Lets be honest my schedule is all over the place! Right now I work two rotating shifts (one day and one night a week). These are 12 hour shifts, so I work a total of 24 hours a week. Before Emmett I was working three 12s, which is full time. I dropped a shift after he was born, and I’m so glad I did. It allows me to spend more time with him during the week, and it is easier to find a babysitter! I thought I would share some of the pros and cons of nightshift with babies (in my opinion) and maybe some tips. Enjoy!
One of the things I do love about working nightshift is the fact that you don’t have to miss a lot of time with your kids. The con to this is you will miss sleep instead! For example, I work a lot of Friday nights. I get up on Friday and spend my day with Emmett. I try to nap when he naps (doesn’t always work). When drew gets home we usually eat dinner together, and then I put Emmett in his pjs. I head to work and when I come back in the morning Emmett is getting up for his day. I give him some snuggles then I go to bed. If I don’t work the next night I only sleep until 1 or 2 …so that’s about 5 hours I miss out with him. I will say after this I am VERY sleepy all day, and don’t have energy to do much really. I also wonder if that extra time is beneficial to Emmett. I mean sure I am there and he is with me, but I am usually grouchy and more impatient with him because of the poor sleep I got if that makes sense.
When I work dayshift I don’t get to see Emmett before work because he is usually asleep. And when I get home he is grouchy and ready for bed. I really HATE that I miss out on a whole day with him, BUT I feel better, and the next day is not ruined because I have to sleep. I usually get a full nights rest (unless Emmett decides otherwise) before working days. Unlike nights where I don’t get much rest at all before my shift.
I do like working at Nights knowing Emmett is just sleeping. I don’t have to really worry what he is doing. Sometimes when I work dayshift I wonder if he is eating his breakfast okay, or if he is taking good naps. These are silly things to worry about, but I just can’t help it.
So if you are a Nurse Mama trying to figure out which shift is best for you I hope this post helps a little. But overall I feel like there is good and bad with each one, you have to choose what is right for you and your family!
I also decided to include some Night shift tips below!
Night shift tips!
1. Blackout curtains- don’t resist the black curtains because they are ugly.. they have cute ones I promise. You will sleep so much better with these!
2. Coffee- gives me life, couldn’t function without it
3. Fan or white noise machine- it’s so much harder to sleep during the day! I love having a LOUD fan to block out all the noise.
4. Putting phone on silence do not disturb (except for phone calls)
5. Eat before bed- I don’t always do this but if I didn’t get a great lunch at work I try to! Nothing worse than waking up and not being able to go back to sleep because you are starving!
6. Trust your babysitter- leaving your child with someone you trust can help so much. Family watches Emmett so I sleep easy knowing he is in good hands! If this isn’t possible make sure whoever is watching your little one is someone you trust so your mind won’t stay up worrying all day!
That’s all I can think of for now! Hope this helps some night shift mamas out! I know there are people out there who know WAY more about this than me, and have been doing this for WAY longer so ask around! I’m always asking my coworkers and family for tips and tricks as a new parent! Thanks for reading
Xo
Courtney
