Okay, so I got myself into a bad situation at work and I’m looking at three or so days of all-nighters to catch up on some deadlines. My only problem is: how do I stay up for so long? Coffee and other caffeine delivery systems have never given me any useful buzz. I’m one of those weird people for whom caffeine seems to have an opposite effect.
Right now my aid is an anti-depressant (10MG Celexa), but that can’t be healthy, or probably even legal.
So what are some decent, legal, stimulants for occasional use only? Is there a tea I can use? Should I run around the block every half hour?
…But on the fourth day I was visited by an Incan Monkey God who told me what to write. Now I just have to find somebody who can translate his simple but beautiful language.
Ginseng. They used to sell a rather tasty Cola here which had ginseng instead of caffeine. There was no half-hour-buzz-then-sleepy-body-crash which caffeine gives me, but rather a slow, longer release “up” feeling. I used to do it for interstate driving (safer than caffeine).
I worked a job once that required frequent all-nighters. Essentially, I’d start the week by showing up at about 6am, working until the following day at 10am, back to work by 2pm, stay till 10am, etc. This is how I did it:
[ul]Eat meals, full meals, at regular intervals. Don’t load up on sugar, etc., because you’ll crash. Instead, if you had dinner around 7, around 2am you’ll be hungry. Eat a regular meal.[/ul]
[ul]Brush your teeth, wash your face, etc. You can do anything with clean teeth and clean skin.[/ul]
[ul]Get up and stretch, walk around, etc. every half hour or so.[/ul]
[ul]When you do get to sleep, minimum of three hours. If you can get more than three hours sleep, add increments of one and a half hours. So you can sleep 3 hours, 4.5 hours, 6 hours, etc. For some reason, this helps. But 3 is the minimum.[/ul]
[ul]Finally, as alternatives to caffeine, try gum or apples.[/ul]
Vitamin B-12. It doesn’t get me wired or buzzed or anything, but I’m definitely more awake & aware, and my eyelids are a little lighter. This (2000mcgs of B-12) in conjunction with a steady stream of Diet Coke gets me through the day. Good stuff.