Shift working

[Bazzlejet]

Hey all, I need some advice please. I was diagnosed with T2 last Friday. Next Thursday i start my night shifts. These are 12 hours for which i sit on my butt and monitor a system. I already have plans on exercising/keeping moving (by my desk), but i'm unsure on how to manage my eating, not just during my shift, but also during the day.

Has anyone got any experience of this or advice on how to go about managing my food intake. Also, should i be testing during my night shifts?

Any advice would be appreciated, thank you 🙂

 

[everydayupsanddowns]

It may well be helpful to monitor your BG around your shift pattern, if you have access to a meter and strips, until you understand how your diabetes and levels behave around the altered rhythm of your day.

There are various circadian rhythm type things which may be interrupted or altered as your sleep pattern changes?

 

[Vonny]

Hi @Bazzlejet, it's not easy on a long shift to make sure you are eating properly. If you're going low carb, you'll need to make sure you have access to low carb food rather than relying on butties etc. If, like me, you get bored during a long time staring at screens, you could take some low carb snacks along with you: unsalted mixed nuts, cubes of cheese, hard boiled eggs, cold meat, salad etc....there are more low carb snacks than you think when you are programmed for carbs and/or sweet stuff.

I agree with @everydayupsanddowns that monitoring throughout the night would be a good idea. I'm strictly a day shift girl these days, but I have done night shifts as a programmer/systems monitor (many years ago!) and they seem interminable.

 

[danielmg]

Hey all, I need some advice please. I was diagnosed with T2 last Friday. Next Thursday i start my night shifts. These are 12 hours for which i sit on my butt and monitor a system. I already have plans on exercising/keeping moving (by my desk), but i'm unsure on how to manage my eating, not just during my shift, but also during the day.

Has anyone got any experience of this or advice on how to go about managing my food intake. Also, should i be testing during my night shifts?

Any advice would be appreciated, thank you 🙂

Hi @Bazzlejet

I hope you are well.

I had experience with night shifts (about 12.5hrs) a few years ago, not long after my initial diagnosis. Although I really struggled with long shifts and adjusting my sleep patterns, I learned some positive things from this (and have since changed), which would put me in a much better place if I were to try again in the future.

I'm unsure if you have access to the Freestyle Libre at the moment, but this would be incredibly helpful for careful monitoring throughout your shifts. At the time, I only had BG meter readings to use, and because I worked in a medical laboratory, I had to leave the lab to test at least every couple of hours. It would reduce overall worry by not having to constantly leave the workplace and provide closer monitoring between meals/snacks.

In terms of nutrition, I found it beneficial to stick to the same food sources/snacks and eating times if possible, for each of the night shifts I completed. This way, it would be easier to compare how your BG reacts during the day and night shifts, and make any adjustments with the Libre readings for support. Although I'm not sure how effective this was, I kept my meals to the same points of the day (i.e. breakfast in the morning after work, dinner in the evening before my shift) to avoid any further changes you may have to cope with.

In terms of sleep, I really struggled, unfortunately, but there were a lot of external factors at the time which I couldn't control and may be different for you (such as the hot weather, constant noise outside, etc.). I would likely invest in some black-out curtains/blinds if not already done so, and possibly earplugs depending on how much noise would be a factor for you. I'm not a very 'deep sleeper' so the fact I had neither of these at the time was a little clumsy of me.

Be careful as well if you drive to work, just in regards to keeping a close eye on your glucose levels and feeling in terms of tiredness/mental fatigue.

If I can think of anything else to help I'll be sure to edit this post, plus If you need any further help I'm sure other guys on the forum or I will be able to assist. 🙂

EDIT: The first place I received advice on approaching my night shifts was through this forum back in 2018. You're definitely in the right place for support.

 

[Bazzlejet]

@everydayupsanddowns @Vonny @danielmg thank you for the advice folks, much appreciated.

Will definitely take it on board. I'm used to doing shift work, but i'm also used to eating c**p during my shifts, especially bags of jellies to keep my sugar levels up.... well at least thats what i thought i was doing 🙄

In terms of nutrition, I found it beneficial to stick to the same food sources/snacks and eating times if possible, for each of the night shifts I completed.

I would often skip a meal during my night shifts (made up for it with sweets during the night), so i think this is going to be key for me and one i need to tackle straight of the bat!

you could take some low carb snacks along with you: unsalted mixed nuts, cubes of cheese, hard boiled eggs, cold meat, salad etc

This should definitely help tackle the above 😉

It may well be helpful to monitor your BG around your shift pattern,

Will do - especially before driving home.

I think i will have my breakfast around 06:00 as i leave at 07:00. Have my lunch around 14:00 and have my dinner when i get to work at 19:00. This way, i can keep it fairly similar to my meals at home. Lunch will be a bit later..... but i need sleep