Healthy Tips for the Night RN

Imagine yourself walking into a hospital cafeteria between 6am-7pm. Fresh fruits, vegetables, complex carbohydrates and proteins are available to patients, families, visitors and staff. Flashing signs decorate the café with slogans to remind customers to choose healthy options. By 6pm or 7pm, the café is closed.  The lights are dim and all is quiet. The hospital personnel dwindles to essential staff only.  Then here comes the night shift.  All the doctors, nurses and personnel, who keep the inter-workings of the hospital functioning, begin their “day.”  For night shift employees, their “day” begins at night.  

As a night nurse, you arrive at 7pm prepared to care for patients and handle any emergencies that may arise until shift change at 7am.  Traditionally, the beginning of the shift is the busiest with night medication passes; preparing patients for surgery for the next day; conversing with family members prior to the end of visiting hours and a multitude of other interventions i.e.  infusing blood products, performing wound care, administering insulin shots;  Tube Feeding etc.  Before you know it, you glance at the clock and it is the middle of the night. Then all of a sudden, the munchies kick in.  You peek in the break room. What do you see?  A candy station, pizza, chips…?  Crunchy, salty snacks abound. You try to resists but without an alternative strategy; you cave in.  Before you know it. You have consumed cookies, cakes and candies in the middle of the night. Although you may try, you can’t seem to back away from the snack bar.  You feel like you are fighting a battle.  Well, actually you are. You are fighting a physiological battle.  Yes, the battle to stay awake vs to sleep.  Many other metabolic processes are also battling inside you. This battle is real. Fighting the body’s natural circadian rhythms to sleep can make the sugary and salty snacks appear more enticing.

So, what can the night nurse do?

·      Drink water~With all the oxygen tanks, vents, CPAP machines, isolation masks, etc., it is easy to mistake thirst for hunger.  Take a water break every hour. Water can keep you hydrated.  Soft drinks and coffee taste great but do not quench thirst thus increasing  dehydration.

·      Walk~Buy an inexpensive pedometer and walk about the unit.  Make it fun. Keep track of how many miles you walk in a 12 hr shift.  Walking increases blood flow to the muscles and brain and can keep you alert during night hours.

·      Snacks~Bring fruits and veggies for snacks.  Both have natural water and sugars. By consuming more fruits and veggies, one can increase hydration and fiber intake.  This provides the sensation of feeling fuller and makes it easier to refrain from consuming too many empty calories.

·      Sleep~Grab 6 hrs-8hrs in between shifts.  This can be difficult since you need to sleep while the rest of the world is humming along.  Break up the sleep if you must. Grab a few hours when you get home and then take short nap prior to work.  Also, make a sleep hygiene routine.  Take a nice warm bath or shower prior to sleep. Close the blinds or use an eye mask to keep out daylight. Remove all electronic gadgets from your bedroom. Turn the temperature down and rest.  Even if you don’t sleep for a long time, a sleep routine can assist the body in resting and anticipating sleep.  A routine can leave the body feeling more rejuvenated upon waking regardless of the hours slept.  

Working shift work is not easy physically or mentally, but with a strategy, nurses and other health professionals can stay healthy and happy.