If you’re anything like me, you know the struggle. You know that “Due tomorrow? Do tomorrow” really isn’t a joke at all. And it’s likely that you do your best work between the hours of 2 and 5 AM.
But if you generally have your life together and you don’t identify with any of these things, and you’ve just found yourself facing the prospect of an all-nighter for the first time, congrats and welcome to the dark side! We have Insomnia.
You can do this! Here are some tried-and-true tips to help get you through the night.
TIP 1
Stock up on food for the long road ahead. I mean, really stockpile. As in dinner, snacks, and two kinds of dessert. You’re worth it, and you need the energy your body won’t be getting from sleep. At least that’s how I justify the 50/50 Fries & Rings I just got from Tasty.
TIP 2
Caffeinate, rinse, repeat. In case you didn’t know, the Starbucks on Mass Ave closes at 1 am and opens again at 5 am. They understand. I recommend going right before it closes so you can stay nicely caffeinated through the cold, dark, Starbucks-less hours of the morning (they also might give you your coffee for free). And if you’re still awake come 5 am, that grande medium roast will be right there waiting to push you over the finish line.
TIP 3
Do the most important thing first. If too many things are important, just start with whatever is due first. Whenever I feel overwhelmed and paralyzed and don’t even know where to begin, the only thing that helps is just starting somewhere. And if you’re hitting a wall writing that 8-page paper, it’s OK to let yourself take a break and write that easy journal entry for your poetry class. Then stretch and drink some water and get back to the essay. Which brings me to…
TIP 4
Stay hydrated! Sometimes when you feel hungry or sleepy you’re really just dehydrated. Drinking water will help you stay awake and focused. And it also makes your skin nice.
TIP 5
Productive study music is key. This will be different from everyone, but what usually works for me is anything without too many distracting lyrics. Note: productive study music is not the same as…
TIP 6
…dance break music! Dance breaks are also KEY. They get your blood flowing and give you a nice 3-7 minute study break when you need it.
TIP 7
Literally just keep going. Don’t think about how many questions you have left on that p-set, and don’t start calculating how many more hours that essay is going to take you based on the number of words you type per minute. You’ll just discourage yourself. Your productivity level is going to fluctuate throughout the night, and you might write one page between 12 and 1 AM and then speed through three pages between 1 and 2 AM. So just keep going and take everything one step at a time.
TIP 8
Solidarity. Maybe you’re blessed and social and have a whole study group to help you get through whatever assignment is keeping you up all night. But in my experience, it’s more likely that by 3 AM or so the more faint-of-heart will filter out and you’ll be left all alone in a corner of Lamont or a d-hall or your common room and you’ll start doubting yourself. When this happens to me, I turn to social media. Odds are, some old friend you’ve been meaning to talk to is awake somewhere in the world pulling an all-nighter of their own. Shoot them a Snap or a Facebook message. Taking breaks to talk to people, in person or online, keeps me sane whenever I have to work all night. This is why I’m basic AF on Snapchat.
TIP 9
Start looking forward to breakfast! You’re so close, you champion.