Lucky to have a job

LegacyUser

I'm in a situation that confuses me. I understand that many many people are desperately looking for work and I am in a job that pays, but I think it's effecting my physical and mental health.

For the past year I have worked 12 hour overnight shifts, 4 nights a week. I feel always tired, always frustrated, often angry for no reason, irritated. I am missing my life and my relationship with my family and friends. I get 3 - 5 hours broken sleep a day, and only 7 hours in my home during the day before having to leave for work again. During those 7 hours my husband is in work, so I don't see him 4 days a week.

My husband supports me to leave, he says that we will manage or I will find work elsewhere. As it is, I am just too shattered to look elsewhere now, I just sleep all weekend. I am stuck.
Money will be tight, bringing its own stress, but I genuinely feel my health is at risk at this stage and that I am missing out on important times with my family.

I feel so guilty for feeling this way when I know so many people are crying out for work. I am happy to work long hours, I am happy to work hard. I DO work hard and take a lot of pride in doing a good job. But I cannot do nights all the time anymore. I have requested changes, to drop shifts, swap shifts etc, but our team is pushed to capacity and all requests have been denied. I either resign myself to this now, or I leave.

I work hard, I had a proper career and was on my way to being successful, we had our life mapped out. Not anything excessive, but comfortable. Now here I am barely coping with my job and feeling totally unsure of what to do.

Another hard part is that there are days where I feel I can handle it. This makes me worry that I will regret it if I leave.

Curry Addict

i used to do similar for many years. its tough going. to avoid being burned out i adopted the philosophy that i would look after myself. If i felt anyway ill or in need of a break i just rang in sick and i didnt sweat it.
if u feel it getting on top of u just take a week off, look after yourself because your employer wont.

mikemac

You are not lucky to have to have a job, you were the best person at the time you applied.
Just others are unlucky to have lost theirs but it's not your issue to worry over, if thousands of brickies or apprentices or whatever profession lost their jobs how is it anything to do with you. So stop feeling guilty

I think you're taking too much onto yourself so don't be a martyr for this company, you can see they are running short staffed

The employer would fire you in the morning if they wished so do a good job but don't worry over the business so much.

If you need time off or can't make it in to work, phone in and take it

What a lot of people do here and home alone is drink bottles of wine, don't go down that road OP.
Maybe some vigorous exercise for an hour when you finish the shift? Bust the stress and can help with energy.

floorpie

"You're lucky to have a job" is the most exploitative, backward mantra that our nation could somehow swallow, it makes me cringe every time i hear it. At the very *least*, don't feel guilty for feeling this way; it's a matter of health and you have no obligation to a company in the face of something like that, because they certainly wont give an honest sh*t.

Every symptom you listed, as well as other ones that you haven't listed, has already been well documented as being linked to nightshift work. There's even a thing called 'night shift sleep disorder' or something similar.

If you and your husband can afford for you to quit, recuperate, and look for other work, then i don't see the harm. Obviously you might be looking for another job for a while, at the moment, but if you feel that it's your health at stake...

LegacyUser

I always think that people should work to live, not live to work.

It sounds like this job is having a serious effect on your life. I think you need to take of yourself as a priority and it is lovely to read that you have a supportive partner who can help you do this.

Best of luck with whatever you decide

LegacyUser

Hi there,

Wow, I really relate to your post.

Earlier this year I was in a demanding high power job, late nights, early mornings, on call - I loved about 25% of the work I was doing, I felt swamped all the time and even if I did get a day off here and there my phone would invariably ring to say I was needed.

I am skilled in a really specialised area so I knew if I left I would struggle to find something else, I kept going until I was totally wiped out - my friendships were dangling by a string because I was always cancelling, I hadnt had a r/ship with a man in over 3 years that lasted more than 6 months because I constantly put work first.....then, one day, I had a mini internal explosion and quit

It took me a month or so to find something, I'm on less money, but doing 9-5 and feel so much the better for it.

I had an attitude where I just refused to allow myself to be unemployed, I'm sure if you adopt the same approach you will be ok - but for gods sake don't stay somewhere that is having such a horrible effect on you. If you exhaust yourself physically then you will strain yourself emotionally!

Fair play to your husband for offering you such support, it must be hard for him to see you living such an existence. We only get one shot at life - enjoy it x

Overheal

Luckytohaveajob wrote: »

I'm in a situation that confuses me. I understand that many many people are desperately looking for work and I am in a job that pays, but I think it's effecting my physical and mental health.

For the past year I have worked 12 hour overnight shifts, 4 nights a week. I feel always tired, always frustrated, often angry for no reason, irritated. I am missing my life and my relationship with my family and friends. I get 3 - 5 hours broken sleep a day, and only 7 hours in my home during the day before having to leave for work again. During those 7 hours my husband is in work, so I don't see him 4 days a week.

My husband supports me to leave, he says that we will manage or I will find work elsewhere. As it is, I am just too shattered to look elsewhere now, I just sleep all weekend. I am stuck.
Money will be tight, bringing its own stress, but I genuinely feel my health is at risk at this stage and that I am missing out on important times with my family.

I feel so guilty for feeling this way when I know so many people are crying out for work. I am happy to work long hours, I am happy to work hard. I DO work hard and take a lot of pride in doing a good job. But I cannot do nights all the time anymore. I have requested changes, to drop shifts, swap shifts etc, but our team is pushed to capacity and all requests have been denied. I either resign myself to this now, or I leave.

I work hard, I had a proper career and was on my way to being successful, we had our life mapped out. Not anything excessive, but comfortable. Now here I am barely coping with my job and feeling totally unsure of what to do.

Another hard part is that there are days where I feel I can handle it. This makes me worry that I will regret it if I leave.

You don't have to 'look' for a new job, but do some RESEARCH. Find out what your position is worth. Use tools like http://glassdoor.com and find out if you are being undervalued. Was listening to this nanny on the radio talking about being on $10/hr when the going market rate was $20. The way to present that to your employer is - show them documentation - and non-confrontationally say 'hey I was looking into it and it turns out that the market value of a ____ is _____ while I am earning only ____. What do you think about that?" And then clam your clammer. Let them have time to respond.

That's assuming of course you are being undervalued but it sounds like you are, if not in wages than in the hours or in some other fashion you can present to your bosses and basically convey the idea that the current arrangement is not functioning and if they want to retain you there will have to be some degree of accommodation.

Blatter

What helps many in that situation is eating a real healthy diet and exercise regularly.

Helps clear the mind and brings about a new energy and feel good factor.