Click here for more articles & daily dose.
What’s your favorite time of day?
Ironically, at the time of writing this article, it is during my “favourite time of the day”.
As far as I could remember, since high school, my favourite time of the day would be after midnight. During the wee hours, right before morning or the early morning itself before 6.
Why?
It wasn’t because I love sacrificing my sleep and desired to to have a nocturnal body clock. But it was because it was the only time of the day that I would not get disturbed.
Why was it important to not be disturbed?
Back in high school we had homework. That was normal. After school I would complete it and even attend tuition classes. But doing revision, to study what I have learnt, that would be extremely difficult to do during the day time.
I would arrange my table, ready to start my revision only to be disturbed 5-10 minutes later, usually by my parents.
I was unable to enter deep work. Apart from studying, I had to listen to music and usually the genres that I would listen to are either pop rock or heavy metal. Somehow, it gives me the encouragement to begin my revision.
Thus, somewhere along the way, I have unintentionally began to “burn the midnight oil”.
The hours after midnight are when my parents are asleep and I can listen to music on headphones and not fear being called by them.
Somehow I’ve grown to like studying during those times as in university, my body has become tuned to that hour and I find myself going to bed rather early only to wake up during midnight to study.
Now that I’m working, I am not in control of course of my timetable.
However, on days that I have to serve the night shift duty in wards, I often find myself glancing at my watch, wondering if it is midnight.
Usually, upon arrival to work, it is a quite hectic. Being in my fourth posting, the surgical department, it is rare to have a peaceful moment where everything is calmed down and alright, especially while working in the Male Surgical Ward.
Typically, upon arrival to work, there is an ongoing issue.
However, usually after midnight, after all the chaos, things will calm down a little, at least for a while. The patients are asleep and the nurses are able to sit down and joke for a bit or to go about their reports and I’m able to catch up in certain joblists as well as my coming morning bloods. The ones who would be disturbing me are my bosses of course via WhatsApp but even then sometimes, things tone down for them and they are able to take a short break.
The ward is at peace for a minute until an acute issue happens and we are all on our feet again.
This continues until around 4-5 in the morning and it gets even better as daytime is imminent and the morning team is due to arrive. Some even arrive as early as 5am.
Thus, there are more hands to help out should an issue arise and it is also time for us from the night shift to take a short nap or break before going about our morning joblists.
Click here for more articles & daily dose.
The Theoretical Doctor 