Effects of Pulling an All Nighter

Undeadfred · 13-03-2014 09:50PM #1

Ironic that this is being posted in After Hours. Am i rite? ;D

2 nights ago i pulled an all nighter to get my assigments done for college. I got loads of work done and it didn't seem to have any detrimental effects on me the next day. In fact, I felt better than i usually would!

It was a Tuesday night and that day i was feeling quite tired all day. I had planned this so throughout the day i was reconsidering doing it since i was so tired. I decided to go for it just to see If i could do it, what would happen and generally just to test it out.
Once i got home that evening i had two cups of tea and started working. It was probably the tea, but i felt so grand once i sat down to start working; not nearly as tired as i was earlier that day.
The night went on and i had a few cups of coffee to keep me going and got most of my work done. Come the morning I felt strange and quite surreal but other than that i was absolutely fine. Went into college, went to my lectures and i felt great!
I only started to crash around 4pm and got home by 7 and went straight to sleep. Slept 11 hours that night.

Apparently feeling good after pulling an all nighter is chemical thing to do with the body - short term Euphoria.

http://www.theguardian.com/education/mortarboard/2012/oct/09/students-beware-sleep-deprivation

http://newscenter.berkeley.edu/2011/03/22/pulling-an-all-nighter/

http://greatist.com/happiness/all-night-just-how-bad-are-all-nighters

There are some effects in these articles though that i disagree with. I found the opposite of some of them. For example decision making. The articles say that pulling an all nighter impairs you're decision making the next day, however i found i was very decisive the next day (I'm a very indecisive person).
I also felt a lot more focused and determined the next day, as well as less distracted by others around me (this could be the decreased awareness).

All of these articles are written in a tone implying all nighters are bad and should be avoided, but personally i don't see the downside of them.
Obviously pulling several all nighters in one week is a bad idea and this would definitely lead to the brain damage they're talking about, but staying up all night once a week or once every two weeks surely won't cause any long term brain damage.

Anyone else pull all nighters on a regular basis? What're people's opinions on them?
comment and discuss...

dxhound2005 · 13-03-2014 09:53PM

Was one of your assignments Discuss the effects of Pulling an All Nighter?

shopaholic01 · 13-03-2014 09:54PM

I thought this was about drink or sex.

Undeadfred · 13-03-2014 09:54PM

Haha no I'm just incredibly enthusiastic about this topic right now. It's incredibly intriguing. Really want this to become a weekly occurance. Need that sleepless high...

orangesoda · 13-03-2014 09:54PM

That post nearly put me to sleep

SCOOP 64 · 13-03-2014 09:55PM

I wouldn't try I if i was a truck or coach driver though.

GenieOz · 13-03-2014 09:56PM

I've done this for years on end, worked 6pm to 6am and went into college from 9-2 3 days in a row. 2 hours of sleep at a time, it's really not that tough

Stavros Murphy · 13-03-2014 09:57PM

Student in misidentifying "working hard" thread. Ohh the innocence.

Arthur Beesley · 13-03-2014 10:01PM

I used to pull all nighters back in the day for Leaving Cert and college exams. Couple of hours a night for a week or more. That was more than 15 years ago, now I'm tired the next morning if I'm not in bed with light out by 23:00.

Undeadfred · 13-03-2014 10:01PM

GenieOz wrote: »

I've done this for years on end, worked 6pm to 6am and went into college from 9-2 3 days in a row. 2 hours of sleep at a time, it's really not that tough

3 days in a row? How the hell did you do that? Surely you would collapse after 3 sleepless nights

GenieOz · 13-03-2014 10:06PM

Undeadfred wrote: »

3 days in a row? How the hell did you do that? Surely you would collapse after 3 sleepless nights

No no, I got 4 hours of sleep every 24 hours. 2 before college and 2 again after college and before work. Not technically an all nighter I guess

PizzamanIRL · 13-03-2014 10:07PM

I'm gonna have to pull an all nighter to read all that.

