When you’re a shift worker, it can be hard to establish a consistent sleep schedule. Whether you work different shifts each week or your shifts are all late-night, shift work has the potential to create a constant feeling of fatigue. Working irregular days and times can make your body feel out of order, as it becomes confused when it should rest and when it needs to be active. Losing your free time to work may also make you yearn to make the most of the small amount of time you do have, causing you to neglect sleep even further.
It doesn’t have to be this way, however, as there are plenty of sleep tips for shift workers to help you feel well-rested. A healthy sleep schedule provides a range of benefits, from increased productivity to improved physical and mental health. Everything begins with sleep, and when your sleep schedule is improved, the positive benefits seep into every other aspect of your day-to-day life.
At Wenatex, we provide a sleep system that features an ergonomic bed designed to make a significant and positive impact on the improvement of sleep cycles. Visit the Wenatex shop to browse our products, and give us a call on 1300 858 139 or send an email to enquiries@wenatex.com.au to enquire further.
The Best Sleep Tips for Shift Workers
Create a Bedtime Routine
Most people are sticklers for routine, with having a set way of doing things going a long way towards ingraining regular habits. By incorporating a consistent routine before bedtime, it helps you reliably fall asleep at a regular time. Indulge in activities that help your mind and body wind down, such as spending half an hour reading a book each night before bed. Engaging in these activities every day trains your body into expecting sleep shortly afterward, making it easier to drift off and creating a healthy sleep schedule in the process.
Incorporating SleepHub into your sleep routine can make a difference to the quality of your sleep. This sleep aid can help you fall asleep and cycle through the right sleep stages in the right order. It incorporates an 18-minute wake-up cycle to ensure you wake at the right sleep stage, feeling refreshed.
Reduce Your Caffeine Intake
We all love our coffee, and when you work late shifts you may come to rely on plenty of coffee to help get you through. While the caffeine hit that coffee and energy drinks provide helps keep you awake, the caffeine can stay in your system and create problems when you decide to sleep. With this caffeine still pumping in your system, your body still thinks it’s in active mode. Reducing your intake of caffeinated drinks and avoiding them within three to four hours of your bedtime goes a long way towards helping you sleep easier.
Engage in Regular Exercise
If your work keeps you seated most of the time, your body may not be expending enough energy throughout the day. One of the best sleep tips for shift workers is to incorporate regular exercise into your day, as tiring your body out through physical activity is a surefire way to help you fall asleep once your head hits the pillow. Research 24-hour gyms in your area so you are always able to work out no matter what time your shift is. Even something as simple as going for a half hour walk around the block provides benefits.
Avoid Screens Before Bedtime
With most people today addicted to their phones, it is common to lay in bed and scroll through social media before turning in for the night. While this may help you switch your brain off before bed, it can be detrimental for your attempts to fall asleep. Avoiding phone and television screens an hour or two before bed is a great help when it comes to creating tiredness, with a book making a great substitute for your bedtime reading. If you can’t be separated from your phone for that long, at least consider turning the screen brightness down before bed.
Invest in Quality Sleep Products
The science of sleep reveals that the quality of the sleeping products we use, from pillows to mattresses, affects the quality of our sleep. Sleep is precious, which makes it vital to invest in products that are both comfortable and provide you with the best opportunity to secure a healthy sleep schedule. At Wenatex, we supply science backed adjustable bed bases, premium fitted sheets, premium pillows, and other products that are designed to enhance your sleep cycles, providing a range of physical and mental health benefits.
Improve Your Sleep Today with Wenatex!
When you purchase from the Wenatex shop, you are investing in sleeping products that have been designed to provide quality REM cycles while increasing the duration of your sleep. If you are a shift worker looking for ways to improve your sleep schedule, give Wenatex a call on 1300 858 139 or send an email to enquiries@wenatex.com.au to further discuss the benefits of the Wenatex Sleep System.
