Shift work

Did you know that shift work has been proven in clinical studies to cause short term memory loss?

I don't have to read a scientific study to know that it's true. My whole life is a scientific study of the effects of shift work. I frequently forget what I mean to say, I struggle to find the appropriate word, I walk in the other room only to realize when I get there that I have absolutely no idea why I went there in the first place. So I go back to where I was hoping it will jog my memory and when it does I still can't retain what I meant to do from that room to the next. I find myself planning what I need to say on the radio at work so I don't forget anything, then pausing mid-sentence to remember what I planned to say. It's like I'm turning into my mom already in my mid twenties.

Don't get me wrong, I love my mom and there are many things about her I would love to inherit, but her memory is not one of them!

Aside from the annoying forgetfulness there are physiological side effects of shift work. Because I work all night I also eat late at night and I find myself suffering from heartburn on a regular basis. I sleep during the day so I rarely get the appropriate amount of sunshine which means I'm pale white for the first time in my life. More importantly the lack of sunshine means a lack in vitamin k, or whatever that happy sunshine vitamin is, so I am often gloomy and depressed. I am more susceptible to sickness because I work long hours and sleep very few. My husband and I work opposite dcedyles, so when I get a day off I try to stay awake and spend time with him. My body is too used to being awake at night, so I stay up all night and sleep all day. Basically I'm always tired.

The short term memory loss can come in handy though. Not that I like to use it as an excuse. But if I happen to have a particularly difficult day at work or an upsetting call, I usually don't remember it for long.