Speaker 1: 1:42

Shift work can be brutal, but it doesn't have to be. Welcome to a healthy shift. My name is Roger Sutherland, certified nutritionist, veteran law enforcement officer and 24-7 shift worker for almost four decades. Through this podcast, I aim to educate shift workers, using evidence-based methods, to not only survive the rigours of shift work, but thrive. My goal is to empower shift workers to improve their health and wellbeing so they have more energy to do the things they love. Enjoy today's show and welcome back to A Healthy Shift, the podcast, which is dedicated to empowering you, the shift worker, to thrive and not just survive in your demanding role.

Speaker 1: 2:29

I'm your host, roger Sutherland, and today I want to shine a spotlight on a topic that is absolutely fundamental to your health and well-being, and that is your circadian rhythm. Fundamental to your health and wellbeing, and that is your circadian rhythm. Now, before you go, oh, we've heard all this before. What I want to go into today is I want to talk about not only the circadian rhythm. I'm not going to go into great detail around that, because we've discussed that and done it to death. What I wanted to really cover today is how circadian misalignment actually impacts on us and strategies around that. So let's get into that, because if you're a frontline health or emergency services worker, a night nurse on duty, a paramedic on rotating shifts or a police officer on a late night patrol, then you know you already know the unique challenges of trying to function when your body is literally telling you to do the exact opposite. And for those of you in your early 20s and just starting out in this incredible, vital work, it's even more critical that you understand this now because I can absolutely promise you the long-term impacts of this shift work will really start to set in, and it's important that you can learn from somebody such as myself that has not only well-travelled road, but I've also understand the evidence and the science behind the best possible way to go about doing this shift work, because there is a way to do it. Research in the past that's been done on shift work has been done with very, very little education around shift workers and they've only looked at what the outcomes are. But I'm here to try and educate people on the best possible way to go about doing this and I honestly believe that I can make the shift working environment a lot healthier.

Speaker 1: 4:25

You see, one of the things is for the first three quarters of my own shift working life. I honestly had no idea what I was doing. I was just doing it. I just did what I'd been told by others. I listened to others, I watched what others did conversations been told by others. I listened to others, I watched what others did conversations and what everybody else seemed to be doing and honestly, I can honestly say, as I stand here today, it took a significant toll on my own health, both physically and mentally, because the impacts on my health were profound in so many ways, and some of those impacts, I can tell you, I am still dealing with today.

Speaker 1: 5:04

But once I understood the circadian rhythm and I got my light diet right, once I focused on aligning my circadian rhythm as much as possible, that's when I truly started to thrive, and I want this for you too. Now I know you think, oh, I'm a shift worker, I can't do it. I'm going to stop you right there, because I will challenge anyone that comes at me that you can do it a different way to the way that you're doing it now if you are really suffering. But you have to take the steps. So what are they?

Speaker 1: 5:42

So let's start with the basics. What exactly is your circadian rhythm? Because it is so important to our health. So think of it as your body's master internal clock. It's a natural 24-hour cycle that regulates everything from your sleep-wake patterns to hormone release, body temperature, your metabolism, even your immune function. Now, this clock is primarily set by light and darkness. When it's light, your body gets signals to be awake and alert, and when it's dark you got it it starts producing melatonin. That hormone that helps you signals darkness to the body and we start to feel a bit sleepy. Now here's a severe impact for us shift workers. When you're working nights or irregular shifts, you are constantly fighting against this natural, deeply ingrained biological clock, are exposed to exposing yourself to bright light when your body expects darkness, and you're trying to sleep when your body expects light. Now this isn't just a bit tiring. Quote unquote this is a fundamental disruption to your entire physiological system. It causes all sorts of grief for it and the consequences? They are far-reaching and, quite frankly, they are alarming, especially for the young people who think that they're quite invincible right now. But I can promise you it's going to catch up.

Speaker 1: 7:17

Let's go through four main areas that a disrupted circadian rhythm impacts on, and the first one is the sleep sabotage and the crash. The issue is your body is designed to sleep when it is dark. When you finish a night shift or you come home from a late call, the sun is often rising, which is blasting your body with the signal to be awake, and many young shift workers, feeling exhausted, will then power on through by trying to force sleep in an environment that's hostile to it or, worse, engage in revenge. Bedtime procrastination, which means staying up longer than they should because they feel deprived of personal time, and this often leads to inadequate and fragmented sleep. So what's the self-sabotage here? Thinking that you can just push through, or that you can quote unquote catch up on the weekend and anybody that follows me knows you can't catch up on sleep or the feeling the need to immediately jump into social plans or errands because you have so little normal free time. What's the impact of this Chronic sleep deprivation?

