diff --git a/.gitea/workflows/production-deploy.yml b/.gitea/workflows/production-deploy.yml
index ec3e0f2..4312c17 100644
--- a/.gitea/workflows/production-deploy.yml
+++ b/.gitea/workflows/production-deploy.yml
@@ -209,17 +209,62 @@ jobs:
       - name: Production Health Check
         run: |
           echo "🔍 Running production health checks..."
-          for i in {1..20}; do
-            if curl -f http://localhost:3000/api/health && curl -f http://localhost:3000/ > /dev/null; then
-              echo "✅ Production is fully operational!"
-              exit 0
+          COMPOSE_FILE="docker-compose.production.yml"
+          CONTAINER_NAME="portfolio-app"
+          
+          # Get the production container ID
+          CONTAINER_ID=$(docker compose -f $COMPOSE_FILE ps -q portfolio 2>/dev/null | head -1)
+          if [ -z "$CONTAINER_ID" ]; then
+            CONTAINER_ID=$(docker ps -q -f "name=^/${CONTAINER_NAME}$")
+          fi
+          
+          if [ -z "$CONTAINER_ID" ]; then
+            echo "❌ Production container not found!"
+            docker ps --filter "name=portfolio" --format "table {{.ID}}\t{{.Names}}\t{{.Status}}"
+            exit 1
+          fi
+          
+          echo "📦 Found container: $CONTAINER_ID"
+          
+          # Wait for container to be healthy (using Docker's health check)
+          HEALTH_CHECK_PASSED=false
+          for i in {1..30}; do
+            HEALTH=$(docker inspect $CONTAINER_ID --format='{{.State.Health.Status}}' 2>/dev/null || echo "starting")
+            STATUS=$(docker inspect $CONTAINER_ID --format='{{.State.Status}}' 2>/dev/null || echo "unknown")
+            
+            if [ "$HEALTH" == "healthy" ] && [ "$STATUS" == "running" ]; then
+              echo "✅ Container is healthy and running!"
+              
+              # Test from inside the container (most reliable)
+              if docker exec $CONTAINER_ID curl -f -s --max-time 5 http://localhost:3000/api/health > /dev/null 2>&1; then
+                echo "✅ Health endpoint responds from inside container!"
+                HEALTH_CHECK_PASSED=true
+                break
+              else
+                echo "⚠️ Container is healthy but HTTP endpoint test failed. Retrying..."
+              fi
             fi
-            echo "⏳ Waiting for production... ($i/20)"
-            sleep 3
+            
+            if [ $((i % 5)) -eq 0 ]; then
+              echo "📊 Status: $STATUS, Health: $HEALTH (attempt $i/30)"
+            fi
+            
+            echo "⏳ Waiting for production... ($i/30)"
+            sleep 2
           done
-          echo "❌ Production health check failed!"
-          docker compose -f docker-compose.production.yml logs --tail=50
-          exit 1
+          
+          if [ "$HEALTH_CHECK_PASSED" != "true" ]; then
+            echo "❌ Production health check failed!"
+            echo "📋 Container status:"
+            docker inspect $CONTAINER_ID --format='Name: {{.Name}}, Status: {{.State.Status}}, Health: {{.State.Health.Status}}' 2>/dev/null || echo "Could not inspect container"
+            echo "📋 Container logs:"
+            docker compose -f $COMPOSE_FILE logs --tail=50 portfolio 2>/dev/null || docker logs $CONTAINER_ID --tail=50 2>/dev/null || echo "Could not get logs"
+            echo "📋 Testing from inside container:"
+            docker exec $CONTAINER_ID curl -v http://localhost:3000/api/health 2>&1 || echo "Container HTTP test failed"
+            exit 1
+          fi
+          
+          echo "✅ Production is fully operational!"
 
       - name: Cleanup
         run: |