{"id":37832,"date":"2024-07-04T05:25:39","date_gmt":"2024-07-04T05:25:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/kede.com.br\/news\/how-to-watch-all-night-election-coverage-and-cope-with-sleep-loss\/"},"modified":"2024-07-04T05:25:40","modified_gmt":"2024-07-04T05:25:40","slug":"how-to-watch-all-night-election-coverage-and-cope-with-sleep-loss","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/kede.com.br\/news\/how-to-watch-all-night-election-coverage-and-cope-with-sleep-loss\/","title":{"rendered":"How to watch all-night election coverage and cope with sleep loss"},"content":{"rendered":"
I love the idea of a full night of election drama – sitting up in front of the television, the BBC News live page updating on my laptop, slowly converting a mountain of snacks into a wasteland of empty wrappers and mainlining unseemly quantities of tea. <\/p>\n
But we\u2019re fighting biology here, fellow election-night crew.<\/p>\n
So I\u2019ve been chatting to sleep experts to come up with the definitive guide to getting through the night and not becoming a sleep-deprived monster the next day. <\/p>\n
I’m going for the hardcore plan – we’ve got to be up all day Thursday whether that’s for work or childcare, then we’re watching the whole thing overnight and we’re back in the office on Friday. <\/p>\n
There’s a milder plan too (that we’ll discuss at the end) but all the tips here will help you see democracy in action.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
In an ideal world you need to be well-rested before you even get to Thursday night. <\/p>\n
There’s no such thing as \u201csleep banking\u201d ahead of time but if you’re already wrecked then it’s going to be a struggle.<\/p>\n
The core of our plan is going to involve a solid nap strategy. <\/p>\n
Napping cannot replace the remarkable restorative power of a night\u2019s sleep but it is scientifically proven to boost to alertness and concentration levels – essential for keeping up with the results.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf you\u2019re staying up all night, I\u2019d have a pre-emptive nap before it starts and have another in the middle of the night,\u201d says Dr Allie Hare, a sleep medicine consultant at the Royal Brompton Hospital in London.<\/p>\n
Nap three is on Friday morning, pre-work or pre-school-run, to get us out of the door, and number four is in the middle of the day. <\/p>\n
\u201cThere\u2019s a natural lull after lunch so that\u2019s a good time to do it,\u201d says Dr Hare.<\/p>\n
She thinks the \u201cpush through Friday\u201d approach is best for most people in order to avoid completely disrupting their usual sleeping pattern.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n\n
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Pro tip: Pre-loaded naps<\/h2>\n<\/p>\n
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Nap technique is a delicate art. You\u2019re aiming for 20-30 minutes in order to get a restorative boost, but go any longer and you\u2019ll mess yourself up. <\/p>\n
\u201cIf you drop into a deeper sleep, coming out of that can leave you really groggy,\u201d says Professor Russell Foster from the University of Oxford.<\/p>\n
It’s called sleep inertia – that feeling when you wake up worse than when you nodded off.<\/p>\n
Nap-pros have perfected the art of \u201cpre-loading\u201d and this comes expert-recommended.<\/p>\n
The idea is if you have a coffee immediately before your 20-minute nap (set a timer on your phone) and then the caffeine hits its peak just as the nap ends, you\u2019re perky and ready to go as soon as you wake up.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt\u2019s a good idea,\u201d says Prof Foster.<\/p>\n
So I’m thinking naps at 21:00 on Thursday, then 02:00, 06:00 and 14:00 on Friday – but make that pattern work for you.<\/p>\n
You are still going to feel tired, so bright lights are your friends. <\/p>\n
During the night, keep the lights on full-whack, and during the day, spend your time outside to trick your brain into thinking you’re supposed to be awake.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
If you want to stay wired throughout the night then the odds are you\u2019re going to need a performance-enhancing drug – hello caffeine! <\/p>\n
The drug is a stimulant so it makes you feel less tired and more alert. <\/p>\n
But again, we need a plan and we don’t want too much.<\/p>\n
Prof Foster argues for the judicious use of tea and coffee, but would \u201cpersonally avoid\u201d energy drinks as they are packed with sugar.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou will crash afterwards and go in completely the opposite direction,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n
However, energy drinks do give you a bigger caffeine hit. You could hunt out a zero-sugar option, but don’t go overboard.<\/p>\n
\u201cDon\u2019t overdose on the caffeine and have palpitations and anxiety,\u201d says Dr Hare.<\/p>\n
