Editor’s note: This story is a first-hand experience of a Hornet staff member who voluntarily undergoes sleep deprivation. The writer stayed awake for 48 hours and documented his experience in this article.

We’ve all done it – the dreaded all-nighter. Instead of finishing all of your homework as soon as the weekend starts, you procrastinate. Maybe you stay out all night and party or maybe you just stay home and relax, play video games and hang out with friends until the sun comes up. Eventually, you hit that point where your body is begging for sleep, but now you can’t sleep. Now you have finally decided to do your homework.

In order to fully understand the effects pulling all-nighters has on students, I decided it would be both interesting and informative to subject myself to a full 48 hours without sleep. What I didn’t know was that I was in for two of the longest, most grueling days of my life.

Cyndra Krogen, health educator at Sacramento State’s Student Health Center, said the effects of sleep deprivation can include a compromised immune system, irritability, trouble staying focused, possible headache and skewed vision, delayed reaction time, slurred speech, negative impact on memory (both short and long term) and possible manic or “buzzed” feelings.

These warnings had no bearing on me, yet.

I went to bed at 1 a.m. on Friday. After hitting the snooze button on my alarm clock, I woke up at 8:10 a.m. I immediately regretted agreeing to the task at hand. All I could think about was how sweet it would be to go to sleep tonight. But there would be no sleep until 8:10 a.m. on Sunday.

My first day consisted of working an eight-hour shift, playing video games at a friend’s house and seeing the movie, “Good Luck Chuck.” I realized quickly that the key to staying awake involves being constantly accompanied by someone and participating in any activity that forces me to think about things other than sleep.

Not too long after, the first symptom kicked in – hunger. Thankfully, In-N-Out stays open until 1 a.m. most nights and is often a hot spot for insomniacs.

Next, we went to my favorite 24-hour haven, Safeway, to do some shopping. After stocking up on energy drinks and energy bars, it was time to indulge. My first Red Bull didn’t make me feel any more awake, but I got some caffeine in my system.

The rest of my early morning was spent watching the entire first season of “Scrubs” at my friend’s house. Finally, I decided to do him a favor and go home so he could sleep.

Walking into my room at five in the morning was the hardest part yet. The urge to sleep was unbearable, but I knew that once I made it past the 24-hour mark of staying awake, the rest would be a breeze. At all costs, I resisted getting into or even sitting on my bed. I played video games, listened to my iPod and surfed the web, all in hopes that the sun would rise soon.

Around 6 a.m. I experienced my second symptom of sleep deprivation – hallucination. I saw people who weren’t actually there, which sounds scarier than it is. This was a definite sign that my body and eyes wanted me to go to sleep.

“Sleep is mandatory for humans because it gives our brain, as well as our body, a chance to rest and rejuvenate,” Krogen said.

However, my brain and body weren’t rejuvenated and I could feel it more now. Even standing up from a sitting position had become a difficult task, and I felt sick to my stomach. My body was weak and my hands were shaky. I wanted to lie down and rest my eyes, but I knew that doing so would only make me fall asleep.

Around 10:30 a.m., I made the mistake of driving my dad to run an errand. Even though I made it to my house safely, I could clearly tell that I had delayed reaction time. Anyone who stays awake for this long should not drive under any circumstances, for personal safety and for the safety of others on the road. I have never driven while intoxicated but I would assume that doing so feels a lot like driving while tired. It is the “buzzed” feeling Krogen talks about.

Fortunately, I felt a lot more awake after forcing myself to be alert enough to drive a car, so I decided it would be a good time to do some homework.

Reading was virtually impossible. My eyes were scanning the words but I wasn’t actually reading anything. Not only that, but I had no motivation.

“Lack of sleep can cause higher levels of anxiety, compromise a person’s immune system and studies have found that it can contribute to weight gain,” Krogen said.

My immune system must have been compromised because I definitely felt sick and I had developed a nasty cough. I decided to counteract this and try to avoid getting sick by getting a smoothie with an “immunity boost” from Jamba Juice.

“If (students) need to stay awake for reasons such as completing a paper or because they work a night shift I would say for them to get as much rest as possible beforehand, eat well-balanced snacks throughout the time they are awake, drink plenty of water and engage in physical activity (such as taking walks) once per hour to stay stimulated and awake,” Krogen said.

Krogen also said caffeinated beverages can help, but too much caffeine can be somewhat detrimental to people, as dehydration can result.

Desperate to find new ways to stay awake, I decided to do some basic stretches to get my blood flowing and then take a shower. This seemed to have helped me wake up much more than any energy drink had helped before. I actually felt like I had gotten sleep, even though I had not.

I had a 16-ounce Amp energy drink with dinner. Somehow this made me feel more tired and even sicker to my stomach. I sat in my room after dinner and I could feel my heart beating in my chest. It felt like my heart rate was accelerating, and for the first time during this experiment I actually felt scared and worried about my health.

That night, I went to a party with some friends, and even sober, I was barely able to stand. We headed back to a friend’s house to play video games around midnight, but it didn’t last long since my hands were so shaky that I could hardly hold the controller.

My whole body was shaking uncontrollably now. My friends started to worry about me too. They forced me to go home and told me to get some sleep. But I was exactly eight hours and ten minutes away from reaching my goal and I was not about to give up.

What I was experiencing is not unfamiliar territory for other students.

“I [pulled an all-nighter] freshman year and I haven’t done it since. I learned my lesson,” said senior communications major Callie Johnson. “I was overwhelmed with studying for finals. The adrenaline kept me up for a while, but I was really exhausted and I just felt sick.”

Johnson also said she would never do it again because it doesn’t help and said she would have done better if she got a good night’s sleep.

My last clear memory came around 2:30 a.m. I remember drinking a Red Bull and eating an energy bar. The next few hours were a blur between video games, TV, iPod, and Internet – anything that kept me awake. I also remember watching the clock change to 8:10 a.m., but I don’t remember how I felt or what happened next. I don’t remember turning off my light, my TV, or my computer. I don’t remember setting my alarm clock for 10:00 a.m. and I definitely don’t remember getting into bed, but apparently I did and those two hours of sleep were quite refreshing.

Students should be aware of the harmful health effects of sleep deprivation. Students should manage their time well to ensure they get the recommended eight hours of sleep a day.

To college students, sleep can often seem like an enemy of some sort that gets in the way of accomplishing goals. In reality, getting enough sleep is essential because it prepares the body and mind for the laborious day-to-day lives that we lead.

Brandon Fleshman can be reached at [email protected]