How to Stay Awake at Night While Driving

"The woods are lovely, dark and deep; but I've got promises to keep, and miles to go before I sleep."

There's very little that you'll do with your day that involves something more dangerous than driving an automobile. It's something that most people take for granted most of the time, but the inherent danger of operating a motor vehicle begins to take on a certain poignancy when it's 3:13 a.m. and you're simply trying to get there without killing yourself or anyone else. Very few people face this reality on a daily basis like truck drivers do, so take a few tips from the pros to help ensure that you always arrive alive.

Instructions

1. Remember at all times that your vehicle is capable of turning you and your family into tomato soup in an instant, and even the shortest lapse in attention could be your last. Your first duty while behind the wheel is operating the vehicle safely, and if you ever feel as though you can't do that, then it is your responsibility to park the car.

2. Mind your body's nutrients. Caffeine and stimulants will work for a little while, but they'll also burn up your body's store of easily-accessible energy and make you crash later -- figuratively speaking. Complex carbs will give your body all the energy it needs, but you still have to produce the enzymes and compounds necessary to use them. Those little one-ounce energy shots contain a number of vitamins that your body needs to convert energy, but make sure to take your daily multivitamins before setting out.

3. Stay hungry. When you eat, your body automatically diverts energy and bloodflow to the process of digestion, which starves your brain and induces a state of lethargy. If you have to eat, go with complex carbohydrates for energy and a small amount of simple sugar to compensate for the energy used during digestion.

4. Pull over and take a nap. There is no substitute for sleep; rest areas exist for a reason, and while sleeping in your car in a parking lot might seem a bit dangerous, it's far less likely to result in injury than landing upside-down in the oncoming lane of traffic. If you can find a heavily-trafficked, 24-hour gas station or truck stop, then park in front of the store where the cashier can see you. This well help give you some peace of mind while you nap.

5. Roll down your windows and get some fresh air. Cold air in your face will help to keep you awake, but, more importantly, it contains more oxygen than the air in your car. Air conditioning systems constantly recycle air inside the cabin to keep things cool, and spending hours on end in a sealed car will eventually subject you to excess level of lethargy-inducing carbon dioxide. Leave the heater off whenever you can; the human body is predisposed to get lazy in the heat.

6. Make a phone call or talk to yourself. It doesn't matter what you say if you're on your own. Work on that speech you should have given at your wedding nine years ago, or pretend that that bobble-head Ted Nugent on your dashboard is your ex and have an argument with him. The human body responds to spikes in adrenaline brought on by conflict, and responds the same way to the laughter you'll experience when you realize that you just engaged in a 45-minute debate with three ounces of polypropylene plastic.

7. Buy a two-dollar CD at a truck stop and listen to some music that you don't know and don't particularly like. Easily-predictable patterns are death where staying awake is concerned, so don't listen to music that you could sing in your sleep. Even cranking the volume up to 11 won't keep you from eventually tuning the noise out and nodding off; if anything, it'll remove one more sensory input and make you that much more inclined to fall asleep. If you like country, try sliding in a CD of Dr. Dre from his NWA days; if you like French classical, spend an hour or so with the Blues Brothers soundtrack.

References

• "JB Hunt Driver-Trainer Manual"; JB Hunt Enterprises; 2003