Fight the Doze Devil

It is a baffling yet well known fact that studying for an exam often induces the brain to go on snooze mode. Why we start to nod even before reaching half the chapter of the textbook is something of a mystery. Students have desperately tried to fight the sleep devil with caffeine, wake up pills, deafening music and sugary snacks – often to no avail.
Conversely, when it comes to all-night partying, chatting online, impressing a new or potential love interest or just watching a B grade comedy, the body seems to pick up and wake up without much effort. It is the brain's perverse way of thinking.
Obviously the answer is related to boredom and most students will agree that a disproportionate part of their studying is just no fun. Hence the sleepiness and fatigue before exams.
It is no surprise, therefore, that a Chinese university student has decided to try an unconventional method to keep alert to finish her work. Twenty-year-old Cheng Tang and her roommate Huang Lu, 21, had tried all sorts of methods to stay awake. They finally came up with the solution, inspired by an ancient Chinese method which involved tying the hair to a beam so that it gave a nasty pull everytime there was a tendency to nod off. Cheng didn't have a beam so she used a clothes dryer instead, securing her long hair with the clothes clips. According to Chen the method really worked and made her feel energetic while studying. Whether it is the pain of having one's hair pulled or the stimulation of the hair follicles that produce this surge of energy, is not clear. But the fact that it helps in keeping awake for study is enough incentive to many a droopy-eyed student  to give it a shot, provided of course, that they have a head full of hair. Students with thinning or no hair can try the other ancient Chinese method – poking oneself with needles everytime one gets drowsy.
Studying for exams is not the only time that one finds it difficult to stay awake. Whole day seminars and long meetings have often been regarded as potent sleep-inducing activities. And of course we can't avoid them. In fact the older we get, the higher the probability of attending meetings and seminars that we must try not to doze off in.
There is a reason for those bottles of water and bowls of candy at the tables. Dehydration is a major culprit of unwanted sleepiness (though a droning voice is close in competition) say the health gurus. Drinking copiously, therefore, will drive away the doze devils. It also ensures frequent trips to the restroom and who does that with their eyes closed right?
The sugar from the candy may help a little but more than that is the effort of tearing off that stubborn corner of the wrapper and consequent crackle of the paper that keeps the senses alert.
Frequent tea breaks and the promise of lunch are also ways seminar organisers try to keep participants from drooling off to Noddyland.
But it is always prudent to keep matters into one's own hands.
Doodling is the most popular way individuals fight the monotony of meetings and accompanying drowsiness. Think of the number of stick figures, geometric patterns and mad circles you have drawn in your diary. In the case of artists, cartoonists in particular, these mindless doodles can actually turn into masterpieces. Now here's an idea: Call a bunch of artists for a three-day seminar on 'Fiscal Policy – problems and prospects' and force them to give up their doodles after each session. Result: a goldmine of artistic treasures expressing the innermost frustrations of tortured souls.
Doodling aside, there are less conventional ways to stay awake:
Discreetly boxing your own ears. The level of self-inflicted pain depends on the level of drowsiness. This stimulates the nerves of the ear's surface and reminds you of significant moments of mischief in your childhood.
Drawing faces on the tips of your fingers so that they can interact melodramatically as in a silent soap opera.
Deeply inhaling a permanent marker. Some people actually get high from the acrid petrol-like smell, others get nauseous – either way it will distract from an embarrassing snooze.
Induced sneezing has been reported to be a good method. Keep a feather, grounded black pepper or pungent perfume handy so that everytime you feel sleepy you sneeze away the drowsiness.
This last method has potential to be very popular. Sneezing incessantly gives you a valid reason to excuse yourself from that stuffy room and find a comfortable corner to take a nap sometimes it’s best to stop fighting it.