How do you stay awake?

[joey ^_^]

Since break is over, all my deadlines from school are looming in real close and I've just been cramming a whole lot but it's hard to stay up late because coffee gives me palpitations i think the same goes for tea as well so caffeine is off limits for me in general unless i'm Desperate.

Aside from coffee or red bull, what do you do to keep yourself awake for an all nighter?

 

[Raayzx]

Dance.

 

[Velo]

Being cold tends to keep me awake. Similarly, splashing cold water on your face.
Sugar helps too (can be natural from fruit, so you might avoid palpitations this way).
Loud/energizing music, bright lights. And don't get too comfortable!

 

[xSuperMario64x]

Honestly I don't ever keep myself up. I can't function properly (aka do schoolwork effectively) after about 7-8pm, so after that I just go to bed at a decent time and then I find time the next day to do the work. It's worked for me so far, and I'm wrapping up my second year of college.

 

[Paperboy012305]

Its normally the games that keep me awake. If there's anything else that keeps me awake, I don't know.

I confess, I never suffered staying up because I need to get an important thing done. I just try and fall asleep, wake up and get stuff done. I'm not far behind on anything, really.

 

[Snowesque]

Keeping the light on, sitting upright, and doing busy work are the largest ones for me.
Exercising can be good too.

 

[Dinosaurz]

Well anxiety works pretty well 4 me

 

[ZetaFunction]

I just force myself awake??? If you have enough willpower you can stay up as long as you want, no biggie. If you're fine with caffeine drinks, then those are probably the next best option, since I don't think most people are gonna be up at 2 AM to do their workout routine or play Dance Dance Revolution.

Well anxiety works pretty well 4 me

or you can always forget to take ur anxiety medication and you'll be up all night ez

 

[HistoryH22]

Insomnia is pretty great at keeping me awake.

 

[greyCat44]

When I was in high school and crying for lack of sleep I used to just take 30 minute naps then after the nap I'd be ready to go again for a few more hours! Take care and good luck with your cramming > __ <

 

[Midoriya]

I actually pulled an all nighter today and got no sleep to finish a paper. I don’t consume caffeine anymore though as I cut it out of my diet a couple months ago now. I just make sure not to lie down, which I didn’t, drink lots of water to stay hydrated, and yeah, that’s pretty much it. I take morning medicine too every morning that helps give me a boost for the day. I had to skip my night medicine though, which I don’t recommend, but I’m doing just fine and can just take it early this evening to go to sleep. I think caffeine is actually detrimental now because it only gives you a boost for a certain amount of time.

 

[cornimer]

The only thing that helps me even a little bit is energizing music.

 

[Hat']

Either I'm having fun so I somehow don't get tired, either I just can't stay awake heh

 

[Chris]

Sleep deprivation will compromise your ability to work efficiently. You're better off getting a decent nights sleep rather than forcing yourself to stay awake.

 

[skarmoury]

It's hard not to be sleep-derived when you have so much going on ; ; But I make sure to get at least 2-3 hourd of sleep even though I have to do so much.

The most basic thing I do is brush my teeth lol. For some reason I kind of wake up because of it?? Idk. I also wash my face with cold water from time to time, or repeatedly, lightly slap my cheeks. Sometimes I drink some sugary drinks or coffee but it usually doesn't work on me. Idk why I even try doing that.

 

[MapleSilver]

I've stayed awake for a maximum of about 52 hours so enjoy this essay I apparently wrote.

First of all, I do not recommend avoiding sleep unless you absolutely need to. It's very unhealthy in the long term and as Tina said, compromises your ability to function in the short term as well. As an example, I tried playing a shooter game after not sleeping the night before and could barely even aim properly. For perspective I'm usually one of the best players on my team for that game.

Here's a few tricks that I find work really well:

-Try standing up a lot. Sitting down makes you more likely to get tired, and whatever you do, never lay down. Even for a few seconds. You'll end up getting comfortable and never want to move and then next thing you know it's tomorrow afternoon.

-Don't consume caffeine. The initial buzz is tempting, but once you crash it just makes the sleep deprivation that much worse.

-When really tired, just splash ice water on your face and the shock should wake you back up. If that doesn't work then take a shower on the coldest setting.

-Try staring at blue computer screens on maximum brightness. They always say to cut screen time before going to bed as it makes it harder to sleep, and especially blue light. By that logic, if you don't want to sleep then you should do the exact opposite.

-If you don't have anyone else in the house to judge your antics, always keep the lights on.

-Don't tire yourself out too much. It's like caffeine. Running around will feel like a boost in energy for a while, but just makes things worse later on.

Eventually you will reach a point where you're barely even a functional human anymore. At that point you're not going to get anything done and are better off calling it a night (or day depending on how long you're awake).

 

[Buttonsy]

I wash my bedding on days I need to stay up later than I want to, I personally really struggle to fall asleep if I'm not comfortable, so no blanket = no falling asleep for me.

 

[G0DFlesh_88]

Four Loko (Original was even more strong). This stuff will kill your sleep and maybe even give you a heart attack lol

 

[LambdaDelta]

staying awake isn't a problem. it's actually going to sleep that is

 

[Shellzilla_515]

I'll go with what Tina and MapleSilver has said: You should get a good night sleep rather than forcing yourself to stay awake in the process unless when absolutely needed. I strongly discourage you to stay up the night before an exam and when studying. Your brain will not work properly and your mind will still be half awake. It's not worth doing so don't do it!

... But if you refuse and still want to stay awake, I got a couple of suggestions:
1. Take a shower with cold water. It'll help you stay awake for some time.
2. Have some music running in the background but of course, don't choose the ones that induce sleepiness.