About Night Shift Planner

I spent 26 years crossing time zones and living on the wrong side of the clock, and nobody ever handed me a real roadmap for what that does to your body. That's why I built this. When I started as a flight attendant, nobody talked about optimizing sleep or sleep hygiene. You had to figure it out for yourself.

I was young at the time and sleep in those days was the last thing I really focused on. I did all the cliche things as a young flight attendant. Partied on layovers, pushed lack of sleep to the limit while crossing time zones. Some of it was part of the job and some of it was the excitement of seeing the world and doing as much as you can on a layover in the time that you had. Predictably, you can only go without sleep for so long till your body shuts down.

Luckily I was not really a drinker, sure the occasional glass of wine here and there but for the most part it did not appeal to me. I got to see the effect it had on my colleagues. Combining drinking and lack of sleep is always a bad combination. Today we have measurable stats on what drinking does to our bodies and our sleep cycles. Alcohol may put you to sleep but it won't keep you asleep.

A pivotal point early in my career turned out to be an eye opening experience that changed the whole course of my life, for the better. I was on a layover in London with some very senior colleagues — it was the early years of flying and I ended up on that flight because someone senior called in sick and I was called in at the last minute to take her place. Did all the typical things on that layover: sightseeing, shopping, and sacrificing sleep because who knew when I would get to come back. A lot was packed into a 24-hour layover.

The next day, we piled back onto the same transportation to take us back to Heathrow airport for the flight home. The bus ride to the airport was a long one and the crew generally exchanged stories of how they spent their layover — this exchange proved to be different. The senior flight attendants had known each other for years and although some of the conversations were centred around what they did on their layovers, the chatter quickly shifted to the issues they all had with sleep. How they cope with the jet lag, how they feel tired all the time, they had tried all kinds of tricks but in the end they somehow all ended up on sleeping pills, procured one way or another.

I was actually shocked. I was really new at my job and it did not occur to me when I was hired just what an effect lack of sleep and different time zones would have on my body and mind. Yes — mind. A lot of these flight attendants complained that the lack of sleep caused depression. It makes sense now as we have data, but at the time no such data existed, at least not mainstream. The conversation continued as the crew exchanged feedback on various pills. They eventually turned to me and asked what I was taking for sleep. I replied: "Nothing at the moment." They laughed and one of them said to me, "I guess you are still too junior, but you will — eventually we all do." I let out an awkward giggle but said nothing.

I thought about that interaction for days. Is that really my future? Am I doomed to sleeping pills and depression? They did not really look healthy, and that frightened me.

Later I went on to find out that flight crew have higher rates of certain cancers, linked in part to chronic circadian disruption and cosmic radiation exposure — and that also gave me pause. You might be asking yourself: "What does sleep have to do with cancer?" The International Agency for Research on Cancer classifies night shift work as a probable carcinogen specifically because chronic circadian disruption affects cellular repair and immune function. This is not just something that affects flight crews — it affects all night shift workers. On the surface it looks like a sleep problem, but left unattended, or with only sleeping pills thrown at it, is not the answer. It's a whole body issue.

I decided to take a deep dive into the sleep and jet lag rabbit hole because the answer to whether I wanted depression and sleeping pills to be my future was a resounding no — and I just felt there had to be a better way.

I am happy to say that I did find better ways. That pivotal conversation led me to a degree in Holistic Nutrition and eventually certifications in Herbalism, Hypnotherapy, Mindset Coaching and all things natural. I did in fact find healthy ways to deal with jet lag, sleep disturbances, depression, and proper nutrition on the road without ever taking a sleeping pill in my entire career and life. That conversation led me to my second career as a Wellness Coach, where I have been able to help people take back their health.

Our body's capacity to heal is immense. It constantly gives us clues — they are commonly referred to as symptoms. We fight and push through when we really should stop and ask our bodies: "What are you trying to tell me, and how do I help you stay healthy?" It's always easier to prevent than to treat.

I have walked in your shoes — literally a million miles worth. I have felt fatigue so profound that I once slept for two days straight. But that's a story for another time.

Perhaps you have tried tips that you picked up along the way that didn't really work. Or you are confused by all the advice out there and don't know where to start. I built this planner as a starting point for you. I have no doubt you have questions, and hopefully some of the articles here will answer those for you.

But now you know there is a real person who has lived it behind the words.