0livia wrote I just started my placement at a nursing home for school and I have never worked night shifts.
So does anyone have any tips for staying awake and alert durning a night shift?

The easiest way to start working night shifts and not have issues staying awake during your work is to flip your sleep schedule around. Sleep during the afternoons/mornings before work and then when work time comes around you will be well rested. The only issue with this is that if you have other things to do on your off times or the weekends or whatever, it makes that harder to do since you will be tired during the day instead of being tired in the night like most people if that makes sense.

Wrathful wrote

0livia wrote I just started my placement at a nursing home for school and I have never worked night shifts.
So does anyone have any tips for staying awake and alert durning a night shift?

I used to work overnights at a grocery store, coffee. A lot of coffee and energy drinks.

coffee and energy drinks are not a good idea long term, they start to affect you after awhile with sugar crashes and just overall negative impact on your health. The key to working nights is to adjust your sleep schedule so you are well rested by night time.

I do agree with the not having energy drinks. If you need the caffeine, you can just buy tablets which contain caffeine. That should help with the feeling of tiredness. Here in the UK, you can just buy them in your local supermarket.

Best of luck.

lol a lot of people just say what they think is right but actually maintain no experience, Night shift work is about solid routine, you may find the first few shifts hard but if you keep your pattern every shift you'll adjust to your working hours and it will be just another day at work Good luck with your new job!

and all this "Caffeine coffee energy drink" rubbish isn't true its about routine and adapting you will eventually find your own way of coping please don't start drinking energy drinks lol.

0livia wrote I just started my placement at a nursing home for school and I have never worked night shifts.
So does anyone have any tips for staying awake and alert during a night shift?

Anyone who says Redbull don't do it the boost when it starts to dip will make you feel even worse if you're starting soon start staying up later now and getting out of bed later and force yourself to stay up late within a week or so your body clock will move to it.

The only issue is once you have broken your sleeping pattern is your body will forever try and get you back into a normal patten.

Also take vitamin d if you're working nights long term as lack of Sun will lower your energy the be all and end all of this really comes down to how you live. if the people you live with bang around and don't respect you working nights you will find during the day you will be woken up all the time that's the hardest part.

Working nights will also really mess up how you eat as getting out of bed and having dinner will really mess your body up you have to flip your eating habits if its totally all night.

I work at an SNF too!

I work second shift so not as late as you but my hours have been switched to 3pm-11pm. What I do is make sure I eat a good meal before work and then on my break I usually drink a smoothie or something that is an "energy booster". I never take 5 hour energy/monster/redbull because I dont think it is very good for your body. I get headaches if I drink those. Sleep in so that you have more hours in the mornings in which you are asleep to compensate for getting home so early in the morning.

I work 11pm to 730 am now and I just sleep until 1or 2 once I get off but some days I really need a monster.

Don't rely on energy drinks

Your body will burn out and crash

Switch up your sleeping pattern

My buddy does a security shift 10pm to 12pm

He starts by sleeping through the day two days before his night shifts start

So when it comes to night shift his body is acclimated to the sleeping difference

Note I said don't rely on energy drinks but something like a can of monster for example an hour of two into your shift will do you wonders

P.S. too much caffeine can make you tired because it works your body so fast that it makes you tired quicker

Try and keep yourself busy!