Coping with Shift Work Sleep Disorder (SWSD)

People who work in shifts and often work at night will experience a type of sleeping disorder known as Shift Work Sleep Disorder or SWSD. Although there are about 20 million people working regularly on shifts, this disorder is seen to affect about 25% of this group.

The nature of jobs of people affected by this disorder is varied and includes people in factories, transport, mines, hospitals and in emergency services such as firefighting, police and emergency medical care. Many of those suffering from this condition will often have different shifts at different times.

When a person works in shifts, it throws the normal circadian rhythm out of gear. This further goes out of synch when the shift changes and the body do not get time to adjust to changes in work times. People who work at night even though they have been up the whole night will receive stimulation when they get exposed to the morning sunlight that alerts the brain to stay awake. This kind of a stimulation and response affects the natural circadian cycle.

People who work in shifts and suffer from this disorder can adopt some methods to overcome their problem. One thing that people who are on such kind of jobs and suffering from the difficulties it poses is to realize the necessity of getting good sleep and give prominence to it.

Many people have difficulty in sleeping in the day. There are many factors apart from the natural circadian cycle that affects sleep during the day and include sunlight and the noise of the outside world. To cope up with this, people try to sleep in a room that has lesser degree of sunlight entering in and try to make the room as silent as is possible.

People suffering from this problem can also try to avoid exposing to the sunlight in the morning if they wish to get to bed once they are back from their work. This can be made possible by using dark glasses and avoiding doing any kind of chores on the way. This is so because they will have greater trouble getting to sleep the more they are exposed to the sunlight.

People also try out chart out an approach to help them sleep wherein they set some fixed time meant for sleeping. So, if they chart out a planned time for sleeping it develops into a routine and the person is able to sleep without any trouble. This routine should be followed even if it is a day off. Friends and family members should understand the need for people on shifts to sleep in the day and not bother them incessantly or unnecessarily. If naps are scheduled in the routine that is being followed, it will further help in avoiding sleep deprivation among shift workers suffering from sleep disorders.

Also, people suffering from this disorder should cut down their intake of caffeine at the end of their shifts. Many workers in shifts have the habit of switching to drinking water or juice to avoid caffeine intake at the end of their shift.

People suffering from this disorder should not resort to taking sleep medication to help them get to sleep as this can lead to dependency and addiction not to forget associated health issues.
Many people despite taking all these measures might not be able to cope up with working in shifts and for this reason might end up searching for another suitable job that will need them to work only during the day.