3:30 to midnight shift

[pontifex]

Anyone work this shift? I have a few questions if you do (or used to).

I've never worked any shift beyond 1st shift except for a part itme job where i may have worked like 4-8.

Anyway, I was wondering when you guys went to sleep and when you woke up? When did you eat each of your meals?

Any tips for adjusting to this shift or different sleep patterns if you changed yours?

 

[theflyingpig]

no

 

[Loop2kil]

I worked 3pm to midnight for many many years...usually went to bed around 3 am and woke up around 9-10 am...I would eat a small meal when I woke up and would eat again on my way to work or just before I left for work around 2 pm. If i could i would eat dinner around 8-9 pm and would not eat again until the next morning....hard as hell to not eat when you get home at night but if you want to avoid gaining excess weight, try not to eat when you come home. It's actually a pretty good shift if your wife doesn't work(otherwise you might only see her on the weekends), because you can essentially have mostly daylight hours around the house to do whatever you need/want.

 

[Kadarin]

I would work that shift if my work offered it. As it is now, I work an 11-7...

 

[MotF Bane]

My father worked that shift at the garage for about 12-14 years. He did dinner around 6, came home and went to sleep a little past midnight, got up around 8-9, breakfast, kicked around the house, lunch at 2ish, and then went off to work.

 

[rgwalt]

I haven't done that shift, yet. I've done my share of 11pm-5am shifts and 6pm to 6am shifts. I will be doing the swing shift this coming March. I would recommend trying to get to sleep around 2-4am, sleeping for 6-8 hours (putting you awake between 8am and noon). Eat when you wake up (breakfast), eat again at work at some point (lunch), and then eat again when you get home (dinner). Of all the shifts I could work, I think the swing shift would be my favorite. Sleeping in, staying up late...

I'm just coming off a week of 9pm to 9am shifts. It takes me about a week to get lined out onto the shift. Switching off it tough. I couldn't fall asleep last night until about 4am, and didn't wake up until 1:30pm. I need to get my setpoint adjusted... Being at work at 7am next week is going to be tough.

Good luck.

 

[Kyle]

I work that shift currently.
Got to bed around 2-3AM, wake up at 10, go to the gym, eat "breakfast"/lunch around 1, second meal usually @ 6, then smaller meals/snacks during my other breaks @ 8, 945 and then I'm usually really hungry by the end of my shift and make a regular dinner @ midnight.

I do work from home though so I have the advantage of having all my food readily available and not having to worry about commute times. All in all, I really like the shift- gives me plenty of time to get shit done before having to start work.

 

[IGBT]

worked grave shift for 18 years. ate dinner when I got home in the morn. went to sleep after. ate a light meal when I woke up in late afternoon then worked out for an hour. Now I work 4pm to 2:00 am and got to sleep as soon as I get home 2:30 am or so which puts me on a quasi day schedule with meals/workouts on a reg day schedule.

 

[nageov3t]

I worked 4 pm - 12 am (and 5-1) for about a year... assuming I got home around 1 am (because I'd go grocery shopping after work... 12-hour grocery store, though selection was limited since the deli/fish counters were closed), I'd go to bed at 5 am and sleep till 12-1 pm. ate a light meal when I first woke up, someone on the shift would run out and get food for everyone around 7-8 pm, and I'd eat a third meal after getting home from work.

it was nice at the time because I had a roommate who worked 12 am - 8 am, so it was practically like we were each living by ourselves (except the occasional overlap when I'd wake up early to go run errands and he'd still be up or on days off). TBH, I wouldn't even mind going back to that schedule today if it was like a Sunday-Thursday thing, but when I worked it, I ended up working both Friday *and* Saturday nights. my only social life was meeting my friends for a drink after work after they'd been out together having fun and doing stuff all night. (also, working that schedule didn't allow for WoW raids )

upsides:
sleep late every day (almost never having to worry about oversleeping)
stay up late
low pressure at work since the schedule only overlaps with the managers by 2 hours
plenty of take to TCB before work if you're willing to wake up a little early

downsides:
running errands after work isn't really a great option
sucks if you're working friday and/or saturday
limited opportunities to hang out with friends after work
pretty much requires owning a tivo if you watch any amount of prime-time TV
if you live with people who work 9-5, they may or may not appreciate you cooking, cleaning, watching tv, etc at 3 am