Adapting to ER Schedule

[Angelo84]

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Hi all,
I am a vet student but figured you guys might have an answer to this question. I will be working at a student tech in ICU/ER this summer. My schedule is overnights sunday evening through thursday morning. My question is what to do on my days off. Should I switch back to a normal schedule or keep my new schedule regular and just find things to do at 3am?

Thanks for any advice!

 

[Apollyon]

If you are working 4 nights in a row, you won't be able to switch to a day schedule before it's time to work again. Make sure you have cable TV - seriously, there's stuff on all night now (whereas even 3 years ago, between 4 and 5am, all programming became paid programming).

 

[EM_Rebuilder]

Agree....trying to switch over would not be a good idea.. you could psuedo do it... as in try to go to bed by 3-4AM and up after lunch...something like that.

Trying to get totally regular will make the time off suck and the first day or two back suck worse..

 

[jbar]

I agree that switching back to a day schedule stinks, but there are time when you have to do it. I know the OP was talking about the summer, but I spent a winter where I was working nights. As a skier, staying on the night schedule doesn't work. I just took a nap the first morning off till like noon, was sorta zonked all day, then was on the day schedule. It also depends on where you are living. If you are in New York or Boston or somewhere that you can go do fun things till 3am it might be more worth staying on the night schedule. But a lot of places things shut down at nine and you're going to be sitting at home twiddling your thumbs. Good tv is nice, but watching 8hours of it?

 

[Angelo84]

Thanks for the advice. I'm in North Grafton MA so not much going on at night. I'll probably try to semi switch and see how that goes.

Thanks again and if people have different advice feel free to respond.