Math Is Against Me

I was talking with one of my drivers about how I always seem to be sick on my days off. I explained to him it’s the price you tend to pay when you work 4 on, 4 off, and when you think about it, it kind of makes sense.

When you work 4 on, 4 off, you don’t tend to allow yourself to get fully better. The average cold or flu lasts 7-10 days.  If we start getting sick on our 3^rd or 4^th shift in, it’s normally at its worst by our 1^st or 2^nd day off. 2 or 3 days later, as you do with the flu, you feel better. And that puts you right at the start of your work week. The problem being, you’re not better, you’re just better than you were.  And your mind will tell you, you’ve been in bed for 4 days, you're better and to go to work! The math, on the other hand, will tell you it’s only been 5 or 6 days since you got ill, despite what you think, you’re not better.

But, because nobody ever listens to math; so you go to work, and due to another mathematical equation that is working against, 4 days later, when your work week is done, you’re still sick, probably sicker than you were 4 days ago and the cycle continues.

There is another math equation that works against you and is probably the reason you got sick in the first place and the reason your recovery will take longer than it should; sleep, or lack thereof. When you’re sick, you need rest to recover and lots of it, and when you work 12 hour shifts you don’t get it. And it’s easy to see why.

It takes me 1.5 to get to work, 1 hour to get home. I give myself 2 hours to get ready and eat before work, right there only leaves me 7.5 hours. I have to come in from work, take off my makeup, actually fall asleep. Even if that only took an hour….and trust me, it’s always longer, that only leaves a possible 6.5 hours of sleep a night. And that’s banking on me getting out of work bang on 6am…. Which isn’t a thing that happens. So I’m lucky if I get 5 and half maybe 6 hours of sleep a night. Remembering 8 hours is what we’re meant to be aiming for. By the end of my working week I have a sleep debt of 8+ hours, or a full night’s sleep. Which is why like most 4 on, 4 off night shift workers I rarely see my first day off.

Like I said, math is against me, which is a shame, because it was always my favorite subject in school and now it’s trying to kill me. Anyways, I am going to go and sleep because…. Math. But before I do I have this question for you; what do you feel like is working against you? Let me know in the comment box below and as always stay and play safe.

Love,

The Honest Bitch

xoxo