Hi everyone (it's been a while since I posted here). I'm a grad student and sometimes have to pull long hours awake in studio or working on a design project. I actually don't like coffee anyway, so in the past have only drank it when I really had to in order to stay awake. I'm also in San Francisco right now, and will be driving back to Ithaca in August. When I drove out here for the summer I made it in my car in *3 days* (!) but I could only do this because I drove long hours (about 6 or 7 am - late at night.) I am ashamed to say that I practically lived on Mountain Dew during this time (gross, I know, but it works and I find it more palatable than coffee.)

Does anybody have any healthier suggestions for my inherently less-than-healthy lifestyle where I sometimes don't sleep much? Ginseng? Caffeine tablets? I plan to eat healthy raw foods on my road trip in August, but I need to stay awake, and i need to stay awake for my next big project next year!

In the mornings when I know that I'm going to be really busy and don't have the energy, I make 1 Qt of smoothie with 2T flax seeds, ground, 2C. chopped kale, 2T cacao, 1/2 - 1C water, a banana and 2C of whatever other fruit I have, and 3 - 4 dates if I want it sweeter. Keeps me going for five or six hours with lots of energy!

Well, my concern isn't so much with energy with the car trip as it is with sleepiness. I can feel energetic and everything, but if I can't keep my eyes open, driving is dangerous!

Hence the cacao

hmm, that's an idea.. I could chew on cacao nibs!

Yerba mate is a great alternative to coffee. It promotes sustained energy, is good for digestion, rich in minerals, amongst other things.

This is a good brand:
[www.guayaki.com]

Cacao is a good suggestion. I typically suck on dark chocolates (85 % organic ones) and they work very well.

I suppose stimulants are the choice for some people but I like to tune in to my body's natural cycles. When I feel tired I like to respond to that by going to bed. Works for me. ;-)

I would advise you to listen to your body's natural rhythms and sleep (at least a couple of hours) when needed.

-David Z. Mason

WWW.RawFoodFarm.com

Playing with stimulants is playing with fire. While they work at first, over time you need more and more for the same effect. Also, if you are really tired, they may not work, and you may fall asleep at the wheel anyway. The best thing to do if you are tired while driving is to pull off the road to a safe place and take a nap until you are no longer tired.

Yes, I certainly plan to get decent sleep when I'm driving, but sometimes I get sleepy in the morning and I don't want to have to pull over and nap because it loses time! Being in the car has always made me sort of sleepy.

As for school, sometimes staying up all night is just unavoidable! However, in these cases I'm usually kind of full of giddy energy anyway and can at least make it to after my presentation before I have to rest.

Yerba Mate is a good suggestion for the car trip. It appears to have almost as much caffeine as coffee but is supposedly much easier on the stomach. I guess I've got my solution!

If you think pulling over and taking a nap loses time, just think about how much time you'll lose if you fall asleep at the wheel!! First, you may lose the rest of your life if you are unlucky. But assuming you don't die, how much time will you lose if you hit something or someone with your car or drive off the side of the road?

Again, stimulants work at first, but lose their effectiveness as your sleep debt increases. Because your mind is thinking that you are safe because you are stimulated can get you into trouble if your fatigue overpowers the stimulants in your body.

Driving while drowsy is as dangerous as DUI.

I suggest finding someone to make the drive with you and trade off- one sleeps while the other drives. You'll only have to stop for fuel and bathroom.

I know, I know. I have driven across the country 6 times now and I am a very safe driver. It's just that, without some form of caffeine, I tend to get drowsy even if I've had a good night's sleep. I can't do the drive with anyone this time, and I made it with no problem in May when I drove to San Francisco from the east in 3 days (I was very proud of myself.) Mountain Dew soda worked really well, but it's kind of gross and it's certainly not raw. I think I'll use Yerba Mate.

No doubt having my body in a stationary position in the car for six hours will definetely put me to sleep.

Get out of the car every hour ( or maybe even every 45 minutes)

Cool off your engine

then do some stretching, walking around, getting some fresh air and exercise

the breaks could be 1 minute maximum or more

but they could be life saving

sitting in a car for 6 hours straight ( speaking for myself only)

is a form of torture

i'd do my body a favor by MOVING it and allowing oxygen to circulate into my BRAIN

have a fun trip

don't count on your past "safe" driving trips to keep you safe

do whatever works for you but

i think what bryan said was true: how much time will u lose if your drowsiness gets the better of you?

also maybe nap a few hours before you take to the road

i don't know anything about yerba mate cuz i never tried it

i've had the occasional cacao but i wouldn't depend on it to take place of a body that could be getting brain oxygen by intermittently moving OUTSIDE of the car and getting some fresh air circulating

for myself, if i were to do a 6 hour road trip

i would stock up on high chlorophyll veggie juices

the chlorophyll helps to oxygenate the cells including the brain cells

whenever i had to stay up all night ( cuz i had to finish up stuff)

i would use the green juice as my drug of choice because it REALLLY did the trick

without any down effect

kept me super alert and focused

My father died when I was three. He fell asleep at the wheel. Perhaps it is worth looking at your priorities and schedule just one more time before you make the trip. It's one thing to stay up late working on a project. It's another to put your life at risk!