In Which I Announce A New Medical Condition :Shiftworker's Delayed Sympathetic Reaction Syndrome (SDSRS)

Hello there. Hope you're feeling well today.

As regular reader's will know I do shift work. Occasionally the early morning one but normally the afternoon - evening part of the timetable.

I've also mentioned before briefly of the body clock effect of the early morning shift, essentially jet lag without the glamour. But now I need to bring to the world's attention a new medical condition. Shiftworker's Delayed Sympathetic Reaction System (hereby known as SDSRS).

Now subconsciously I now realise that I've had this condition all along. But I can formally confirm my obvious affliction today. For you see even when I am doing the afternoon evening shift I'll be returning to the apartment at about 10:40pm give or take.

On arrival my routine is as follows. Ring my mother, change, have dinner, watch a bit of TV and somewhere along the line chat with wife/daughter about the day about to end. My brain, indeed my body is on slow gradual shutdown barring emergency services at this point.

So it's last night. Wife is kindly cooking for me (don't be so sympathetic mind you given that she's stocked the fridge/freezer so tightly there's no room to put a microwave meal there!) I'm starting to watch the TV.

All of a sudden she says to me that she's had a tooth taken out.

Now I knew she was going to the dentist. A normal sort of check-up thing. I also knew that she was complaining about a particular back tooth. But that the tooth had to be taken out was a surprise. However my brain being on gradual shutdown mode the surprise was not what you would expect.

"But you've got another appointment for May"

(We have a joint email account which is where I noticed it)

Apparently that's just for a general polish. The sort I thought she was going to have yesterday.

She then explained to me the problems of that tooth and why it's  which I completely failed to register as I sat down waiting for my food.

Fast forward to this morning. This early morning as it happens (still have the insomnia folks. Five am I got up). And suddenly I realise.

She's had a tooth taken out.

The point is that if my brain wasn't slowly winding down I'd have been more sympathetic. As it happened all I wanted was food. This morning she has to down salted water to placate the inflammation.

So if a loved one on shift work doesn't immediately show understanding at a problem. Show more understanding yourself for your partner is suffering from SDSRS.

Until the next time.