What do you do to combat drowsiness at work?

[Leros]

Knock your coffee on your lap.

I was really really tired after getting on a 3am flight with baby who cried the whole time. I couldn't get any sleep. I feel asleep at my desk and knocked my coffee all over my lap with my elbow. I was wide awake the rest of the morning.

 

[GodlessAstronomer]

I usually go for a walk or a cafe. Maybe return some video tapes.

Patrick, is that you?

 

[GodlessAstronomer]

1) Sleep 6-8 hours a night. No more no less. That length of time is pretty important, even though most people ignore it. Not only does sleeping more or less lead to sleepiness, but it can cause serious health and memory problems. Heck, it can lower your life expectancy more than things like being fat or smoking.
2) Sleep the same 6-8 hours every night. Yes, even on weekends. This means no more late nights, and no more sleeping until noon whenever you get the chance.
3) Always get up the first time the alarm buzzes (no snooze, no getting back in bed). Actually, if you follow #1 and #2, you'll usually be awake anyways by the time it buzzes. Get up immediately when it buzzes.

If that doesn't work, check into what Guyver01 said, you very well may have a sleep disorder. Caffeine, walks, smoking, affairs, etc all just try to treat the symptom, not the cause. And they do that poorly.

I sound like a depressing buzz-kill. But it works. You'll thank me later if you ever try it.

I do none of these and get through the day just fine.

 

[Nik]

OP needs to establish a habitual sleeping routine.

 

[AlienCraft]

You could start freebasing crystal meth, but I wouldn't recommend it. 5 Hour Energy shots usually do wonders for my attentiveness and focus regardless of how tired I am.

You really want to work up to that. Nothing like cardiac arrest to blow it for you.And why waste time free-basing meth. Coke, sure, help you get some of the cut off of it.
Real, hard- core users will spike their coffee or super-sized soda.

 

[spacelord]

20oz of Diet Mtn Dew usually does the trick for me when I get tired after lunch.

Honestly I think work would get more out of me on those tired days if I could just sleep in a couple extra hours or take a nap at my desk. until then, its caffeine.

 

[IronWing]

Cut yourself.

 

[Bignate603]

I tend to get a caffeinated soda and just sip it every few minutes. It helps keep my blood sugar level up and the caffeine helps too.

 

[rockyct]

I have some caffeine mints called Foosh. They have 100mg of caffeine in them and have a very strong mint flavor.

 

[Hacp]

adderall.

 

[oiprocs]

Maybe your job isn't challenging enough, or the work isn't interesting.

If you aren't tied down by financial obligations (see: wife and kids), look into changing careers. I hear OxyClean is looking for a new spokesman.

 

[Adrenaline]

Internet and cellphone.

 

[ch33zw1z]

Drowsines can be caused by lack of good diet and especially lack of water. So eat healthy and drink plenty of water, sounds like you try to get enough sleep. And lay off the caffeine, it makes you exhausted in the end.

 

[Bateluer]

Maybe you should do some work?

 

[bignateyk]

cocaine

 

[Ausm]

Jack it in the bathroom.

 

[IronWing]

Use one of these.

 

[Fenixgoon]

OP needs to establish a habitual sleeping routine.

winnar. i have an awful sleep routine, so i get screwed and am often drowsy at work

 

[Triumph]

I take naps underneath my desk. It worked better in my old cubicle, though, because if you walked by to see if I was there, you couldn't see under that part of the desk (3 sided desk). I would also pile boxes around me so that no one could see me even if they looked around. Now I have filing cabinets under the part of the desk where you could sleep and not be discovered. I need to find a new sleeping hole.

 

[bignateyk]

I take naps underneath my desk. It worked better in my old cubicle, though, because if you walked by to see if I was there, you couldn't see under that part of the desk (3 sided desk). I would also pile boxes around me so that no one could see me even if they looked around. Now I have filing cabinets under the part of the desk where you could sleep and not be discovered. I need to find a new sleeping hole.

The handicap stall in the bathroom works pretty well. Nice and spacious with arm rails to lean on. The only problem is that my legs usually fall asleep from sitting on the shitter while napping.

 

[techs]

I find meth keeps me awake.

 

[ahurtt]

I take a nap. Usually after than I'm not drowsy any more.

 

[ahurtt]

Jack it in the bathroom.

This usually works for a couple minutes but then just ends up exacerbating the problem.
hehehe. . ."bating" hehe.

 

[kalrith]

4 cups of coffee is nothing. Up that to 14, and you'll be just fine.

 

[dullard]

I do none of these and get through the day just fine.

Good for you. I was responding to someone who CAN'T get through the day just fine. Thus, my comments are not directed to you.

But, you might still want to consider doing #1, getting as close to seven hours of sleep a night as you can. Sleeping more or less drastically decreases your life expectancy: http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/....Pubmed.Pubmed_ResultsPanel.Pubmed_RVAbstract

Other links are available too, but I doubt I'll change your mind. You may be able to get through the day just fine, but you haven't yet proven that you'll get through a long life.