What do you guys do to stay awake?

Nico nico douga, it's super effective! Unless your reason for staying awake is to get some work done.
Usually I try to sit in well-lit spaces, preferably in front of a bright monitor. It might strain on the eyes but it keeps me awake when needed.

I usually down 3 Red Bulls back to back to give me a 4 hour energy high that is equivalent to a bump of cocaine.

The comedown is just about the same, and you'll be grinding your teeth guaranteed within the first hour or so, but your ability to work and effectiveness is fucking amazing.

(Also I highly disregard usage of cocaine or any drugs of the sort. It does work wonders, but it will be noticeable by the constant sniffling and the mucus drips. Also you might end up getting into a vice addiction of wanting more and becoming somewhat dependant on it. )

Normally all I need is copious amounts of music, but in rare cases where I have tons of work and have to stay up I usually resort to the 5-hour energy drinks. Those things actually work incredibly well for me while coffee doesn't.

I don't like using them too much though.

Considering I work the third shift, learning to stay awake has become a pretty big priority. Now, I'm guessing you want to know how to stay awake when you're already tired. I usually try to sleep during the day to avoid "trying" to stay awake, but when I am tired, those sugary, jittery energy drinks work really well. Also, I wash my face with cold water every so often, and I keep my hair wet from that to try to feel cool as long as possible. That helps a lot.

Work starts at 4am for me, so this can be an issue for me too. Loud music (particularly if it has a fast beat) helps for me. Dr. Pepper is the other alternative. Not a ton of caffeine in it (at least compared to coffee or energy drinks), but enough to keep going.

As long as there is something to do to keep my mind occupied I can stay up for however long I need to.

Power Drive plus caffeine works for me. This combo is why I have to do my workouts in the afternoon if I want to get a good night's rest.

I don't even know, to be honest. Tea and caffeinated soft drinks do nothing for me, and I never have--and never will--go for an energy drink. I used to know a kid who would sit in class and twitch. He was constantly shaking his leg, moving around, and just generally twitching. Also, he lived on Monster. But yeah. Interestingly enough, honey chamomile makes me a bit more energetic instead of calm. Food just makes me sleepier, unless I'm snacking on sour gummy worms or something cold frozen. Naps are the worst for me. If I plan to take a nap, I'm essentially going to SLEEP. So I guess the two most effective things for me are willpower and music--not that they help much anyways.

I don't drink a lot of coffee so when i drink some i'm all nervous, i have nausea. In short coffee is a little bit too hard for my nerves, so i drink earl grey tea and i eat sweet things like candies or chocolate...

Aside from all sorts of amphetamines and its related salts I've taken through the past few years, if I ever need or, more commonly, want to stay awake I'll drink a good deal of coffee paired with a bunch of cigarettes. Any way you cut it, it's drugs doing the lion's share of the work.

I know that this is probably wreaking all sorts of havoc on my body, but I have an odd compulsion to not go to sleep from time to time, to stay awake and make use of my time. Once I do fall asleep, or if I'm very tired and have nothing weighing on my mind, I love to sleep, but it's getting there that's often that tough part for me.

Originally Posted by Zukan

Nico nico douga, it's super effective! Unless your reason for staying awake is to get some work done.
Usually I try to sit in well-lit spaces, preferably in front of a bright monitor. It might strain on the eyes but it keeps me awake when needed.

I did not know what that was till I visited the link. My Girlfriend goes there all the time to catch up on shows and such not shown on normal cable.

Other than that I enjoy green tea most of the time, coffee every so often.

Well for the Zelda Marathons I have with my friends ever few weekends it's just bottles of Coke and the music of Koji Kondo

Doing this... Moreover making graphics, sigs ,watching family guy, the office, but in the day I can't resist I just drift off.

Originally Posted by RockgamerXIII

This may only work for me, but being in a hot environment helps me stay awake. The colder it is the better I sleep, and oppositely the hotter it is the more I stay awake.

OMG YES. I AM AWAKE RIGHT NOW AT 6:19 AM IN THE MORNING BECAUSE IT'S FRIKKIN' HOT AND HUMID IN MY HOUSE AND WE HAVEN'T INSTALLED THE AC YET.

On a related topic, temperature also affects my ability to eat. I will become anorexic if it's over 100 degrees while I'll eat my weight if it's below 20.

The Cocaine energy drink keeps me awake for a while. Other than that though: Anime, reading, Megadeth, and video games.

Those are the tools I use to stay away.

OK guys. I know it's a lot to ask of a board full of anime and video game nerds but the purpose of the topic was to find out what you do to stay awake when doing something productive, not what you stay awake doing while basting in your own depravity until 5 am.

Well, even while doing something productive, the Cocaine energy drink helps keep me awake and focused on what needs to be done, and when I'm rarely found without some kind of music music playing around me when I'm doing some kind of work, it just helps keep me focused. I've also found that when I used to do homework that taking short breaks to read a book or Manga, or that having tv or anime on in the background at least made the task more bearable and less suicidal thought inducing.

When I have worked related to the university, I would go to my university's 24/7 computer lab with an energy drink. A can of double shot Rock Star with bunch of loud Indians and Chinese can keep you up for days.

Originally Posted by Arainach

Energy drinks?

To be honest, making myself fall asleep is more of a problem than making myself stay awake. I haven't done any really long (i.e. > 24hrs) sessions in a few years, but I used to be able to do them regularly without issue.

At the office, I'm not tired, but I get restless and often take quick walks just to keep my mind fresh and focused.

I have the same problem. I use to be on a 48 hour awake ~8-12 hour sleep schedule a while back and I think that really messed up my sleeping patterns. It usually takes me several hours before I can fall asleep...

I suppose though just staying active, and not laying down (or even really sitting down for long periods) would help.

Originally Posted by Encephalon

OK guys. I know it's a lot to ask of a board full of anime and video game nerds but the purpose of the topic was to find out what you do to stay awake when doing something productive, not what you stay awake doing while basting in your own depravity until 5 am.

Well, he didn't specifically state that in the first post, only giving hints to it.

He mentioned using gum or candy, but said they don't last too long? How about those giant jawbreakers? Those suckers take forever to dissolve and while they do ya' know you'll be trying to break it, probably hurting your teeth among the way and thereby keeping you awake.

But I never used a jawbreaker. I just channel my energy if I know I'll be awake for over 24 hours. It's not very healthy, but it gets me through some of the tougher times...