get a solid eight hours' sleep every day - sometimes I wake up after 5 hours and then go back to sleep, which could be my body shaking off the old pattern. I bought melatonin pills but haven't used them. It does feel great/natural to go back to the regular circadian pattern.
Hope things work out for you! The night shift affects everyone differently.
Also, now I work part-time as a background actor which is horrible. But I have a good amount of savings, so it's not too bad. Definitely exploring other options, though.