13-03-2014 10:09PM

Undeadfred wrote: »

There are some effects in these articles though that i disagree with. I found the opposite of some of them. For example decision making. The articles say that pulling an all nighter impairs you're decision making the next day, however i found i was very decisive the next day (I'm a very indecisive person).
I also felt a lot more focused and determined the next day, as well as less distracted by others around me (this could be the decreased awareness).

The key word there is felt. Your perception of your abilities to make those decisions and of their quality may very well have been impaired without you realising it in your altered state.

I've done all nighters and felt 'fine' until about 1 the next day. I've always been asleep by 7 and slept about 10-12 hours before I felt back to normal. I say I felt 'fine' because I was functioning, but I had that out-of-it, surreal feeling, and I almost walked in front of a truck travelling at speed but was stopped by a stranger beside me. Seriously, I nearly killed myself because I didn't judge the distance or speed correctly.

So be careful, you might feel in full possession of your faculties, but you're probably much less aware of your surroundings and your risk perception is flawed and that puts you in actual physical danger.

PizzamanIRL · 13-03-2014 10:10PM

orangesoda wrote: »

That post nearly put me to sleep

Heh, 'daysleeper' thanked this. Someone's going to screen shot that and post it. Watch.

dmc17 · 13-03-2014 10:10PM

Undeadfred wrote: »

3 days in a row? How the hell did you do that? Surely you would collapse after 3 sleepless nights

GenieOz wrote: »

No no, I got 4 hours of sleep every 24 hours. 2 before college and 2 again after college and before work. Not technically an all nighter I guess

Lightweight!

DEFTLEFTHAND · 13-03-2014 10:17PM

The world record is 11 days 24 minutes if anyone wants to take that on. :pac:
Use of stimulants was prohibited in the study.

My longest would be about 44-46 hours, so not even 2 full days.

Gael23 · 13-03-2014 10:29PM

I stayed up until 7am at a party not so long ago. I wasnt drinking that muxh but I felt like death the next day after 2 hours sleep

hatrickpatrick · 13-03-2014 10:38PM

Sleep deprivation is a known trigger for mania. In bipolar people, it can be used (although of course nobody recommends it) to switch from a depression phase into a euphoric phase.

I'm not ashamed to admit that in the past when I've had bipolar episodes I've used this trick frequently. I know mania isn't supposed to be healthy and all, but let's face it, when your options are between mania and feeling completely empty, it's by far the lesser of two evils.

I've actually read a lot of studies which suggest that depression itself is in fact a sleep disorder - depression is caused by sleep problems rather than the other way around. People who are prone to depression skip some stages of sleep that ordinary people have, and spend far too long in REM sleep when compared to non depressed people.
It's a very interesting area.

I actually did this myself on Monday night, I had a performance exam on Tuesday and was feeling like sh!te, once I'd pulled the all nighter I felt like I was literally king of the world and I went in and absolutely nailed my performance

The Backwards Man · 13-03-2014 10:40PM

My brain only functions during daylight hours.

pragmatic1 · 13-03-2014 10:46PM

I often pull all-nighters due to bouts of insomnia. Hate them. They make me feel cranky, weird, nauseous and definitely not working with full mental capacities. Sleep is highly underrated.

jamo2oo9 · 13-03-2014 10:51PM

I only do all-nighters if I'm drunk or in bed with 8/10 or higher wimmin

Gran Hermano · 13-03-2014 10:55PM

Tennis elbow or a different RSI ?

GY A1 · 13-03-2014 11:34PM

wont be an all nighter reading this thread

thegreatgonzo · 13-03-2014 11:55PM

Undeadfred wrote: »

Ironic that this is being posted in After Hours. Am i rite? ;D

2 nights ago i pulled an all nighter to get my assigments done for college. I got loads of work done and it didn't seem to have any detrimental effects on me the next day. In fact, I felt better than i usually would!

