How do you keep awake?

I'm under a bit if pressure at the mo in work. Left last night at 10, in today at 8.30. I'm absolutely wrecked and this has been going on for a week...

How do I stay focused and alert?
I'm trying to stay off coffee as I'm a shaking wreck!!!
So whats your best way to stay awake?

garthv

Sleep as much as possible and get up every now and then for a wlak or some fresh air. Keeps me awake anyway.
Oh and drink cold water!

TerrorFirmer

Drink alot of cold water, if you are really tired, then maybe wash your face in the bathroom at regular intervals, or go for briefs walks outside.

monkeyfudge

In my old job I used to take short naps in the bathroom.

joejoem

expresso

ixus

into the jacks, a 5/10 min nap, even just to close your eyes, get a blast of fresh air and you should feel better

monkeyfudge

ixus wrote:

into the jacks, a 5/10 min nap, even just to close your eyes, get a blast of fresh air and you should feel better

Thank god I'm not the only one!

petes

monkeyfudge wrote:

In my old job I used to take short naps in the bathroom.

Ever not wake up??

Aurther Hugh

joejoem wrote:

expresso

...the Irishmans espresso

gline

ixus wrote:

into the jacks, a 5/10 min nap, even just to close your eyes, get a blast of fresh air and you should feel better

this does work, id recommend it, used to do it a lot in previous jobs when i was knackered. and if u take public transport, sleep on the way in and the way home

ixoy

ixus wrote:

into the jacks, a 5/10 min nap, even just to close your eyes, get a blast of fresh air and you should feel better

Works a treat! I've done this too when I felt myself nodding off at work. Coupled with plenty of drinks of cold water, it got me through the day.

Oh and I'd avoiding eating too many warm meals - tend to make you sleepy.

Creamy Goodness

i find eating apples keep me awake, i eat them a lot when i wanna stay awake.

irlirishkev

ixus wrote:

into the jacks, a 5/10 min nap, even just to close your eyes, get a blast of fresh air and you should feel better

Wow, I thought I was the only one who did this.. Judging from the other posts, I was very much mistaken.

The cold water does seem to work. I gave up coffee last November, and haven't been feeling so sleepy in my horribly warm office so often since..

K.

Drummer

Sleep where in the bathroom ? - on the pot ?

Bit uncomfortable i should think.

Anyway - never let your work effect your health - your health isn't worth any amount of money.

gulp

i think the best solution is to concentrate more on getting sleep rather than staying awake.any methods to force yourself to stay awake is really just prolonging the inevitable.give your body what it needs

rmacm

Get as much sleep as you can when you're off. At work then: Plenty of cold water. I usually have a few cups of coffee along the way aswell but you've said you want to stay away from caffine. Try talking a walk around aswell, it always helps to wake me up if I'm starting to feel tired.

Cheers
Rory

monkeyfudge

petes wrote:

Ever not wake up??

Are you suggesting that I died in my sleep while in the bathroom in my old job?

SpAcEd OuT

do a few lines of speed you'll be up for 2 days with ease

drinking lots of coffee seems to be the best legal option.

woosaysdan

i fell asleep in a lecture hall in college for 4 hours before, i was meant to get a small bit of rest and just nodded off!!!!! i was awaken rudely by a lecturer

skipn_easy

Since you're probably not going to go down drug route, you should try either caffeine pills (can get them as proplus over here) or ephedrine. Ephedrine works fantastically, will keep you alert, focused, and help you work better than normal for 4 or 5 hours.

Wertz

Papa Smut wrote:

I'm under a bit if pressure at the mo in work. Left last night at 10, in today at 8.30. I'm absolutely wrecked and this has been going on for a week...

So, what's the problem? That's 10 and a half hours out of which 7-8 hours sleep should do you.
Granted working 8.30am-10pm is one long bitch of a day, but I have a 6.30 start and usually don't hit the hay till at least 12. That's 6 days a week.
Then again I don't work in an office so it's prolly easier to stay awake...

Kernel

skipn_easy wrote:

Ephedrine works fantastically, will keep you alert, focused, and help you work better than normal for 4 or 5 hours.

Isn't ephedrine illegal over here? I seem to recall hearing that somebody was up in court for selling it?

LOL to monkeyfudge btw, and the dying in your sleep part.

I'm with everyone else here, that you shouldn't let your work ruin your health.. it aint worth it.. especially if you are working to make some fat cat richer.

monkeyfudge

Papa Smut has my sympathies though.

I've already worked 33 hours this week and I still have two more days to go before the weekend.

12 hour days are a bastard... it really does fatigue you.

monkeyfudge

skipn_easy wrote:

Since you're probably not going to go down drug route, you should try either caffeine pills (can get them as proplus over here) or ephedrine. Ephedrine works fantastically, will keep you alert, focused, and help you work better than normal for 4 or 5 hours.

I used to get really sleepy in my old job. I had to be in work for 8am each morning, and I had to get a bus, a DART and another bus to get there.

One day I just couldn't stop dozing off at my desk, so I thought I'd ask in a local chemist if they had anything to keep me awake and alert and the stupid old bag behind the counter looked at me with utter disgust as if I'd just asked for cocaine.. and said 'No! We don't do that kind of thing here'

StupidLikeAFox

monkeyfudge wrote:

12 hour days are a bastard... it really does fatigue you.

Bet the ole pay packet perks ya up a little though huh?

shoegirl

Ephedrine isn't technically illegal, in its pure form its prescription only, but a lot of over the counter cough and respiratory medcines contain it. Not that I'd recommend it. There are side effects associated with it and it is bad if you've heart or blood pressure problems.

I work a lot of night shifts and basically I find the only answer is to go straight to bed afte the shift and get at least 7 hours rest. Other suggestion is to spread out your meals so your last one is a few hours later than normal, so you benefit from the energy levels when you most need them.

nlgbbbblth

shoegirl wrote:

Ephedrine isn't technically illegal, in its pure form its prescription only, but a lot of over the counter cough and respiratory medcines contain it. Not that I'd recommend it. There are side effects associated with it and it is bad if you've heart or blood pressure problems.

I work a lot of night shifts and basically I find the only answer is to go straight to bed afte the shift and get at least 7 hours rest. Other suggestion is to spread out your meals so your last one is a few hours later than normal, so you benefit from the energy levels when you most need them.

I suppose we're all different but when I worked night shifts I found that it was best to stay up for 5 hours after I finished work - then go to bed and sleep for 6 / 7 hours - and get up about 45 mins before I was due to leave for work.

That's what we do when we work during the day so why not replicate it at night?

smileygal

not really recommending it but just had a Red Bull - works for me.

In an entirely different (healthy) direction - oats are slow release energy. Can highly recommend M & S buttery flapjacks to lift the old blood sugar levels