Shift Work Sleep Disorder Symptoms and Treatment

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Shift Work Sleep Disorder
by The Center
for Sleep Medicine
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What is Shift Work Sleep Disorder ?

• Shift work can be very disruptive to your sleep
  cycle, to the point that you can develop a
  circadian rhythm sleep disorder known as shift
  work sleep disorder.
• Unlike plain insomnia, shift work sleep disorder
  is tied to when you are able to obtain sleep,
  often as a result of working night shifts or
  rotating shifts
•  Your body clock does not correspond to the time
  of day you are able to sleep, due to your
  schedule.

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Signs and Symptoms of Shift Work Disorder

• Excessive sleepiness that causes yawning or
  periods of sleep
• Trouble falling asleep or staying asleep between
  shifts
• Low energy levels
• Headaches
• Problems concentration
• Irritability or a continual bad mood

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Signs and Symptoms of Shift Work Disorder

• You will sustain work-related injuries
• You will make costly mistakes
• You will need more sick time
• You will be at risk for more sleep-related car
  accidents
• You may use alcohol or drugs to aid in sleeping
  or waking

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What Causes Shift Work Disorder

• Your body views light as a signal to be awake
  and darkness as a cue to sleep.
• For some people, sleeping at any time is not a
  problem, but many on non traditional work
  schedules find themselves unable to get to sleep.
• They come into work feeling tired and may even
  fall asleep on the job.
• They are still energized from the day and not
  ready to go to bed even though they have the
  opportunity to sleep.
• By the time they get to sleep, it may be time to
  wake up, and they restart their workday already
  exhausted
• While some adjust to new shifts after a time,
  others never really adjust to early morning
  shifts, night shifts, overnight shifts, or
  rotating shifts and some may do better on one
  rather than another.

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Behavioral And Life Style Changes To Aid Shift
Work Sleep Disorder

• Room darkening shades
• Blocking out digital displays
• Wearing earplugs to kill sound
• Gaining the cooperation of your family to ensure
  uninterrupted sleep time

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Behavioral And Life Style Changes To Aid Shift
Work Sleep Disorder

• Wearing dark wraparound glasses on your trip home
  from work to get you in the mood to sleep.
• Maintaining a comfortable temperature of 65
  Fahrenheit in your room so it is not too hot or
  too cold to sleep.
• Eating a healthy diet rather than fast food or
  high-calorie vending machine snacks
• Working exercise into your regime
• Gaining the cooperation of your family to ensure
  uninterrupted sleep time

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Treatment for Shift Work Disorder

• If the testing proves that you have shift work
  sleep disorder, the doctors recommendations
  might include
• A prescription for sleeping pills for a short
  time or a medication such as Metaformil, which is
  used for narcolepsy, obstructive sleep apnea, and
  other sleep disorders.
• Dietary supplement such as melatonin that can
  help you improve your sleep.
• Bright light therapy that uses artificial light
  to help you transition to new shifts.

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Schedule An Appointment Today

• If you suspect that your work schedule is
  upsetting your circadian rhythm and may be
  leading to shift work sleep disorder, contact us
  online or by calling 708-364-0261 to book an
  appointment with one of our board certified sleep
  specialists in Chicago.

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