QUOTE]

But were you typing all work and no sleep makes Undeadfred a dull boy over and over and over?

wandatowell · 13-03-2014 11:58PM

On occasions I work shift work and after finishing up a 4 day shift I usually get home around 9am. If I dont get the head down and sleep I can stay awake for the day but I will crash the day after.

Takes me a full day to recover.

Sir Arthur Daley · 14-03-2014 12:00AM

wandatowell wrote: »

Takes me a full day to recover.

Im the same, pay for it.

One thing the body cant fight is physical tiredness.

J_E · 14-03-2014 12:03AM

Apparently feeling good after pulling an all nighter is chemical thing to do with the body - short term Euphoria.

Well, it's mainly your circadian rhythm, your body clock that detects day and night, and you feel that 'second wind' because you'd normally be waking at that time.

I do not mess with sleep deprivation though. At best, I feel a little clammy and minor headaches. At worst, my personality is different, I sometimes have aural hallucinations, I'm irritable, feel completely spaced out. The opening scene in Fight Club about sleep deprivation pretty much sums up that feeling of not really being in the world.

If you're ever in that "should I/shouldn't I sleep" moment, just do it. Even 3-4 hours is much better than nothing, despite the grogginess initially.

AndonHandon · 14-03-2014 12:22AM

Sleep deprivation leads to an extremely unhealthy livestyle; more likely to eat poorly and not likely to be as alert and attentive which obviously has massive drawbacks in ordinary life.

I did one all nighter once to do a college assignment. Had that lift as it came to 9am, I went to college in a bit of a daze. It felt like I was stuck in my thoughts and the outside world was muffled. I got home around 3pm and crashed on the couch with a dull, throbbing head. Did nothing the rest of the day, just dozed on the couch.

Aint Eazy Being Cheezy · 14-03-2014 12:47AM

I've worked 24 hour shifts in the past, it's known as a ghostie. From 7am until 7am the following day. There was a cafe just outside the job, so I'd have a full Irish and two cans of red bull and stay up easily enough til 8 or 9pm that night so long as I kept moving!

shopaholic01 · 14-03-2014 12:49AM

Duracell Bunny wrote: »

I've worked 24 hour shifts in the past, it's known as a ghostie. From 7am until 7am the following day. There was a cafe just outside the job, so I'd have a full Irish and two cans of red bull and stay up easily enough til 8 or 9pm that night so long as I kept moving!

Easy for you, you're the Duracell Bunny.

Holsten · 14-03-2014 12:51AM

I do it sometimes and I'm like a zombie whenever I do it.

Go through periods of alertness throughout the day but eventually crash and burn around 8 or 9.

ShadyLane · 14-03-2014 12:51AM

Do 24 hour shifts 1-2 times per week for work. Doesn't feel nice between 3-5 am, and I can definitely feel mental processing slowing considerably in the wee hours of the morning.

Sir Arthur Daley · 14-03-2014 12:53AM

Duracell Bunny wrote: »

it's known as a ghostie.

That word sure has alot of different meanings

Aint Eazy Being Cheezy · 14-03-2014 01:00AM

WikiHow wrote: »

That word sure has alot of different meanings

Like what?

mfergus · 14-03-2014 01:01AM

Op, nobody really gives a fuq that you stayed awake 1 night...

Mint Sauce · 14-03-2014 01:05AM

wandatowell wrote: »

On occasions I work shift work and after finishing up a 4 day shift I usually get home around 9am. If I dont get the head down and sleep I can stay awake for the day but I will crash the day after.

Takes me a full day to recover.

I'm similar. If on a block of nights, each one a 12 hour shift, can usally potter about the house the morning I finish, and go to bed about 11/12 that night. But then I will sleep for as much as 12 hours, and still spend most of the day after in bed.

Sauve · 14-03-2014 01:08AM

mfergus wrote: »

Op, nobody really gives a fuq that you stayed awake 1 night...

