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Shift Work Disorder – Obama Style

Written by: Mary Gibbons on September 3rd, 2009

Shift Work Disorder - Obama Style | read this item

A recent article in the Washington Post examined the hectic schedules of members of President Obama’s Administration, including their bouts with sleepless nights and fatigue.

In a city where work can border on obsession, the Obama staffers stand out. They are not quite the walking dead, but their eyes are frequently ringed with the bags that accompany exhaustion.

“This is a place, because of the stress, the schedule and the sheer hours, that just chews people up and spits them out,” said press secretary Robert Gibbs, whose alarm clock is set to 4:30 a.m., though he ignores the early ring more often these days.

A study conducted for British Parliament concluded that the mental fatigue resulting from working those kinds of hours can affect “cognitive performance, leading to errors of judgment, microsleeps (lasting for seconds or minutes), mood swings and poor motivation,” according to the Post.