SUPPORT SOURCES

Healthy from the Start Resources for Shiftworkers

Looking after your health and wellbeing as a shiftworker can feel daunting, but there is help available. Your friends and family can support your sleep schedule by moving social occasions or looking after everyday tasks for you. There are a range of healthcare professionals available as well, with your general practitioner being a good place to start.

FRIENDS AND FAMILY

Your loved ones can be a big source of support as a shiftworker, but it’s important that they understand the unique challenges you may be facing. Many people, unless they’ve experienced shiftwork first-hand, may not appreciate how difficult it can be to manage a non-traditional sleep/wake schedule.

Here are a couple of things to consider when it comes to getting your friends and family on board:

Educate them:

  • Unless they’ve worked shiftwork themselves, your friends and family may not understand the challenges you’re facing. Even if they are a shiftworker, not everyone has the same experience, so it’s important to share your own challenges.

  • Explain the importance of sleep as a shiftworker, sharing some of the information around the impacts of poor sleep – they might even consider prioritising their own sleep a bit more! This can help them to understand that getting enough quality sleep is more than just avoiding being tired – it impacts many areas of your health, wellbeing, and safety.

Set boundaries:

  • Once your friends and family understand the importance of looking after your sleep as a shiftworker, it’s important to set boundaries around your sleep schedule. The times when you plan to sleep between shifts and on your days off should be protected as much as possible – this may mean that social occasions need to be rescheduled sometimes.

  • Everyday tasks may need to be postponed as well – if something can’t wait, ask your friends or family to take care of it for you where possible.

PROFESSIONAL SUPPORT

There are a range of health professionals who can support you with your sleep as a shiftworker.

General practitioners – your GP can be your first stop in seeking professional support if you’re struggling to get enough quality sleep. They may suggest reviewing your sleep hygiene (see Healthy Sleep Practices for Shiftworkers) and can discuss other treatment options with you.

  • Sleep psychologist – some people develop negative thinking patterns around their sleep, particularly if they’ve been struggling with it for a while. Sleep psychologists are trained in specific forms of therapy that can address these negative thinking patterns.

  • Sleep physicians – if you’re experiencing significant, ongoing problems with your sleep that aren’t improving with initial management, you may be referred to a sleep physician.

TOOLS AND TRACKERS

Devices:

• There are lots of digital tools available for tracking your sleep. Many smart devices (e.g., mobile phones, watches) have functions for monitoring your health, including your sleep.

• While these aren’t as accurate as professional sleep assessments, they can provide you with a baseline to measure your sleep against. Devices can be a great tool, but shouldn’t be something you live your life by. How you feel and your performance are some of the best indicators of how well you’re sleeping.

Sleep Diaries:

• Keeping a sleep diary can be another good way to track the quality and quantity of your sleep and identify patterns or particular shifts that are worse than others.

• Important parts of your sleep to track could include your bedtime, waketime, time to fall asleep (sleep onset latency), and time spent awake (wake after sleep onset) – these can be used to calculate your sleep efficiency. You could also record a score for how you would rate the quality of your sleep. An example of a sleep diary is provided below, but many sleep diaries are available online.

Remember, your sleep efficiency is a percentage that is calculated by dividing the amount of time you spent asleep (in minutes) by the total time you spent in bed (in minutes). Healthy adults should aim for a sleep efficiency of 85% or higher.