Everyday care

First job, tired and eating at odd hours: what can I do?

By VISTRA Editorial Team · 8 min read

Published 10 Nov 2026 · Updated 10 Nov 2026

A first job changes when you wake, eat and sleep all at once. Set fixed meal times every 3 to 4 hours, use your 1-hour legal rest period to eat, and keep 7+ hours of sleep. In Thailand's 2015 time-use survey, only 56.4% of adults slept within 7 to 9 hours.

If you have just started your first job and feel tired all the time while your meals drift to odd hours, often it is because work has reorganised your whole day at once: when you wake, when you eat and how much you sleep. Start by fixing three things. Eat at set times every 3 to 4 hours, as the NHS suggests. Use the rest period that Thai labour law gives employees (at least 1 hour after no more than 5 hours of work) to actually eat. And protect 7 or more hours of sleep. In Thailand's 2015 time-use survey, only 56.4% of adults slept within the 7 to 9 hours in the national guidelines; the rest slept either less or more.

This article is about the change into working life. For mornings with no time to eat, see No time for breakfast before work. What can I eat? For people who also live alone and buy most meals outside, see Living alone with patchy meals: how can I cover food groups?

Why does the first year at work feel so tiring?

Several changes arrive together

At university, many people set their own hours: late classes, late meals, late nights. A first job usually brings:

a fixed start time, often with a commute before it
new tasks and people to learn, which takes concentration all day
meal times decided by meetings, customers or a supervisor
messages from work that continue after hours

None of these is unusual on its own. Together they move sleep and meals at the same time, and the body takes a while to settle into the new pattern.

What Thai data show about sleep and activity

Liangruenrom and colleagues analysed Thai time-use surveys covering 167,577 adults aged 18 to 59.

Finding	Figure
Adults sleeping within 7 to 9 hours a day (2015); the rest slept less or more	56.4%
Adults with at least 150 minutes a week of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity, counting work and travel as well as exercise (2015)	81.7%
Adults breaking up sitting at least every 2 hours (2015)	44.6%
Adults meeting all three guidelines (2015)	21.3%
Who was least likely to meet the guidelines overall	men, people in urban areas, and people in Bangkok and the South
Age and physical activity	in every survey year, adults aged 40 to 59 were more likely to meet the physical activity guideline than adults aged 18 to 29

These are national surveys based on how people recorded their time, and they are not specific to first jobbers. They show that people in cities were among the least likely to meet the guidelines overall, and that adults aged 18 to 29 were less likely than those aged 40 to 59 to get enough moderate-to-vigorous physical activity.

Some first jobs are very long

Hours vary hugely by job. One extreme example: a 2022 survey of 412 first-year intern doctors in Thailand found that 81.2% worked more than 80 hours a week. Most first jobs are nowhere near that, but if your hours are long, read Working over 48 hours a week: how can I look after myself?

What do studies show about young adults' eating habits in Thailand and the region?

Sweet drinks are common before work starts

A survey of 15,366 university students in seven ASEAN countries, including Thailand, grouped students by their habits. The largest group, 55.2%, was the "high sugary beverage consumption" group. This is a combined figure for seven countries, not for Thailand alone, and the survey did not follow students into work. Still, habits from student life, such as a sweet iced drink with every meal, may come along into a first job.

The Thai Cohort Study looked at the diets of 1,075 adults in 2015. Papier and colleagues found that living in an urban area went with higher scores for a "fatty Western" pattern and lower scores for a traditional Thai pattern, in both men and women. The cohort is made up of adult students of Sukhothai Thammathirat Open University, so it does not represent all Thai adults. This shows an association, not a cause, but it matches what many people notice when they move to the city for work.

What are my rights to breaks and days off in a first job?

The Labour Protection Act B.E. 2541 sets out basic rights for employees. Knowing them makes it easier to plan meals and rest.

Right	What the Act sets
Rest during the workday	At least 1 hour after no more than 5 consecutive hours of work; it can be split into shorter breaks if the total is at least 1 hour
Normal working time	No more than 8 hours a day and 48 hours a week
Overtime on a working day	Needs your consent each time, except for certain continuous or emergency work
Weekly holiday	At least 1 day a week
Annual holiday	At least 6 working days a year after 1 year of continuous work; before 1 year, the employer may give a pro rata amount

Check your contract or ask the human resources team how breaks work in your workplace. If everyone eats at their desk, you can still step away for your rest period.

How can I set meal times when my schedule keeps changing?

Decide meal times at the start of the day

The NHS suggests eating regular meals and healthy snacks every 3 to 4 hours rather than a large meal less often. For a 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. day, that could mean breakfast before leaving, lunch in your rest period, a small snack around 3 or 4 p.m., and dinner at home. Put the times in your phone calendar on busy days.

