My day starts backwards. I wake up tired and I go to bed wide awake.
UnknownThere are various reasons due to which people in various professions cannot fulfill their essential quota of sleep. Some of them work long and on rotational shifts, constantly taking calls, or some may have long commuting times.
Certain professions demand individuals to work at unearthly hours and make life-or-death decisions in a split second. Some professions like manufacturing plant operators require working with heavy machinery and hazardous objects in a confined environment, and need to be totally alert almost every second of their working time.
The police need to carry a gun around, while on the job (did we just mention the word 'sleep') that may take him anywhere anytime, while a chef has to work fast and long with precision to meet the customer's expectation.
No wonder these people and a few others, do not have the choice to hit the snooze button. They have to get out of their bed as soon as possible and head off to work. At work, even if they consume 15 cups of coffee to survive an eight-hour shift, they still come home with a huge sleep debt.
One more concrete reason behind people working night shifts or at odd hours is due to improved connectivity across the globe. Globalization has made every hour of the day, a working hour somewhere on this planet. This has led to certain professions like stock brokers or software professionals to work according to the working hours of their customer or client. Naturally, these professions are sleep deprived.
The National Health Interview Survey (NHIS), undertaken by the CDC, has revealed to us the 12 most sleep deprived jobs. So, if you love your sleep and dread hearing the alarm clock in the morning, read the points given below and then choose your profession.
Home Health Aides
When it comes to the list of most sleep-deprived jobs, they top it. It is observed that sometimes they also make it to the list of under-paid jobs too. Although it is one of the most humble jobs that require compassion and patience, it is also the most demanding. These people are required to work round-the-clock because the patients they care for, are either old, critically ill, or physically disabled. They are expected to provide personal attention to patients and remain vigilant for any unexpected emergencies. This kind of routine creates difficulties in developing a consistent sleeping pattern.
Lawyers
These people get to see their courtroom more than their bedroom. They have to constantly keep putting in the extra hours and giving up their Z's. A recent survey revealed that lawyers put in more than 50+ hours in a week. They have to build up cases from scratch and decide strategies for arguments. Lawyers have to chalk out a way of defending their client. Research, proof-gathering, interrogation, and client meetings take up most of their time. Dealing with urgent matters also eats away into their chronology.
Police Officers
A criminal wouldn't stop committing a crime, just because the working hours are over. Police officers cannot stick to the usual 9 to 5 routine. They have mixed up shifts and screwed up body clocks. Their stress levels are also very high. You cannot picture a police officer carrying a gun around on his job and feeling sleepy. It is not acceptable and cannot be expected from a person who has to save lives and upholds the law. But wistfully they are grossly under slept due to work requirements and put in more than the expected 48 hours a week.
Physicians/Hospital Staff
Even though this job is one of the most respected professions, it is also best known for long hours and emergency. To ensure that the patient is at ease, hospital personnel, right from the front desk staff, to surgeons, work efficiently even at the most unsocial hours. They deal with a huge amount of stress, and need presence of mind, courage and patience to attend to emergencies even in the wee hours of the night. Their working times are anything but consistent.
Social Workers
Usually, the organizations these social workers work for, are under-employed. This eventually results in one person handling too many cases at a time. They also have to work in varied places like hospitals, schools, primary care centers and sometimes have to make home visits. This job also requires frequent traveling. Therefore, to keep their work on track, social workers often have to put in long hours even on weekends.
Computer Programmers
The internet has dissolved all notions of time and place. Consequently, a lot of stuff that happens online is done real time, which means someone, somewhere is sitting behind a computer to ensure online business and transaction run smoothly. Unfortunately computer programmers bear the brunt, in the form of long working hours and late-night video conferences and meetings. Moreover, they work in an office environment, where the ambiance is conducive for sleep and hence may have to rely on external stimulants like coffee. (Get my drift here) All this combined, plays havoc on their body.
Financial Analysts
Financial markets never sleep, and the same rule applies for its players. They are up for more than 40 hours a week, advising and analyzing various company's and individual's financial performance. Their job is to present a clear picture of the company's financial status and ways to improve it. They usually have to put in long hours to carry out tons of research and also prepare for meetings with clients. Their job also involves frequent traveling that disturbs their sleeping patterns.
Stockbrokers
Its 7 a.m., your alarm rings, you hit the snooze button and go back to sleep. But if you were a stockbroker, you wouldn't have that option, because if you hit the snooze button and sleep for those extra 4 minutes, you could have probably made or lost thousands of dollars. Globalization, again, has meant that at any given time on the day some stock market is in trading session. This means by the time the rest of the world gets ready for work, stockbrokers would have already pitched in at least 3-4 hours and made calls across the globe.
Plant Operators
It is seen that workers in manufacturing industries or plant operators often work in controlled environment. Sometimes, the work area is too hot or sometimes it can be too cold. This coupled with the long and rotational working shifts, deprives them of proper sleep. Constant changes in sleep timings also affects sleep patterns and causes fatigue, headache, and drowsiness. It can be hazardous, especially if a person is working with heavy machines.
Secretaries
They are the ones on whom many people rely, for their day-to-day tasks. They are responsible for keeping other people in the office on track. They schedule appointments, coordinate meetings, book for travel, and carry out many other miscellaneous administrative duties. They have to finish all their duties on time, else the people who depend on them would be stranded. Secretaries are also sometimes required to put in extra hours after office to schedule the next day's to-do list. The sheer amount of multitasking done by secretaries is enough to make anyone fatigued and stressed.
Chefs
The kitchen of a hotel houses some of the most sleep deprived people. They put in long and difficult hours, to make sure the customer is served the most delectable dish. Especially a commis chef, who is just starting out, has to start really early and finish very late. He is the one who does the cleaning and preparations for the senior chefs. They have to sometimes work on weekends. Not only commis chefs, but also senior chefs have to put in really long hours during rush hour. The constant heat, the spills, the standing work, coupled with the never-ending hours, make this vocation really tough.
Binmen/Women
These people have to get up before the crack of the dawn and start working before the world is out on the roads. Although it can be said that they do not put in endless shifts like doctors or lawyers, but their work is no less. They have to drag bin bags into the freighter, street by street. They have to work all 365 days, in all weathers. They also have to make sure that their job of collecting garbage is done before the first light. But it doesn't end there, they have to transport it to a deposit site, sort it out, and grade it accordingly.
In summation, I can tell you with conviction that if you can't handle sleep deprivation, steer clear of all the above mentioned jobs. No, I'm not serious. You can very much choose a profession of your choice but just remember that every occupation comes with its unique set of opportunities and risks. You have to decide what works best for you.
