Sleep schedules and circadian rhythms

The easiest way to look at it is shift work—you know, doing two days on the morning shift, two on the afternoon, then two nights, and just cycling through it indefinitely.

Because my sleep schedule is all over the place, my meal times end up being pretty irregular too. So far, I've mostly just noticed my immune system taking a hit...
I read somewhere that people who live and function under this kind of system are way more susceptible to various serious illnesses. Is there any truth to that, and if so, is there any way to help "calm" things down a bit?!

-How much damage does disrupting your circadian rhythm actually do to your health, if it does anything at all?

Thanks!

I really need some advice and a second opinion before I go back to my doctor!!
I’ve been working nothing but night shifts for 13 years now, but over the last two or three years, I’ve been feeling absolutely wiped out. It’s gotten to the point where I wake up feeling even more exhausted than when I actually went to bed. About once every two weeks, I take a Normabel before hitting the sack and it helps, but the issue is the dependency—I can't just rely on that forever. When I told my doctor about my energy levels—I mean, I get 7 or 8 hours of sleep, but then three hours after waking up, I’m so drained I could fall right back asleep. It’s killing me; I can’t even get out for a walk with my family. My doctor just brushed me off and said it’s just because I work nights, end of story.
Anyway, a buddy mentioned melatonin might be an option to help me out. I’d love to hear your thoughts or any advice you guys have.

Thanks

This is a relatively new development here in the States, obviously.😳 So, I don't think there's much clinical experience with it yet.
I attended a presentation by ExxonMobil regarding this, and it sounds quite promising. Once it makes its way onto the FDA approved list, it should definitely be the first choice for treatment.
The product is called Circadin, and you can obtain it via private prescription. If I recall correctly, the box contains approximately $53 tablets, though I can't remember if it's a 21 or 30 count.🤷

In the US, melatonin has been sold as a dietary supplement for years, typically in 3mg doses.

I really like Circadin because the dose is lower—2mg, if I read that right—and it uses a sustained-release formula.

That 3mg dosage hasn't been the standard recommendation for quite some time...

From my own experience, melatonin works best specifically for circadian rhythm disorders. However, it doesn't last long—only about 4 to 6 hours—so that gradual release feature seems like a total game changer.

But man, the price is outrageous. It’s easily 2 or 3 times more than what a supplement like this should actually cost.

Quote : The Great Duck

Phyto. As requested by: In America, Melatonin has been registered as a dietary supplement at a 3mg dosage for years. I prefer Circadin because the dosage is lower (2mg, if I read that correctly) and it features a sustained-release formula. That 3mg dosage hasn't been recommended for quite some time. In my experience, Melatonin is most effective specifically for addressing circadian rhythm disruptions. However, its effects only last about four to six hours, which makes that gradual release feel like a significant advantage to me. That price is an absolute joke; they're charging two to three times what a supplement like this is actually worth.

I misspoke. I was referring specifically to clinical practice regarding sleep disorders, where I haven't seen that being prescribed... in that particular context.
Circadin was only recently released on the market.
Price.😳 I am questioning whether this will make it onto the A-list.
I checked the prescription; it's 2 mg per 21 tablets.

Morgan Mendoza15 said:I really need some help and some honest opinions before I go back to my doctor!!
I've been working nothing but night shifts for 13 years now, and for the last 2 or 3 years, I’ve just been feeling completely wiped out. It gets to the point where I wake up feeling even more exhausted than when I actually went to bed. About once every two weeks, I’ll take some Normabel before hitting the sack and it helps, but the thing is, it’s addictive, so I can't just rely on it all the time. When I complained to my doctor about having zero energy—even after getting 7 or 8 hours of sleep—and how three hours after waking up I just want to pass out again, leaving me totally unable to do anything physical (I can't even go for a walk with my family!), he just brushed me off and said it's because of the night shifts and that's that. End of story.
Anyway, a buddy told me about Melatonin and suggested it might help. Please, let me know what you guys think or if you have any advice.

Thanks

Well, damn, it IS because of the night shifts, and honestly, the best move would be finding a regular job. But man, good luck finding one in this economy... anyway, once you eventually switch to a normal schedule, maybe you'll start feeling like yourself again, or maybe not, who knows... bottom line is you gotta find some kind of fix because you can't just let this drain you and screw you over forever. I've been working shifts for about 8 years myself, so I know exactly what you're talking about, but I can't really offer much help right now since I'm stuck in the same boat...

I haven't tried Melatonin myself, but if you give it a shot, let us know how it goes.