Speaker 1: 8:41

Now, we're talking impaired cognitive function, a much slower reaction time, difficulty in concentrating, memory issues and in critical frontline roles. This is not just inconvenient, it's an outright safety risk for you and for those of you that you are serving or helping. You're also at a higher risk for what is known as shift work sleep disorder, which is a clinical condition which is marked by insomnia and excessive sleepiness tied directly to your work schedule. You literally can't sleep during the day and you can't stay awake overnight. So what's the strategy around this? I can't emphasize this enough. You must prioritize your sleep cave. You must prioritize your sleep.

Speaker 1: 9:37

Make your bedroom as dark as humanly possible, even during the day. Now, when I say make it as dark as possible, I'm not only talking during the day, I am talking at night as well. We need thick blackout blinds or, if you can't do that, an eye mask. We need to make it cool and quiet. Can't do that an eye mask. We need to make it cool and quiet Immediately upon leaving night shift. We need to be wearing dark glasses or blue light blocking glasses to block out as much of this morning blue light as is possible on your commute home. We need to leave those glasses on right up until we take them off, to put a sleep mask on and sleep.

Speaker 1: 10:27

Now the next thing you've got to get into bed as soon as you can, even if it's just for a planned nap. Treat your daytime sleep with the reverence that you would for nighttime sleep. I beg you that your priority when you're on nights is to get home, eat, shower straight to bed, not scroll sitting on a phone and exposing yourself to daylight. This is critical and why a lot of people really suffer with poor sleep. Yeah, you might go straight to sleep, I totally understand that, but you won't stay asleep, and it's not just because you're on night shift, it's because of your activities leading into that sleep. And this is where it becomes imperative. It becomes really, really important that you block that blue light and lower all the lights and make it pitch black in your bedroom. So that is the sleep sabotage. All right.

Speaker 1: 11:29

Now the next thing is your gut health, those gut feelings and the metabolic mayhem that circadian misalignment brings. What's the issue? Well, the issue is your digestive system is also operating on that normal diurnal, which is daytime, circadian rhythm. Eating a main meal at 2 am or constantly shifting your meal times backwards and forwards does nothing more than just confuse your metabolism. Your body's not designed to process a heavy meal in the middle of the biological night. So how do we self-sabotage this? Well, what we do is we grab quick and often unhealthy, highly processed foods during our shifts because they're convenient, or we're eating large meals at odd hours, and I can put my hand up. I absolutely was an offender for this as well. Just flip the meals, they say. Sure, this can be fueled by exhaustion and cravings for quick energy While we are tired. This has a problem. The impact of this is the increased risk of gastrointestinal issues like IBS. We get acid reflux and general abdominal discomfort, gas bloating. Ladies, this is a real problem for you, in particular with a already compromised digestive tract. More seriously, this significantly raises your risk for metabolic disorders such as obesity, insulin resistance and type 2 diabetes.

Speaker 1: 14:25

Your body struggles to regulate blood sugar and store fat effectively when you're eating patterns out of sync with your internal clock. It is literally that simple. So what's the strategy? Strategic nourishment Focus on nutrient-ense, smaller meals and snacks during your night shift, try and fast between 2100 or 9 pm and 6 am and try and eat your largest meal of the day during the biological day, whether that's before your shift starts or during a planned very early break in that shift. Before you go into that 9pm, hydrate consistently with water. Don't reach for this caffeine all the time. Water is going to help you enormously. And pack your own little healthy options to avoid relying on less healthy choices which are available in those freaking goddamn vending machines that are everywhere in workplaces. So that is around our gut health.

Speaker 1: 15:33

Now let's talk about the mental health maze and our social isolation, because the issue is constantly shifting. Your sleep schedule will wreak havoc on your mood, your emotional regulation and your overall mental well-being. Now it's not just physical tiredness, it's a deep disruption that affects your brain chemistry. So, on top of that, your unconventional hours make it incredibly difficult to connect with your friends and your family who operate on a normal schedule, leading to feelings of loneliness and isolation. How do we self-sabotage with this? We withdraw from social activities or we neglect our relationships because it just feels goddamn too hard. It's always too hard. We're too tired, we can't be bothered, it's too hard to organize anything at all, or we use our very, very limited free time to just flop on the couch and surf Netflix rather than engage with other people. We are humans. We need to engage with other people. The impact this has brings about higher rates of anxiety, depression, irritability and also burnout, because all we're doing is working and sleeping, or flopped on the couch.

