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How to Stay Awake on Night Shift (Without Wrecking Your Sleep After)
Staying awake on nights isn't the hard part. Plenty of things will keep you up.
The hard part is staying awake at 3am, then getting home at 7am and sleeping. Most night shift advice only solves the first half.
These tips cover both.
1. Bank sleep before your first night
Your first night is usually the worst one, because you've been awake since the morning.
The Sleep Health Foundation suggests a nap before a night shift to reduce the sleep debt you walk in with. A longer nap of around 90 minutes in the afternoon before your first night gives you a full sleep cycle and takes the edge off hour ten.
Don't nap too close to when you plan to sleep properly, though. The Foundation advises avoiding naps in the 4 to 6 hours before your main sleep.
2. Use short naps on the job, if your site allows it
If you get a proper break, a 15 to 20 minute nap is the sweet spot.
Under 15 minutes tends not to do much. Over 20 minutes and you risk waking up groggy, which is the last thing you want before getting back on the tools or back on the ward.
Set an alarm.
3. Front load your caffeine
Caffeine works for night shift. The Sleep Health Foundation lists it as a tool that can improve alertness and performance before and during a shift.
The problem is timing. The average half-life of caffeine in adults is around 5 hours. Whatever you drink at 4am, roughly half of it is still in you at 9am when you're trying to fall asleep.
A simple rule that works for a lot of night workers:
- Have your caffeine at the start of the shift and through the first half
- Set a cut off in the back half, well before you knock off
- Skip the coffee or can on the drive home
In a 2013 study published in the Journal of Clinical Sleep Medicine, a large caffeine dose taken 6 hours before bed still cut total sleep by more than an hour. People in the study didn't even notice. We break down the timing in detail in when to stop caffeine before sleep.
4. Know your dose
The size of the can matters more than the brand. Most Australian energy drinks sit at about 32mg of caffeine per 100ml, so a 500ml can is around 155 to 160mg and a 250ml can is around 80mg.
Two big cans on a night shift is over 300mg, and a lot of it lands late. See our caffeine comparison of Australian energy drinks for the exact numbers.
5. Keep the lights bright at work
Bright light tells your body clock it's daytime. On nights, you want that during the shift.
Where you have any control over it, work under good lighting and step into brighter areas when you feel yourself fading. Dim break rooms feel nice at 3am. They also make hour eleven harder.
6. Block the light on the way home
This is the one most people miss.
The morning sun on your drive home tells your body the day has started. The Sleep Health Foundation recommends limiting bright light before bed, including wearing sunglasses on the drive home after a night shift.
Keep a pair of dark sunnies in the car. Put your phone brightness down once you're home.
7. Eat light through the small hours
A big heavy meal at 2am tends to make the back half of the shift drag. Your gut isn't expecting a roast at that hour.
Have your main meal before the shift. Through the night, go for smaller snacks and keep water close. Being dehydrated makes a long night feel longer.
8. Make your bedroom a night shift bedroom
You're trying to sleep when the rest of the street is mowing lawns and doing school drop off.
- Blackout curtains or blinds, or a decent eye mask
- Earplugs or a fan for background noise
- Phone on do not disturb
- Let the people you live with know your sleep hours
The Sleep Health Foundation's target is 7 to 9 hours of sleep in every 24 hours. For night workers, that can be one block or split across a main sleep and a nap.
9. Have a plan for coming off nights
When you finish a run of nights, the Foundation suggests a short sleep in the morning, then going to bed earlier than usual that night. Get outside in the morning sun on your first day off to help reset.
Sleeping all day on your first day off feels good. It usually means a rough night and a messy first day shift.
10. Drive home carefully, or don't
If you're struggling to keep your eyes open, don't drive. Pull over for a power nap, get a lift or use public transport. No shift is worth the drive home going wrong.
The short version
- Nap before your first night
- Keep on-shift naps to 15 to 20 minutes
- Caffeine early, cut off well before you knock off
- Bright at work, dark on the way home
- Small meals through the night
- A proper dark, quiet room for sleep
Get through the night, then be right for the next one.
FAQ
What is the best way to stay awake on a night shift?
Combine a nap before your shift, bright light while you work, short on-shift naps where allowed, and caffeine early in the shift with a cut off well before you finish.
When should I stop drinking caffeine on night shift?
Base it on when you plan to sleep, not when you finish. With an average caffeine half-life of around 5 hours, a cut off 6 or more hours before your planned sleep is a reasonable starting point. Everyone clears caffeine at a different rate.
How long should I nap before a night shift?
A nap of around 90 minutes in the afternoon before your first night shift can reduce sleep debt. Avoid napping in the 4 to 6 hours before your main sleep.
How do I sleep after a night shift?
Wear sunglasses on the drive home, keep your bedroom dark and quiet, avoid caffeine late in the shift, and aim for 7 to 9 hours of sleep across the day.
This article is general information, not medical advice. If you're regularly struggling with sleep or fatigue from shift work, talk to your GP.
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