I have a question. Over the last ten days, my sleep schedule has been absolutely trashed because of college—textbooks, studying, all that chaos... I’ve completely wrecked my circadian rhythm. One day, I wouldn't sleep for 48 hours straight, then suddenly I'd hit the sack at a normal time around 10 or 11 PM, wake up around 7 or 8 AM... then the next day, I'd be wide awake until midnight, crashing and waking up around 9 or 10 PM. That was just the pattern over this ten-day stretch. I felt like a walking corpse, especially since I had to drive to another city for classes three days in a row.

It’s the worst kind of cycle—total vampire mode. I'm staying up all night, and most of the day too, barely getting any actual rest. In those three days, I probably only clocked about 13 or 14 hours of sleep total.

Once I finally got back home, I felt like I’d been run over by a semi-truck. I spent the day unpacking, and when I finally collapsed into bed around midnight—completely exhausted—I somehow woke up on my own at 6:15 AM. That was yesterday, and honestly, I felt dead; the sleep deprivation was making me feel physically unsteady. But I managed to survive the day, went to bed around 10 PM, and actually woke up at 8 AM this morning.

I've dealt with similar situations before. Back then, if I went to bed exhausted around 10 PM, I wouldn't even roll out of bed until 1 PM, and I’d wake up feeling totally refreshed. But now? Even when I wake up between 6 and 8 AM, I still feel completely drained.

Immunity levels are highly accurate, yet they remain entirely relative to an individual's specific system. It’s certainly not the same for everyone.

I personally tend to notice irregularities in heart rhythm... In my view, chronic exhaustion is what really causes those fatal accidents on the highway. As for malignant diseases, there is absolutely no proof there.

If someone wanted to shift their circadian rhythm regarding certain hormone secretions, including Melatonin, how much time would it actually take to establish that habit—for instance, by strictly sleeping only during the afternoon for a full 24-hour cycle (staying awake through the night and the morning hours)?

My apologies if a thread regarding this topic already exists; I simply failed to locate one during my search.
I find myself wondering whether maintaining an "unnatural" circadian rhythm—for instance, sleeping from 4:00 PM until midnight—is truly detrimental to one's health. Even if one manages to clock a full eight hours of sleep, I am curious about the actual extent of the damage. If such a schedule is indeed harmful, what are the specific physiological consequences we should expect?

For months on end, I was dealing with this absolute nightmare of a sleep disorder. It wasn't just a little trouble drifting off; it was an all-out struggle. My husband would be out like a light by 10:00 PM, while I’d be lying there wide awake, fighting a losing battle just to close my eyes. Then, almost every single night, I’d find myself jolted awake in the middle of the night, unable to drift back off for an hour or even longer. And if I happened to wake up around 5:00 AM? Forget about it. There was no way I could get back to sleep, no matter what I tried. I should clarify, though—I didn't have any underlying medical issues or stressors that anyone would typically point to as the culprit for insomnia.
I decided to test my Melatonin levels in the evening around 7:00 PM, and the reading came back at 10pg/ml. To put that in perspective, that is incredibly low—it's barely reaching what you'd expect for a daytime measurement, let alone an evening one.
Typically, you'd want to see morning values hovering between 10-40pg/ml, whereas by the evening, they really ought to be climbing into the 60 - 120 pg/ml range.
Once I started taking 3mg of Melatonin, things finally turned around, and I’ve been sleeping like a baby. Interestingly enough, when I eventually stopped the Melatonin, I found I could fall asleep perfectly fine without it too. I honestly feel so much better now.

I usually order mine from uklonjen link right here; you can just pick it up easily since it's available over the counter. They sell it in doses as small as 1mg..

I tried taking some Melatonin last night, and honestly, it feels really natural... I’d definitely keep using it, but I’m a bit stuck on whether that's actually okay. I’ve been digging around online, and the advice is all over the place—some sites say you should only take it when you really need it, while others claim daily use is perfectly fine. I even scrolled through some American forums where people mentioned they've been taking it consistently for three years straight... Is that actually safe?😕

goldenskipper13 said:So I tested my Melatonin levels in the evening around 7 PM and the reading was only 10pg/ml. Which is basically way too low—like, right on the edge of being insufficient even if we're talking about daytime levels.
Usually, you'd expect morning levels to be somewhere between 10-40pg/ml, and then by evening, they should be hitting 60 - 120 pg/ml.
Once I started taking 3mg of Melatonin, things totally turned around and I've been sleeping like a baby. And get this—when I finally stopped the Melatonin, I could still fall asleep just fine without it... I actually feel way better now.

Wait, how exactly are you testing it?

silvertrucker112 said:so how exactly are you checking him out?

Yeah, seriously, how are you checking him out??

