As many of you know, when I started working my first nursing position, it was on night shift. I had never worked a day in my life at night! LOL! So this was going to be very interesting. But after a few months working, I came up with some must have items that you will need an able to sleep better during the day. (Especially if you live here in AZ where the sun shines through your windows like crazy!😆
1. BLACK OUT CURTAINS- One of the main problems you are going to find is that you are now gonna try to sleep during the day and unfortunately, tons of light comes through your curtains that will mess with your brain and keep you awake. You have to retrain your brain, making the room really dark so it knows its "sleep" time. An able to make your room pitch dark, some people will put foil over their windows and also get black out curtains. These are made to keep light out during the day. These ones pictures below are ones I bought off Amazon, and they worked amazing!
2. SLEEP EYE MASK- This mask is amazing! It is the Sound Oasis GLO that blacks out all light and also has a blue light feature inside. You can set it for 10, 15, or 20 minute increments. For example, if you set it for 10 minutes, the light will first start out bright inside the mask and over the period of time will get dimmer and dimmer until 10 minutes, and then it will go off. It helps relax you and gets your eyes ready for sleep! This I also got off Amazon and HIGHLY recommend for you!
3. BOSE SLEEPBUDS- Now if you are anything like myself, I wake up to pretty much every sound there is possible. Unfortunately LOL! So even if I have no light in sight, if I am hearing traffic nearby, my neighbors opening and closing their apartment doors, or even my dog walking around, I will hear it. So I bought these amazing BOSE Sleep pods! They are soundproof. They aren’t bulky in your ears at all, pretty flesh which is important for any side sleepers like myself. But I hear nothing! BOSE has always been an amazing brand and these I also bought off of Amazon!
4. MELATONIN GUMMIES- There are many nurses that end up taking a supplement to help them sleep better such as melatonin. These Melatonin gummies provide 5 mg per gummy and help provide sleep support so you can wake up feeling more refreshed and rejuvenated. (Not medical advice, please consult your physician before taking any new medication/supplement). These melatonin gummies I bought of of Amazon!
5. EPSOM SALT-SOOTHE AND SLEEP SALT BATHS- If anyone else is big into bubble baths, or baths in general, any of the Dr. Teal's Epsom Salt brand is AMAZING! This particular one is to help soothe, calm, and help you get ready to relax and sleep better. I typically will show up at Target or Wal-mart and buy 3-5 bags at a time. LOL!! But lately, have been buying in bulk on Amazon! (I mean, where else would I buy in bulk??) 😂
I was a night shift for almost 2 years and these items I feel are essential to sleeping better so you don't feel like a complete zombie going into your next shift! Has there been anything you have used, tried that helps you? Would love to hear your comments below!
XOXO,
KRISTEN BSN, RN