Hey guys. Looking to see if anyone has any insight or advice for me…
so I am a shift worker, I do 5 days then get 5 days off then back to work for 5 night. I’ve been dieting pretty hard lately with pretty low carbs. Probably under 100g most of which is coming from fruit.
After my last night set I wasn’t able to get turned around with my sleep. During my days off I was falling asleep around 3am every night and waking up between 8 and 9am every morning. I am on day shift right now and I am still not able to get to sleep at a decent hour.
For my first couple of shifts this set I got a couple prescription sleeping pills from a friend which knocked my out at about 10:30pm which was good but last night I didn’t take any and still wasn’t able to fall asleep until about 2:30am. This is very frustrating for me. The weird thing is though is that today I am surprisingly not that tired for only getting 2 hours sleep.
I’m thinking I may have to slowly reintroduce some starchy carbs and see if that will help. Just wondering if anyone has any thoughts for my. Any advice would be much appreciated
I did nights 7pm-7am for 2 years. It starts by not being able to go to sleep until late on your off days, and it ended with me not being able to sleep, period. Insomnia, weight gain, fatigue all the time, etc. Low carb, low fat - as long as your diet is solid that won’t be the issue. The issue here is that humans aren’t nocturnal. I know guys who did 16 years of nights and never felt used to it. Your circadian rhythm has your body up during the day and making all of the good chemicals that you need, and you’re throwing it off by eating during the night and sleeping during the day. Anybody who has slept during the day (I used to sleep 10am-6pm with blackout curtains) can tell you it’s not sleeping. My only advice is to have a plan for your future that doesn’t involve you working nights, or a rotating schedule. I quit and went to my jobs competitor and work evenings 230-11 and I feel so much better I can’t even explain it. It feels like I got my life back.
“Shift workers also face potential health problems, researchers have found. Overall, those who work night or rotating shifts seem to have a higher risk of ulcers, insulin resistance, metabolic syndrome, and heart disease.”
Shift-Work Disorder (SWD) is a real thing, and it’s what you’re going through.
I have been working this job doing shift work for over 5 years now. I am usually pretty good at getting turned around. Just these past couple weeks I haven’t been able to. I feel as maybe my serotonin might be depleted. That’s why I plan to reintroduce some starchy carbs. Whenever I eat a normal amount of carbs I always sleep much better and in a much better mood during the day. This isn’t my first time dieting down with low carbs and usually I can still sleep just not as good of quality. Just these past couple weeks have been absolute shit
I worked 12 hour rotating shift work for 8 years (currently off on ltd for the past 1.5 years). My schedule was 2 days on (7am to 7pm) then 2 days off, 2 nights on (7pm-7am) then 3 days off then 2 nights on, 2 days off, 3 nights on etc …you can see how fucked up that would be! It was like jet lag over and over. I was never a great sleeper but never used sleeping pills until this job. It still affects my sleeping even though I am now on disability due to the meds I take for bipolar not allowing me to do my job properly anymore.
I was constantly stressed and even started binge eating in the last couple years to just to stay awake or even to pass out from carb overload when I got home. Now, my situation is slightly different because I have bipolar so I would have episodes that cycled rapidly due to the high stress, fast paced job and my circadian rhythms super fucked up. It got so much worse while working there.
My doctors told me it’s not natural for anyone and that as I age it would only get worse. I had to stop so I could get everything regular again. I tried keto, low carb, calorie counting, “traditional” body building diets, regular eating…you name it but none of it lasted long. Low carb and keto had me the most wound up. I could bodybuild, cardio, work extra shifts, just go nuts BUT I would eventually crash and have to leave work for weeks or more to recuperate.
Honestly, almost everyone I knew there was kinda messed up with sleep…only a select few could go home and sleep normal. Many people swore by melatonin but that’s not enough for me. I’m not sure I’ll ever get back to 100% normal sleep.
I’d suggest trying to get away from shift work if you can. Your body will thank you. I’m MUCH better now and can’t even believe I rode that rollercoaster for 8 looooong as years. I’m 39 now and so happy I stopped…I’m still employed there waiting for a straight days job if they find one for me. Not likely though lol.
Try adding back in some more carbs before bed if it worked for you before. From what I saw with other people though, it might just slowly get harder over time as you age to do the shifts. Idk how old you are now. Now with that in mind, there are many professions that do shift work. Is your job high stress too? That can really wear you down in itself without throwing in shifts to boot!