Hey everyone. I just finished up a six-month stint on the night shift, and my body has completely adapted to that schedule. I was sleeping from about 7:00 or 8:00 AM until 5:00 or 6:00 PM. My shift ran from 10:00 PM to 6:00 AM every single day, maybe getting two days off a month. My final shift wrapped up this past Sunday. It’s been four days since then, and honestly, I’m seeing zero progress in resetting my clock. Over the last three days, I've barely managed four hours of sleep total because I've been forcing myself to stay awake during the day. But incredibly, I haven't felt sleepy at all during the night. Naturally, I ended up exhausted and crashed around 7:00 or 8:00 this morning...🙂 and woke up again at 5:00 PM. So, after four days of trying my hardest to get back to a normal routine, absolutely nothing has shifted. Has anyone else dealt with this? I could really use some help because I am officially done with this nocturnal lifestyle, and my energy levels are sitting somewhere around 50 or 60 percent right now.🙄 Does anyone have any advice or suggestions on how to return to a normal state before I start feeling even worse? I won't even get into the side effects of working nights—depression, lethargy, general physical weakness, irritability, you name it. Basically, I'm never doing this again...

James Mendoza76 said:Hey everyone. I just finished a six-month stretch on the night shift, and my body is completely wired to that schedule. I was sleeping from 7 or 8 in the morning until about 5 or 6 in the afternoon. My shift ran from 10 PM to 6 AM every single day, maybe getting two days off a month. My last shift ended this past Sunday. It’s been four days now, and honestly, I don't see any progress. Over the last three days, I’ve barely slept four hours total because I kept forcing myself to stay awake during the day. It didn't work. I couldn't fall asleep at night to save my life, and eventually, I just crashed around 7 or 8 this morning...🙂 and woke up again at 5 PM. Nothing has shifted despite my best efforts to get back to a normal routine over the last four days. Has anyone dealt with this before? I really need some help. I'm done with this lifestyle, and my energy levels are sitting at maybe 50 or 60 percent right now.🙄 Any tips or suggestions on how to reset? I'm starting to feel pretty terrible. I won't even list the side effects—depression, lethargy, general weakness, irritability, you name it. One thing is for sure: never again...

I actually stumbled back onto this forum by accident since it seems like things have gone quiet. If I understood correctly, you worked nights straight for six months and now you can't sleep at night? That makes sense. Your body is programmed that way after a while. You'll probably settle back into a rhythm soon enough.🙂 I know exactly how you feel. I used to work nights too, but mine were even worse. I'd finish a night shift, come home, and then have to head right back in for a weekend shift starting at 7 AM. Those were the toughest ones. I did that for a few years and ended up with chronic health issues.😢 Listen, everyone, watch out for those night shifts. It's not something to mess around with.🤷

If anyone can help me make sense of this, here’s the situation:

I have total flexibility with my work schedule—which sounds great, but it means my routine is all over the place. I often find myself heading to bed straight from the computer at dawn. For instance, if I crash at 5:00 AM, I’ll wake up around 2:00 PM the next day feeling absolutely trashed. It takes me at least half an hour just to function, and sometimes I feel completely drained; a few weeks back, I woke up around 2:00 or 3:00 PM and felt this weird, dizzy fog in my head.

On the flip side, I recently tried to fix my sleep schedule. Around 11:00 PM, I actually felt tired, and instead of fighting it like I usually do, I just went straight to bed.

I woke up around 5:00 AM, but the difference was night and day—as soon as I opened my eyes, I felt "awake," clear-headed, and without any of that heavy, "run-over-by-a-truck" sensation.

Then, during a recent trip, I spent the entire day exploring the city on foot and didn't get back to my rental until midnight. Even though I was exhausted from head to toe, I likely fell asleep the second my head hit the pillow—and by 5:00 or 6:00 AM, I was wide awake, totally refreshed, and clear-headed again.

Is it actually possible that my natural rhythm only requires about 5 or 6 hours of sleep? Or have I just completely wrecked my internal clock by constantly flipping between day and night shifts?

A healthy circadian rhythm means being in bed by at least 11 PM, if not even earlier, and staying asleep until sunrise or maybe a bit longer.
Swapping out a solid routine for less than seven hours of sleep is going to wreck your health in the long run. I've seen it happen.

What you did tonight was actual, healthy sleep, and honestly, the fact that you’re waking up feeling refreshed and sharp is the best proof there is.

Maybe you just hit your circadian rhythm perfectly, or maybe the sunrise caught you at just the right moment... or honestly, you might have just woken up during a REM cycle when your brain is firing on all cylinders! I really don't think it's any good for you to be getting less than 8 hours of sleep, though...

Same story again today. I hit the sack around midnight, but it wasn't the usual deal where I lie there for thirty minutes spiraling through five hundred different thoughts—I actually passed out immediately... only to snap my eyes open at 5:00 AM with that exact same feeling of being wide awake. Just "awake 1/1." So, there it is. I guess I'll just have to see how long this keeps up 😁

I totally get where you're coming from... that whole idea of quieting your mind really does wonders for sleep, kind of like how meditation works for me!