Sleep On Ep2: Katrina Ridley on the unexpected impacts of shift work, and how she discovered the power of sleep

Katrina Ridley, broadcaster

Katrina Ridley, a broadcaster and presenter on Hart radio, shares her journey exploring the balance between successful living and quality sleep, shaped by her experience working night shifts for five years.

..my main points of passion are outdoors, sustainability, alternative living. I used to be a professional dancer.. I'm a very curious person. I love people. I think with radio I love being given rules to something and then being able to excel and be creative with that.

Initially excited by being invited to do the early shift on radio (1-6am), she discusses the subsequent struggles with sleep disruption, mental health, and reliance on excessive caffeine.

But at first I was like, sleep shmeep.

Katrina admits that to begin with, she assumed she would be able to cope. She had always slept well, anywhere, any time! It was only after several years that she started to realise what an effect it was having on her mental health.

I think the way I'd describe it was I couldn't deal with the things in life that you should be able to deal with. So I felt physically very lethargic. Yeah, My mood was constantly low and I felt like I had to do so much work to boost it to normal. But also it was the most worrying thing for me was I couldn't see how much it was affecting me.

Katrina's friends and family were the ones who identified that lack of sleep was eroding her wellbeing.

She slowly started to recognise that it was the shift patterns that were the problem. We discuss 'Shift Work Disorder', a medically recognised disorder where shift work has a debilitating impact on daily life.

The episode emphasizes the significance of sleep quality and recovery, including the challenges of obsessing over sleep data, the benefits of natural environments, and the importance of morning light exposure to reset circadian rhythms.

Katrina highlights crucial lessons learned about sleep hygiene, creating a calming sleep environment, and the need to prioritize self-care.

Link to the episode here: https://open.spotify.com/episode/0Y6Ymr5GvlRp0fkvFiOoEa?si=Fa73HNhUTHiSH54ZqCv9zA