Do not skip breakfast

One of the NHS's 8 tips for healthy eating is not to skip breakfast. The same page recommends at least 5 portions of fruit and vegetables a day and 6 to 8 glasses of fluid a day.

Build a meal from a shop or a stall

Thailand's food-based dietary guidelines give nine principles, including:

eat a variety of foods from each of the five food groups
eat enough rice or other starchy food
eat plenty of vegetables and fruit regularly
eat fish, lean meat, eggs, legumes and pulses regularly
drink enough milk every day
avoid too much sweet and salty food

Here are some examples of how these principles might look when you buy food out. They are examples of covering the food groups, not recommended amounts.

Where you buy	One way to cover the food groups
Curry-on-rice shop	Rice with a vegetable dish and a dish of fish, chicken or egg
Noodle stall	Noodles with meat or fish balls, ask for extra vegetables, add fruit
Convenience store	A rice box with vegetables and meat, egg or tofu, plus fruit such as a banana, and plain milk or unsweetened soy milk
Fruit stall	Cut fruit as the afternoon snack instead of a sweet drink

Packed lunches in a hot climate

If you bring food from home, the US CDC advises refrigerating perishable food within 2 hours, or within 1 hour if it is exposed to temperatures above 90°F (about 32°C), like a hot car. Use the office fridge, or an insulated bag with an ice pack if there is no fridge.

How can I sleep enough with a new work schedule?

Aim for 7 or more hours

The US CDC recommends 7 or more hours of sleep for adults aged 18 to 60. Count back from the time you must leave home: if you leave at 7 a.m. and need 30 minutes to get ready, you need to be asleep by about 11:30 p.m.

Keep the same times, including at weekends

The CDC suggests going to bed and getting up at the same time every day, turning off electronic devices at least 30 minutes before bed, and avoiding large meals and alcohol before bedtime. Sleeping until noon at the weekend makes Monday morning harder.

Watch the afternoon coffee

The US FDA cites 400 mg of caffeine a day as an amount not generally associated with negative effects for most adults. A 12-ounce cup of brewed coffee can contain 113 to 247 mg. The CDC advises avoiding caffeine in the afternoon or evening, so a late-afternoon iced coffee falls inside that window.

When should I talk to someone or see a doctor?

Talk to someone at work if

you regularly cannot take your rest period
the workload means you take work home every night
you are not sure what is expected of you; asking early is normal in a first job

If stress is building up, see Stress keeps building up. How do I spot it and cope?

See a doctor if

The NHS advises seeing a doctor about tiredness if:

you have been feeling tired for a few weeks and you are not sure why
your tiredness affects your daily life
you feel tired and have other symptoms, such as weight loss or mood changes

If you take any supplements or medicines, tell your doctor or pharmacist about them.

Frequently asked questions

Why am I so tired in my first year at work?

A first job changes several things at once: a fixed start time, a commute, new tasks to learn and less control over when you eat. Sleep is often the first thing to shrink. In the 2015 Thai time-use survey, only 56.4% of adults slept within the 7 to 9 hours in Thailand's 24-hour movement guidelines (the rest slept either less or more), and people in urban areas and Bangkok were among the least likely to meet the guidelines overall.

How often should I eat if my work hours are irregular?

The NHS suggests eating regular meals and healthy snacks every 3 to 4 hours rather than a large meal less often. Decide your meal times at the start of the day, use your rest period to eat, and keep something simple such as fruit, plain milk or unsweetened soy milk for days when a meal gets pushed back.

Am I entitled to a lunch break in my first job in Thailand?

Under the Labour Protection Act B.E. 2541, employers must give employees a rest of at least 1 hour after no more than 5 consecutive hours of work; it can be split into shorter breaks if the total is at least 1 hour. Employees also get at least 1 weekly holiday, and annual holiday of at least 6 working days after 1 year of work, with a pro rata amount possible before that.

What can I eat from a convenience store or food stall to cover the food groups?

Thailand's food-based dietary guidelines advise eating a variety of foods from all five food groups, enough rice or other starch, plenty of vegetables and fruit, fish, lean meat, eggs and beans regularly, enough milk every day, and not too much sweet or salty food. For example, a rice dish with vegetables and egg or fish, with fruit, and plain milk or unsweetened soy milk instead of a sweet drink.

Is it OK to bring lunch from home and keep it at my desk?

The US CDC advises refrigerating perishable food such as meat, seafood, dairy, cut fruit, some vegetables and cooked leftovers within 2 hours, or within 1 hour if the food is exposed to temperatures above 90°F (about 32°C), like a hot car. Use the office fridge or an insulated bag with an ice pack.

When should I see a doctor about tiredness in a new job?

The NHS advises seeing a doctor if you have been feeling tired for a few weeks and are not sure why, if tiredness affects your daily life, or if you feel tired and have other symptoms such as weight loss or mood changes.

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