When you're at work and all you want to do is curl up under your desk and snore until it's time to go home, how do you stay awake?

I'm still trusting in the caffeine method. Two cups of coffee and a can of Coke. Of course, i still dozed off at lunchtime.

-- Sherry (sherina@masc.ca), September 25, 2000

Answers

Sit in a very uncomfortable place.

-- Porky (m@beeb.com), October 26, 2000.

"DeadMan's Reach," a Raven's Brew, (Served in Bed, Raises the Dead), is a delicious high-caffeine espresso coffee that definitely works. I have a latte almost every night and nothing has been able to keep me awake. I have started staying away from this stuff after 6-7 p.m. since it wires me until the wee hours of the AM. Now if the stuff just weren't so dang expensive.

-- Richard Walker (rlwalker@granis.net), March 06, 2001.

Wow. I don't know if i could trust something called Dead Man's anything! Heh.

I have also heard of people (ok let's be precise here, sys admins at high profile ISPs) using Jolt instead of water in their coffee makers. Jolt on its own is vile and nasty, but mixed with coffee grounds?! ACK!

I used to drink Jolt. Never once did i finish a can because i was too wired 3/4 of the way through. When i started noticing that i was shaking a little, i stopped drinking it which was okay since it tasted so raunchy anyway. My ex's brother used to drink it through a straw so that it wouldn't destroy his teeth and i would think "Ok, if it's that dangerous to your teeth, what do you suppose it's doing to your esophagus and your stomach lining dude?"

I've recently learned that being smart enough to go to bed early helps a lot, but sometimes i just forget that concept (like last night, for instance, lordy...). And those vitamins are a big help too, as is the exercise. Woowoo!

-- Sherry (sherry@masc.ca), March 07, 2001.

I seem to be quite "immune" to the effects of caffiene, personally.

It's a blessing in disguise at times, because I can drink a couple dozen espressos before bed and I go right to sleep.

But more often, however, it's a curse, because there's one less legal stimulant to keep me awake when I need to be!

I'm in a rut now where I go to sleep around 5am and wake up around 3pm and it's tough on my work schedule. Granted, I'm in a very forgiving job where as long as I put in 8 hours a day; that's all I need to do, regardless of WHICH 8 hours it is... but I like to be there at reasonable times... plus there have been times when I have gone without seeing the sun for about a week. Afterwards it was quite a trip seeing my SHADOW again!!

But I'm getting off topic... I wish there was some professional guide on how to change your sleep habits! (diurnal-to-nocturnal and vice versa) Usually all I can do is wait till I get fed up with it, and stay up all night, go to WORK at 6am and fight to stay awake all day till around 9pm then let myself go to sleep, but then force myself to wake up at a decent hour the next morning. The only alternative tot his method is to force myself to sleep at 9pm (which is like a normal person forcing himself to go beddie-bye for the night at like 1pm!), and this doesn't work for me, because as hard as it is to stay awake, it's even harder to force myself to sleep. (i.e. impossible)

For the sake of demographics, and in case you were gonna ask, YES; I *am* a computer programmer. Our breed seems eternally cursed with this affliction.

-Baudbarf http://www.baudbarf.com/

-- Baud Barf (root@baudbarf.com), March 30, 2001.

Hey Baud, ok, I am a member of your breed. I had this problem too, if you can't force yourself to go to bed by 9 pm, rotate your days, if you already go to bed by 5am, and wake up in the afternoon, during any one weekend, stay awake until 9 am, then wake up at 7pm, the next day stay awake until noon, then wake up around midnight, and last but not least, go to bed by 5pm and try to wake up in the morning. And you're there ;-) I won't guarantee long lasting results though. Would you live longer if you only take 340 days in a year ? Instead of 365 or 366 ?

-- Wim Van Oudenhove (wim.van.oudenhove@pandora.be), March 30, 2001.