Speaker 1: 16:50

For frontline workers, who are already facing high-stress environments and potentially traumatic events, this compound on your mental health can be absolutely devastating. So what strategy is there? Well, we have to cultivate connection and we have to have conscious downtime, actively schedule time for social interaction, even if it's just a quick video call or a meal with a friend, a brunch, breakfast, lunch, whatever before or after a shift. Lean on your shift working colleagues, they do understand, they get it, they get you. Lean on your shift working colleagues, they do understand, they get it, they get you. Dedicate specific time for mental decompression, whether it's just journaling, doing a meditation, gentle stretching, going and doing some exercise, or just chilling and listening to music, it's absolutely okay. Don't sacrifice your precious personal time entirely, but use it intentionally to support your own mental health, and that is how it impacts on our mental health.

Speaker 1: 17:52

Now let's talk about our immunity, because our immunity is completely under siege with a disrupted circadian rhythm. So what's the issue? The issue is your immune system is highly influenced by your circadian rhythm, believe it or not? Because when your clock is disrupted, your immune cells do not function optimally. How do we self-sabotage? Well, we believe that we can just tough it out, don't we? When we're feeling run down. It's part of our job. Or we just neglect basic self-care like hand-washing or getting enough sleep because of the perceived time pressures that we have. What's the impact of this? Increased susceptibility to infections, colds, flu and even more serious illnesses? And for you, nurses, that's diabolical because of the exposure. And also what about for our health and emergency services workers? Exposure, and also what about for our health and emergency services workers? This not only impacts on your own health, but you can also be potentially compromising your patient safety as well.

Speaker 1: 18:54

The strategy is to fortify your defences. Beyond the sleep and nutrition strategies already mentioned, you need to focus on consistent hand hygiene. If possible, discuss with your workplace about strategies to limit consecutive night shifts or to ensure adequate recovery time between shifts and, crucially, don't ignore those symptoms of illness. Listen to your body and seek appropriate care. It's really, really important. So how do we actively manage circadian alignment and start thriving? Well, it's about being intentional, it's about being educated and it's also about being kind to yourself.

Speaker 1: 19:35

Number one light diet is king. Stop looking for a diet out there to help you to lose weight. I can guarantee to you the absolute best diet that you could possibly be on today is the light diet, and the reason being is because of the impacts that poor light exposure at the wrong times has on our hunger and satiety and our metabolic the storage of the way we metabolize nutrients and the way that we store as well. Self-sabotage, excessive blue light exposure from our phones, tablets, overhead lighting and computers right up until you sleep, regardless of the shift type, is causing us problems. Strategy be mindful of the light exposure when you need to be awake during a night shift or during your day on days off. We need to maximize that bright light exposure. We need to get natural sunlight at his best natural daylight, not internal lights. We need natural daylight, not internal lights. We need that natural daylight because when you need to signal sleep, you need to minimize all light that helps your body to go. Ah, it's getting darker Now. We need to produce melatonin. It's time to sleep. We need to use dim and warm lights in the hours before bed.

Speaker 1: 20:57

I highly highly recommend that people listening to this podcast invest in zero blue globes, particularly in their bedrooms or in their living areas as well, and don't go and turn that light on in the goddamn bathroom or ensuite just before you go to bed. It's the brightest light in the house and it is laced with blue light, so what we want to be doing is wearing blue light blocking glasses or we need to be replacing the globes in the main lived areas in our home. And if you go to my website, ahealthyshiftcom, and go to the menu up the top, there is a recommended product page there where I have linked to the right globes, the right blue blocking glasses that are scientifically tested and backed. I've tested them so you don't have to, and I can tell you we are swapping globes and wearing blue light blocking glasses in our home. After dark, it is imperative All right After the sun goes down, and the difference that it makes to how you feel is literally enormous. We don't realize those low voltage lights that you're putting in your homes are causing you so many problems.

Speaker 1: 22:18

Right, strategic napping this is really important. How do we self-sabotage this? Well, we skip naps entirely or we take too long because poorly in time naps then interfere with later sleep. Now let's be clear. What's the strategy? Strategy, because power naps are ridiculously powerful and are a shift worker's superpower. Our naps need to be a maximum of 20 to 30 minutes before a night shift can significantly boost that alertness while you're working at night. A short nap during a night shift, if you're allowed to and it's safe can also be incredibly beneficial On your days off. Try to keep the naps consistent and avoid very long naps that push your main sleep too late. I would highly suggest 20 to 30 minute naps prior to 3pm. That's what I would suggest as a rule. But if you can get a 20 minute nap in at work and you're allowed to do that, but if you can get a 20-minute nap in at work and you're allowed to do that, enormously beneficial to release that sleep pressure.

