People who do shift work or who have irregular work hours often work when their body tells them to sleep. Like many bodily functions, sleep follows a daily pattern. When this pattern is disrupted, the person may have trouble sleeping when they want to sleep.
People with shift work sleep disorder can also suffer from tiredness and reduced performance when they are awake. This can lead to safety risks and can affect the person’s family and social life. It is thought that if you do shift work for long enough, you can develop a long term sleep disturbance.
The only real way to avoid shift work sleep disorder is to maintain a regular work schedule and a regular sleep and wake pattern.