Yeah they do. Hence the discussion...
No need to be a dick about it

yawhat! · 14-03-2014 01:09AM

I can stay up 72 hours if needs be. If I know i'm only going to get three or four hours sleep I just stay up.

It is almost Euphoric. Its a strange feeling!

wandatowell · 14-03-2014 01:31AM

yawhat! wrote: »

I can stay up 72 hours if needs be.

yawhat?

Ihatecuddles · 14-03-2014 01:42AM

I do it regularly! I could sleep at around 4am, but then I know ill be wrecked when I get up.

So I stay awake and I'm great the next day.

Then there's the nights when I'm wrecked but can't sleep at all, not even the brightness scares me into drifting off. The day after those nights are horrible

14-03-2014 08:28AM

Undeadfred wrote: »

Haha no I'm just incredibly enthusiastic about this topic right now.

You might enjoy this link then. Actually I enjoy that guys whole channel.

mfergus · 14-03-2014 09:33AM

Sauve wrote: »

Yeah they do. Hence the discussion...
No need to be a dick about it

My bad. I was tired when I said that last night.
So anyway, lack of sleep makes me cranky.
Sorry op. Ignore any of my comments that are made between the hours of 12 and 8am!

spurious · 14-03-2014 10:11AM

It's usually the following day that it affects me - I'd be OK the day immediately after the night with no sleep, but no matter how much sleep I got that night, I'd be off the following day.

Maximus Alexander · 14-03-2014 10:22AM

I basically live the bulk of my life in sleep debt and it's not a good way to go. If you generally sleep well I can see how you could pull an all nighter with minimal effect, but if you start doing it regularly you will notice the effects as that sleep debt piles up and you might find it difficult to return to a more normal rhythm. Avoid.

14-03-2014 12:24PM

The Backwards Man wrote: »

My brain only functions during daylight hours.

You must hibernate throughout the winter.

notnumber · 14-03-2014 12:29PM

Pulling all night= sore penis next day.

anncoates · 14-03-2014 12:47PM

Was always good at pulling all nighters for exams and assignments in college but one of the linked articles is right: you're better off having a few half hour naps to let it al sink in and refresh your brain.

14-03-2014 12:50PM

notnumber wrote: »

Pulling all night= sore penis next day.

You just have not done it enough to build up good calluses.

tiredcity · 14-03-2014 01:31PM

Used to have awful insomnia during my first round of college and would go weeks at a time only sleeping every 2-2.5 days. You do get a mild high off it but that's interspersed with waves of feeling utterly shattered and nauseous. On a couple of occasions I started hallucinating cause I was so tired. Remember walking through the college library and actually having to hang on to the book cases cause I felt like I was on a ship and the floor was rising up and down in front of me. Another time I was walking through town and screamed cause I thought a squirrel had jumped on my head, but there was nothing there. The longest I was ever continuously awake was 3 1/2 days and I've literally no memory of what happened for a day and a half which was really scary. I value sleep very highly nowadays and try to get 6-8 hours no matter what, but I'm starting a job which'll frequently involve 24 hr+ shifts soon so I'm pretty apprehensive about it. OP, deliberately depriving yourself of sleep isn't a lifestyle I'd recommend. As others have said you may feel functional but from personal experience anyway your short term memory, reasoning and immune system among other things slowly start to fail and the downsides far exceed the benefit.

RoboRat · 14-03-2014 01:37PM

Have a baby, then you get to endure 3 - 6 months of all-nighters and you will sleep pretty much anywhere.

SimonTemplar · 14-03-2014 01:46PM

Undeadfred wrote: »

Really want this to become a weekly occurance. Need that sleepless high...

Be very cautious if doing this on a regular basis as sleep deprivation can lead to long term problems. If you are this interested about the subject and are thinking of pulling all nighters on a regular basis, have a chat with your GP.

Effects of Pulling an All Nighter

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