There was a time when a normal office routine included working from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. But with international trade on the rise, the routine is updated. For people working in an international firm or have clients from other countries, they need to pull off night shifts. Such job timings are set keeping in mind the time zones of the clients in order to adhere to their convenience. It can be a difficult task to adjust to the night routine as one has to change the body clock as well. In order to keep up with such working hours and not compromise on one’s efficiency, one needs to keep certain things in mind.
Prepare the body clock for the night shift
If one has a few days time before the night shift begins, try to get the body used to the new schedule. Wake up in the evening and try to stay awake all night, indulging in any sort of activity. While doing so, one can notice the exact period of the night when he would feel drowsy. It is also important to note that the commuting hours will differ at such times. Therefore one can even commute to and fro to set up a routine about when he needs to leave for office and plan all his other chores accordingly. By giving such a head start to one’s body, the initial days will not be as lethargic as one would expect them to be.
Adequate Healthy Sleep
Even though it’s a night shift, compromising on sleep might end up causing great harm to one’s body. It is essential to have a proper, deep sleep before setting off to work. On getting back home from the shift, sleep in a room with dark curtains. Make sure that the family or people living with you are considerate enough that they make minimum noise. Try not to sleep with a heavy stomach as it will cause uneven sleep which will not be satisfying.
Nutritional Diet
One of the most important points which should always be kept in mind especially for an employee working in the night shift is that he should carry food from his house. Usually one would end up having junk or fast food as it is easily available at that time. But in the long run, this will prove to be very harmful to the overall health of the person. Carry the leftover from dinner or a heavy salad for the meal. One can also include small quantities of various food items in order to keep the meal wholesome as well as delicious. Try to avoid rice preparations as they tend to make a person feel drowsy.
The right intake of caffeine
Having alcohol even hours before one’s night shift is an absolutely bad idea. For one thing, alcohol slows down the body and an individual usually gets a deep sleep after consuming it. Also, it is a common misconception that a high intake of tea or coffee is essential to work all night. Even a single cup of coffee is sufficient to keep a person awake all night if one has it at the right time. Therefore the employee should decide a particular time when he can have caffeine to refresh him completely. Moreover, high quantity intake of caffeine adversely affects one’s health.