Working Nights

Is Time Alone Good for You?

Our contact with shift workers indicates that they tend to spend a lot of time alone. The schedules shift workers are on are often not conducive to a lot of togetherness with family and friends. We often write about the need for shift workers to stay in touch and find time for recreation with others. Recently there have been several studies about the importance of time spent alone. Solitude has been linked with creativity, spirituality, and intellectual insight for decades. Now studies are showing that we remember things better when we are alone. Taking time for self-reflection is a good thing; being surrounded by others can hamper a person’s efforts to figure out what he or she really thinks of something. Perhaps shift workers’ time alone allows them time to know themselves more truly than other do.
Read this article…

Shift Workers Save Each Other – the Chilean Rescue Tale

All around the world people are celebrating the rescue of the 33 Chilean miners trapped underground for ten long weeks. And, at Working Nights we’re celebrating too! Like everyone else, we’re ecstatic that the trapped miners were brought to safety. But we’re also celebrating from a shift worker perspective! This is a story about the good that happens when shift workers join together to help other shift workers. This tale is a collaboration of shift workers – from all walks of life – miners, government workers from multiple countries, small business men from the U.S. and Chile, and others.

In this case, employees from Layne Christianson Co., whose largest business is drilling water wells, and Geotec Boyles, SA, Lane Christianson’s partner in Chile, worked round-the-clock for 33 days to save the trapped miners. The miners were buried nearly 2,300 feet underground after a cave-in. The Layne/Geotec workers drilled a 2,300-foot tunnel that was 28 inches in diameter; it was large enough for the 26-inch rescue capsule to fit through. Others were working 24/7 as well. NASA designers worked with the Chilean Navy to design the 13 foot long, 925 pound rescue capsule which the Chilean’s named Phoenix.

Achieving success took whole-hearted co-operation among all parties involved, starting with the miners themselves. These 33 men lived on rations normally meant to sustain them for no more than two or three days. Under the extraordinary leadership of their foreman, the men shared what little they had. They shared the conviction that each man’s survival depended on all of the others down there surviving too. The miners’ only contact with the outside world was through tiny drill holes used to send down food, water, medicine and games.

Agriculture, forestry, fishing, hunting, and mining workers have historically worked long hours in difficult conditions. But 33 days straight takes the cake! Hopefully all shift workers that participated in this rescue, and all people working shift work will celebrate this great accomplishment.

©Circadian Age, Inc. ‘Working Nights’

How Do You React to Stress?

Work can be hugely stressful. In fact, twenty-five percent of Americans say that their job is their greatest contributor to the angst in their lives.  And, clearly there are other stresses too.  Pressure, anxiety, and tension can result in headaches, sleep disturbances, difficulty concentrating, short tempers, upset stomachs, low morale, and general life dissatisfaction.  Shift workers can experience extra stress as a result of working variable hours, getting less sleep, having little access to family members and friends, leading to increased isolation and lack of support.

Stress can be reduced though, and here are some ideas to help. Read this article…

Happy Thanksgiving from Working Nights – an Idea for Getting Through Dinner!

Holiday dinners with family can be easily ruined. A political debate might erupt at the table over health care reform, Obama’s job rating, or how people feel about Sarah Palin. Perhaps a new husband or wife isn’t liked, so half the table ignores them while the other goes overboard to make them feel comfortable. Some people actually have the nerve to state that they don’t like the food – right in front of the chef. Maybe someone has dietary issues so the ingredients of every dish have to be reviewed before they take a bite. How about the nurse or firefighter who worked the entire night before and can’t stay awake at the table or has a short fuse as a result of being tired? There might be sadness over a recent death or heartbreak from missing someone who’s overseas with the military. What about those screaming kids banging their silverware on the crystal stemware or china plates? Sometimes you wish you’d stayed home.

Here’s a new holiday dinner sanity idea.
Read this article…

Shift Work and Divorce – Does the Work Schedule Really Make a Difference?

