Sometimes the dreaded all-nighter just can't be avoided. The volume of assignments, term papers or even personal issues can force students to cut into a good night's rest. Although some students may lament their lack of stress and time management skills, others embrace the all-nighter knowing that despite the many efforts to create the "perfect" school year, it is only a matter of time before essays and other assignments pile up or slip through the cracks.
Although caffeine tends to be the most popular method for staying up late, other more natural approaches can help avoid the urge to fall asleep. These approaches, simply put, induce insomnia, or the ability to fall asleep fast. If students are willing to break the rules of a good sleep for one night, they may be able to afford themselves the time to finish their assignments.
The purpose of the all-nigher is to remain productive past one's regular bedtime. Several methods for achieving this might be to take naps or exercise during the early evening or to make sure that heavy meals aren't consumed before bedtime. These methods are simply the reverse of what one would do in order to avoid insomnia.
Take a Late Afternoon or Early Evening Nap
Taking a nap too close to bedtime interrupts the regular pattern of sleep. Students who plan on pulling an all-night might consider taking a nap sometime in the late evening.
Napping is considered a short sleep that involves dipping into only two sleep stages instead of four. Falling into these two stages of sleep is more than enough to rejuvenate the sleeper for a short period of time. Hence, a nap too close to bedtime tends to rejuvenate the individual before they engage in nighttime sleep. Students can take advantage of this response by napping sometime around 6 or 7 o'clock and look forward to staying up well past their usual bedtime.
Exercise in the Evening
Another cause of insomnia is early evening exercise. Getting pumped up a few hours before bed time rev's up body, mind and soul. If sleep rituals entail winding down at night by avoiding exercise, then pulling an all-nighter means engaging in it. Other forms of light exercise can be used to stay awake throughout the night.
Avoid Eating a Large Meal
The annual turkey dinner was once believed to cause drowsiness due to an amino acid called "tryptophan". However, scientists now believe the drowsiness to be simply caused by the required effort to digest a large, heavy meal. Either way, eating a large meal could undermine the all-nighter by promoting unwanted drowsiness.
The moral of the story? Avoid eating large meals before pulling an all-nighter. Enjoy a meal large enough to stave off hunger, but small enough to avoid spending much needed energy on digestion rather than school work. (And, just to be on the safe side, avoid tryptophan-rich foods anyway.)
Get (a little) Stressed Out
All-nighters usually imply a sense of urgency when completing assignments. Although early evening napping and exercise may temporarily disrupt the sleep cycle, stress is by far the student's biggest ally during the last minute rush. Worrisome thoughts can fuel one's determination to succeed, thoughts of demise can encourage careful planning and self-blame can also be an avenue for affirming one's humanity. The entire world must endure all-nighters from time to time; the name of the game is to plan, execute and then relax.
Pulling an all-nighter is a part of any college experience. Both physical and mental activities that encourage insomnia might be temporarily beneficial for students hoping to remain awake long enough to finish important assignments. Napping and exercise in the early evening as well as diet can be small, yet significant factors in preventing nighttime sleep.
References:
Help Guide.org, "Tips for Getting Better Sleep: How to Sleep Well Every Night", (accessed February 25th, 2010).
Mayo Clinic,"Insomnia", (accessed February 25th, 2009).
National Sleep Foundation, "Napping" (accessed February 10th 2010).
WebMD, "The truth about Tryptophan," (accessed February 25th 2010).
Michael Falcone - My Suite101 articles represent my first attempts to experiment and learn the craft of online writing. Since 2009, I've had the opportunity ...
