Day 18, August 9, 2016 @5:47

My brain is not working well today having had only a few hours of sleep last night.  I have a headache and the stomach has been upset for a large part of the day.  This is because we took our house guests to the airport at 3:30 am.  Having returned an hour later, we were unable to resume our sleep.  I was able to have a short nap in early afternoon.  But I do not feel that much better.

I shudder to think that was how I lived for over 30 years – mostly sleep deprived as a nurse.  I would say I was probably getting 5-6 hours of sleep most days/nights after a 12 hour shift, catching up on days off.  The most frequent question we ask each other was, Did you sleep? The next one was, Are you on days off?

Research have shown that shift work is really bad for your brain.  A decade of long-termed shift work can knock 6 years off memory and thinking skill.  So what will 30 years do? There is a whole host of health hazards associated with sleep deprivation and shift work. It’s scary stuff.  When I was right in the middle of it, I prided myself on how well I functioned on little sleep.  I was probably not thinking clearly at the time.  Now I know better from experience.

Better sleep habits will be foremost on my list of musts.  I know that if I go to bed earlier rather than later, I can get to sleep faster and better.  Here’s to better night of sleep. Till tomorrow.