Morning all, please can I pick your collective brains?
For 8 years I’ve taken my meds (Ropinirole and Rasagaline) at breakfast time because I worked roughly 9 - 5. However a couple of months ago I changed jobs and now work nightshift 9pm - 7am, 4 nights on and 4 off.
When I’m off I medicate at breakfast time as before, and when working I take it about 7pm. The bit I’m struggling with is the transition from one to the other, and back again 4 days later.
Iv had a similar issue… when i was first diagnosed last year i worked 6pm till 6am 4 on 4 off. Loved it!! 4 days off and sat in an office watching netflix all night!! But same as you i struggled with the meds ands changing from days to nights then back again…
Long story short i spoke with my consultant and was told aslong as i work nights i will always have this problem. In the end i changed jobs and now work days and honestly i feel so much better for it…
I looked at it like this. I have 3 options…
1 - stay on nights and just deal with it
2 - move my 4 days off onto night’s so i always sleep during the day and wake all night every night so my meds are the same time everyday
3 - get a new job on days…
Probably not what you want to hear my friend but honestly after moving jobs and working day’s (and trust me i did not wanna leave that night job)i feel so much better for it…
Yes that’s kind of the conclusion I’d come to as well. At the moment I just plan around knowing that I’m going to have 2 off days in every 8. It’s manageable…and leaves me enough spare time to work on becoming the next Banksy (Shhh…don’t tell anyone!)
Hope you are doing well. It’s definitely very important to keep on top of your on/off periods so thank you for bringing this to light. Have you tried speaking to your GP or Parkinson’s professional regarding this? They may be able to give you some advice?