I have been experiencing a couple weird sypmtoms during this as well. As I mentioned, suprisingly not much lack of energy given the lack of sleep, very repetitive thoughts at night while laying in bed, slightly clenched jaw during the day as I go about my business. All of these make me feel as my serotonin/neurotransmitters are messed up. I plan on seeing my doctor asap but I just thought I’d see if anyone has any input as it will probably be a couple weeks before I can see him
I think you should definitely see your doctor. I can only tell you my experience and from what I heard about from coworkers. I could go off 2 hrs sleep like you are saying and just get progressively more wound up until it spiraled out of control but like I said I have bipolar. My psych doc said “normal” people can’t run off 2 hrs sleep without getting super tired and then having to sleep good to catch up. I think the shift work fucks up people’s neurotransmitters and hormones etc for sure and bodybuilding and dieting need adequate sleep for optimal results. It might just be catching up to you like it did to me.
Idk if I’m being much if any help here
Have you tried melatonin? I’m an acquaintance with a coworker who is a huge guy that is a bodybuilder and seems to do alright but I dont know his secrets…
I do appreciate your input. Thank you. A couple reasons I feel as my serotonin isn’t where it should be is for one I know that a lack of carbs/glucose/insulin usually does have somewhat of a negative impact. Another reason, when I was in my younger years I use to do my fair share of drug use. One of which was ecstasy which is commonly known to deplete serotonin. After I night of use I would experience the same symptoms as I am now…very repetitive thought patterns, inability to sleep. Clenching of the jaw…just thought I would throw that in there
Yeah, makes sense because I had the same issues after taking ecstasy (and everyone I knew that was taking it)…I felt so depressed the day after, like I’d lost my best friend. I’d say you are on the right track about serotonin because that is a calming neurotransmitter. Of course, I now take a mood stabilizer, seroquel and clonazepam.
My boyfriend worked at the same place as me for 12 years and he took clonazepman to sleep but he progressively got worse with sleep and moods over the years until he was sleeping like 4-5 hrs or less. He quit there 2 years ago and sleeps around 7-8 broken hours a night now but he takes seroquel to help. His sleep is better but it’s a slow process to get back to normal.
I can’t do low carb anymore. It makes me cranky, depressed, anxious, and kinda violent lol. I was really trying to limit carbs ,the past year on and off, before bed for the longest time but if I do I dont sleep as well. Everyone at the gym was going on about not eating before bed and limiting carbs later in the day. It wasn’t working for me. I usually have at least a bowl of oats with a protein shake or just a really fruit filled shake before bed now and it keeps me from lying in bed with my mind racing waiting for my pills to kick in. More often than not I’m asleep before I feel the effects of my drugs.
Yea I notice that when I cut carbs too low I am much more anxious as well. Also everything is much more face paced. I can’t seem to slow down. Now that your having carbs before bed how has it effected your goals in the gym? Have you noticed much of a difference in that aspect?
Honestly, the carbs before bed doesn’t affect my weight management and since I sleep better, I’m stronger (lifts are always going up or getting better) and have more endurance to finish my training. Personally, I struggled with my lifts when my carbs were under 100-150 grams a day. I would frequently get dizzy spells while lifting too. Also anxiety was worse which caused me to really over analyze my programs. I just spread my carbs out over each meal throughout the day. Seems to work for me. Keto did have my mind sharp as hell though but I couldn’t get stronger or bigger…only smaller and weaker.
Christian Thibaudeau has great info and advice over in his forum. Maybe ask over there to see what he thinks? I have been following the advice he has given me previously about programming and neurotype. Everything he says just makes sense!
I could never get used to flip flopping back and forth. I made an arrangement with my opposite (actually his girlfriend, he didn’t want to lol) that he work straight days and I’d stay on straight nights. Melatonin and a consistent schedule have helped my sleep quite a bit.
A lot of the people I worked with want to go all nights or all days but our company won’t get on board with it. I don’t know why they won’t give that option if 2 people agree on it.
Luckily, I worked my entire 8 years with the same crew and within that, a smaller team who were great! We really helped each other, got along well, and had plenty of good times and just tried to make it as fun and tolerable as possible. I couldn’t have done it without them.