Divorce.  It’s not a fun topic for anyone. 

By now most of us have read that we’re better off if we’re married.  According to the Center for Disease Control, married people tend to have lower mortality rates, exhibit less risky behavior, are more likely to monitor their health, comply with necessary medical routines, have sex more often and experience more satisfaction with their sexual lives, save more and earn more.  On a national level, the Census Bureau reports that a shrinking share of Americans are married – only 52% of males and 48% of females were married in 2008. The proportion of Americans who are currently married has been decreasing for decades and is lower than it has been in at least half a century.  The median duration of a marriage in 2008 was 18 years. In 2008, 9% of men were divorced and 12% of women were. 

So why don’t we stick with our marriages?  And, is it true that maintaining a marriage is more difficult for shift workers?

Read this article…

Plan Ahead for Ghosts and Goblins When Working Shift Work!

It’s almost Halloween; time for ghosts and goblins, and disappointed kids whose parents have to work. Or maybe you don’t have kids, or yours are grown and out of the house, but you were invited to a Halloween party. Halloween falls on Saturday night this year – a great night for a party! If you didn’t plan ahead to get the night off, it’s probably too late. But, you can still find opportunities to have fun. Here are some great ideas!
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Working Night’s President Featured on WBZ 1030 Call-in Program – Friday, October 23, 2009 at Midnight

Working Night’s President, Betsy Connolly, discussed the positives and challenges of working shift work  on The Jordan Rich Show starting at midnight. Callers commented on their strategies of managing shift work lifestyles and asked questions.  Ms. Connolly also spoke about how shift workers and their families have used the Working Nights calendars to better manage work/life balance when working shifts for 25 years.

Listen to the tape of the program by clicking here.  You’ll be brought to our press release and news section.  Search for the blue and red WBZ logo shown above for the posting.

Serotonin, the Happiness Holy Grail

Happiness has been an elusive goal ever since the beginning of humanity, but the idea that we can find happiness inside ourselves may be based on scientific fact. Serotonin is a chemical in our brains that strongly affects our mood, appetite, sleep, and sexual desire. Low levels of serotonin have been linked to depression, schizophrenia, and certain mental disorders, while normal and higher levels improve your mood and make you more relaxed. Many easy daily habits can increase your serotonin levels- take happiness into your own hands! Read this article…

Families and Friends of Shift Workers – How to Help

Shift work can cause difficulty creating and maintaining relationships, and often it’s hard for others to realize special challenges shift workers face. However, shift work is by no means a personal issue. Over 55 million Americans work nonstandard work schedules so that up to 150 million people are directly impacted by shift work schedules, based on US census statistics of household size. But shift work does not only affect the immediate family, but also the neighbors that get called in to babysit, the grandparents and cousins and aunts and uncles that might not get to see their relatives who work on holidays, the friends who want to hang out on nights and weekends- everyone who wants to support the shift worker as much as they can. This article helps anyone who has someone who works shift work in their lives. Read this article…

Merry, Merry Shift Work: Reducing Holiday Stress

Holidays, and the stress they bring, can be difficult to integrate into a shift work schedule. Even if you manage to pencil in Fun between two eight- or ten-hour shifts, stress and holiday errands can quickly override your best laid plans. There’s a lot to look forward to in holidays, but also a lot to worry about, and people can sometimes feel the need to make sure everything is absolutely perfect before taking any time for themselves. It’s important to balance family obligations with relaxation and to prioritize things you really want to do on your time off work. Read this article…

Preparing for the Holidays: HoHoHoooh No, I Have to Work the Night Shift…

The upcoming holidays, with all their hype and high expectations, invariably bring stress to all of us: employees and managers, family members, friends and neighbors. If we plan ahead, we can avoid the common pitfalls that often cause holiday stress and heartache. Developing these skills is an important part of learning to balance work life and home life.

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