OK. Actually I am dealing with this problem currently myself. I switched to a new job that is third shift and I can't seem to keep from falling asleep even though I am a night person. However, I do seem to remember something an old college roommate did when she would want to wake up immediately before going to class. I think it's totally disgusting but when you're desperate...anything seems plausible! Here it is: Take one can of frosting, stir in your favorite highly sweetened cereal, take a big heaping spoonful into your mouth, wash down with a coke. There is no title to this recipe but if I had to name it, I guess it would be DEATH BY SUGAR...diabetics beware!!!

-- Amy Imel (scorpio_60123@yahoo.com), May 29, 2001.

you know i have to agree with the guy up there that said caffine does not work for me. i can stay awake without anything witch scares me like last night i went to bed at 4am and woke up at 10pm. and the thing that sucks is i can feal im tired all day. ill even try to go to sleep early, but ill stay awke in my bed in the dark till around 4pm every NIGHT,and its really starting to screw me up. i dont know what to do if anyone knows anything that can help me please email me!

-- Jim Burnet (litewire@excite.com), June 25, 2001.

hey y'all, i think one of the best ways to stay awake is to drink "red bull"... its got an abundant amount of caffeine and does the trick for me all the time.. it may cost a little more than a soda but its worth it.. plus, it gives u a boost of energy... -Jermaine

-- Jermaine Woods (thug_luv_7@hotmail.com), July 12, 2001.

Anyone ever try taking Guarana? I used to eat a few chocolate coverd coffee beans myself at one time, but I got to a point where I'd be too tired to do any work but too pumped with caffeine to close my eyes even. Very frustrating feeling especially when you have finals to take the next morning.

-- Rizal Aliyuddin (rizal_aliyuddin@hotmail.com), July 23, 2001.

I work the graveyard as a hotel 40+ hours a week and go to school full time. My social life has been shot to hell, but when I do go out and miss my nap before work I have a few tried and true methods that don't involve breaking a sweat.

Tense up the muscles in your legs, or your whole body and then relax. Repeat. Repeat. Repeat. You can also take a deep breath and hold it until your can't stand it any longer. The idea is to get the heart pumping a little bit faster.

Tickle the roof of your mouth with your tounge. The tounge is key to a lot of staying awake techniques. This is why talking or singing work so well. Eat sunflower seeds (really good on the road). Chew gum, or anything else chewy, like beef jerky.

If you have the privacy, stand and touch your toes and stand like that until your face is bright red. The point is not to embarass yourself, but to get some blood flow to your head. A full head stand would be ideal. Concentration exercises are good too, like bouncing a ping pong ball on a paddle.

Everything wears off after a few minute, or you might just run out of sunflower seeds, but after trying each one, plus downing your vivran with a red bull with a cup of coffee as a chaser, you might be to the end of you shift.

-- Vincent Giardino (vincentsink@yahoo.com), September 08, 2001.

Just keep goin! If I have to stay up for a long time I try not to work myself too hard until I have to. Like don't lift weights after you wake up if your going to stay up 24+ hours, just take it easy and then you will stay up longer

-- Brett (bmcreider1985@hotmail.com), September 21, 2001.

I gotta go to work in 10 mins, have had no sleep in 24 hours gotta work 12 *@#*ing hours............ZzzzzZzzzzzzzzzZzzzzzzz........

-- Fish Boy Roy (fishboyroy@home.net), October 01, 2001.

I wouldn't be able to explain to you the true importance of sleep, for I you see am an insomniac. From the time I turned 16 to now I have been unable to sleep. I began when my workload became to strenuous and I would find myself up later each night. It came to the point where I was up until 530 am when i had class at 730 am. My methods although I would not encourage you envoke them were as such: 1) Coffee grinds (make sure you eat a spoonful and then quickly wash it down with soda or something to block the taste.) 2) Get in comfortable clothes that you are warm in, and go somewhere you won't move a lot. 3) Continue to write, talk, sing, or move, anything that keeps your mind occupied will force you to stay awake. 4) Rearange your sleep cycle. Sleep little to none during the week and then a solid 48 hours on the weekends.

I have several other tips, but I choose not to revail them as a precaution so that you do not attempt and cause sleep deprevation to yourself, which will ultimately cause you health problems.

p.s. If you start to shake, go to bed!

-- alex (nutbag3003@yahoo.com), December 02, 2002.