How To Survive Night Shift Sleep Problems

Sahil had recently begun to face a lot of problems – frequent upset stomachs, heart burn and and a messed up sleep cycle. He knew it had all begun after he started his night shifts at the BPO. Sahil was his wit’s end thinking how to get over his night shift sleep problems.

Like Sahil, a lot of Police Men, Pilots, Air hostesses, Truck Drivers, Nurses, Security personnel, Call Centre employees and Night Shift workers face the health risks of night shift sleep problems. Since our bodies are meant to be up and running while the sun is around, night shifts can throw all our bodily rhythms haywire.

Here is How Night Shift affects Health:

• Digestion Problems like Peptic Ulcers, GERD and probably an increased risk for Irritable Bowel Syndrome.
• An increased chance of strokes, heart attacks, diabetes and high blood pressure
• Females are at an increased risk of irregular periods, painful periods, fertility and endometriosis.
• Apart from the stress on our bodies, night shift work also cuts off people from their friends and families, causing a sense of isolation. This may lead to depression and mood disorders.

Here are some tips to cope with Night Shift Sleep Problems:

1. Minimize the Damage:
   1. Try to avoid frequently rotating shifts. If unavoidable, select a shift that rotates from morning to evening to night rather than randomly rotating shifts.
   2. Do not compromise on your scheduled off days.
2. Resetting your Internal Clock:
   1. Our body’s internal clock that tells us when to wake up and when to sleep depends on the amount of light we are exposed to. To reset your internal clock, expose your body to bright light when it is time for you to be up. Use lamps to create a brightly lit environment in your work place.
   2. Similarly, when it’s time for you to go to bed in the morning, ensure that you shut off all light from your bedroom using thick dark curtains and blinds. Wear dark sunglasses on your way back to home so that there is minimum exposure to light.
3. Sleep Well:
   1. Once you are home, inform your family members to limit visitors and phone calls during your sleeping hours. Rather than sleeping in bouts throughout the day, try to get one long stretch of sleep. Sleep as long as you can. This will help establish a new sleep cycle for your body.
4. Eat Well:
   1. Many shift workers eat at odd hours and suffer from digestive complaints. Try to eat three regular meals spaced evenly throughout your waking hours. Avoid eating junk food and prefer a balanced diet with plenty of fruits and vegetables to prevent digestive complaints. Avoid drinking coffee at least three hours before you got to sleep.

If you too are a night shift worker, and suffer from any problems like heart burn, irregular periods or irritable bowel syndrome, homoeopathy can help take care of your symptoms. Do get in touch with us at LifeForce to benefit from Dr Rajesh Shah’s research based homoeopathy.