Speaker 1: 23:24

The other thing is meal timing. It is almost as important as much as what you eat Self-sabotage eating your biggest meal right before bed or frequently snacking on high-sugar, high, high fat foods during your biological night. Hello, shift workers, we all do it. And then we wonder what diet to go on during the day to lose the body fat. It's simple Fuel smart. Aim for lighter, protein-rich snacks during the night portion of your shift. Try to consume your larger and more complex meals when your body is more metabolically active during the day or early evening, depending on your shift is important.

Speaker 1: 24:09

Now, transitioning between shifts self-sabotage we're immediately trying to flip our schedules on days off to match normal people because constantly jarring shifts to your rhythm. So what we got to do is the strategy is gradual shifts are key. Now, if you have rotating shifts, try to rotate clockwise forward day to afternoon to night shift, because your body will adapt so much better to those delays than advances. Right? So when transitioning to days off after nights, gradually shift your sleep schedule by an hour or two each day, rather than suddenly flip it back. This is why those quick changeover shifts should go. They should be outlawed and illegal, because the other way helps your body to adjust more smoothly, and the other thing is to listen to your body and get help when it's needed.

Speaker 1: 25:02

Ignoring persistent fatigue, mood changes or digestive issues, assuming they're just quote part of shift work, is not right. Be your own advocate. Pay attention to persistent symptoms. Don't self-medicate with excessive caffeine, with alcohol or unhealthy coping mechanisms or trying to reach for goddamn supplements to patch a hole in a poor behavior, because it's not going to help you. Now, if you're struggling significantly, then please seek professional help from your physician or a sleep specialist. This is not a sign of weakness. It's a sign that you're actually taking your health seriously.

Speaker 1: 25:49

Now I just want to say my journey with shift work truly changed when I stopped fighting my body and started to understand its needs. Now we don't have to be perfect. It's all about making informed choices that support your circadian rhythm as much as possible within the realities of your demanding job. Now this education is paramount, especially for you new people who are starting out, because this is a really important time. Understanding why these things are happening to your body is the first step to actually taking control, before it takes control of you, and that's where a healthy shift and my private community come in. So if you are looking for tailor-made strategies to match your specific lifestyle and get your circadian rhythm right, I would invite you to consider one-to-one coaching. Sometimes, a personalized approach is exactly what you need to fine-tune these strategies to your unique situation. This is important.

Speaker 1: 26:55

I have helped numerous, numerous shift workers to set themselves up, to really thrive in shift work and the investment. While it might've seemed a lot at the start, it has been an absolute godsend to them right the way through, to support them and help them all the way through. Now you can get a free 15 minute coaching assessment call with me. You've got nothing to lose. All you got to do is go to my website, go to the coaching page and you can scroll down the bottom there and there is to ask me more questions, and you can literally book a 15 minute coaching assessment call there where I will have a chat with you and we will work out exactly what there is that I can do to help you with one-to-one coaching. It might be the best 12 weeks that you've ever set. It might give you longevity in your job. It certainly gave me longevity in mine 40 years. I've done and I can tell you, understanding the way to go about doing shift work is literally life-changing.

Speaker 1: 28:04

Or, if you would prefer a group environment, then you can join the Shift Workers Collective as well, which is our private community of shift workers, where you can get support, you can share your experiences and learn from others on a similar journey. You don't have to navigate this alone, and you don't Now. You can find more information on both of these resources by visiting my website at ahealthyshiftcom. Go to the website and have a look. There's tons of information there for shift workers.

Speaker 1: 28:40

And don't forget don't forget to subscribe to a Healthy Shift podcast wherever you get your podcasts, so that you don't miss our next episode, where we'll explore even more ways to optimize your health as a shift worker. I really want to say thanks for tuning in and until next time, stay safe, stay healthy and keep finding that circadian rhythm. Thank you for listening. If you enjoyed this episode, be sure to subscribe so you get notified whenever a new episode is released. It would also be ever so helpful if you could leave a rating and review on the app you're currently listening on. If you want to know more about me or work with me, you can go to ahealthyshiftcom. I'll catch you on the next one.