Waking up at 5 am on Sunday for work was draining but I had no choice

People often assume office jobs follow a predictable 9-to-5 schedule, but in many fields, weekend shifts are unavoidable.

A colleague once told me, "No matter how long you've been working this job, you never really get used to it. Weekend shifts will always wear you down." I couldn't agree more.

A woman is exhausted at work. Illustration photo by Pexels

My company operates Monday through Friday, and the workload is already demanding. But when deadlines pile up, we're expected to put in extra hours—even on weekends. That means sacrificing personal time just to catch up with work.

One weekend, I overslept and woke up nearly an hour late, only to find 10 missed calls from my boss and colleagues. Panic hit me. When I finally arrived at the office, my boss chewed me out. I knew I couldn't keep this up—if this continued, my body wouldn't last.

Frustration nearly pushed me to quit. Some Sundays, dragging myself out of bed at 5 a.m. felt impossible. The only way to survive was to sleep early the night before, making sure I had enough energy to face another grueling shift.

Since my weekends were taken by work, Friday nights became my escape. I'd go out with friends, watch movies, listen to music, or just unwind with some self-care—anything to recharge before another draining weekend.

What helped most, though, was having a close colleague to talk to. Sharing my struggles made those weekend shifts a little easier. Without that connection, working on a Sunday would have been unbearabe.