You\u2019re also going to want to leave several hours for the caffeine to wear off so it doesn\u2019t disrupt Friday night’s sleep. Put the kettle down by mid-afternoon on Friday.<\/p>\n
Oh, and remember to keep yourself well-hydrated overnight in order to keep that brain ticking over. Not just coffee – water too. <\/p>\n
And whether you’re celebrating, commiserating or just along for the ride, booze could be fun. It is not, however, an elite strategy. <\/p>\n
\u201cDo not have alcohol involved in any of this – I realise everyone will but the sleep advice is don’t, it’s just a sedative and it’ll make it harder,\u201d says Dr Hare.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
Manage your sugar levels<\/h2>\n<\/p>\n
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You’re going to have to accept that disrupting your sleep is going to have a knock-on effect on your hunger hormones. <\/p>\n
Your brain will sense levels of the hormone leptin dropping and ghrelin shooting up, and the combined effect is that you will feel the urge to binge. <\/p>\n
\u201cYou will have cravings and be tempted to send out for pizza and grab the Twixes,\u201d says Prof Foster. \u201cSo beware, you\u2019ll be more hungry.\u201d <\/p>\n
You can’t really dodge this but you can plan for it, surrounding yourself with food focused on protein and slow-release carbohydrates. <\/p>\n
Prof Foster suggests protein drinks or unsalted nuts to provide energy without sending blood sugar levels on a rollercoaster of highs and crashes.<\/p>\n
\u201cAs a treat, you could throw some raisins in,\u201d he chuckles.<\/p>\n
But don’t rely on that box of chocolates. <\/p>\n
Dr Hare’s advice is: \u201cDon\u2019t eat crap all night.\u201d <\/p>\n
If you try, she says you will feel \u201cabsolutely dreadful\u201d.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
Beware, you\u2019re now cognitively and emotionally impaired!<\/h2>\n<\/p>\n
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Well done! You\u2019ve made it through the night.<\/p>\n
I hate to break it to you – you might not be a very nice person right now.<\/p>\n
Even one night without sleep alters the brain\u2019s ability to process information and emotions.<\/p>\n
Classic signs are increased irritability and anxiety, and a loss of empathy. Frustration is also a classic, as well as increased impulsivity.<\/p>\n
Prof Foster says: \u201cYou are just not the normal, nice, measured individual you would otherwise be.\u201d<\/p>\n
You’re going to suffer from negative salience too. <\/p>\n
This is where your world-view becomes warped and negative comments and experiences hit harder. <\/p>\n
A tired brain also leads to increased risk-taking. Prof Foster says this can make you \u201cmore likely to drift into illegal drug use\u2026 that\u2019s what your brain does when tired and emotional\u201d. <\/p>\n
So yeah, watch out for that.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
Pro tip: Some conversations can wait until next week<\/h2>\n<\/p>\n
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I hope it’s clear that you’re not really you right now, so you might want to take things easy and avoid any difficult conversations.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou might be thrilled with the result and be disinhibited, or less than happy and more reactive to being provoked,\u201d says Prof Foster. <\/p>\n
So think twice about having ‘that’ conversation and save life-changing decisions until later.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou certainly need to be sensitive to those difficult conversations,\u201d says Prof Foster.<\/p>\n
Also – do not drive. <\/b><\/p>\n
After an all-nighter, if you need to get somewhere, then walk, take a taxi or use public transport. <\/p>\n
By four or five in the morning your brain is as impaired as if you had enough booze to be over the drink-drive limit.<\/p>\n
\u201cBig decisions, meaningful marital conversations and driving – do not do any of these things,\u201d says Dr Hare.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n
Have you got anything a bit easier for me?<\/h2>\n<\/p>\n
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Shift workers may be laughing their way through this piece thinking, \u201cWhat a bunch of lightweights!\u201d<\/p>\n
If you had a long run-up you could try shifting your body clock so you’re awake at night and asleep for the day, but it’s probably too late for that now. <\/p>\n
Some people do attempt a different strategy to the all-nighter, though. <\/p>\n
The idea is to stay up to watch the exit-poll projections, which give you the first hint of the result when it is released at 22:00. <\/p>\n
Then have a sleep for a few hours while the ballots are being counted, and wake up early in the morning to catch the peak of the action. <\/p>\n
This does hit the problem of sleep inertia we mentioned earlier, but Prof Foster says older people will find this easier to pull off.<\/p>\n
Sleep patterns change as we age and older people will \u201chave more fragmented sleep\u201d so it is easier for them to wake and feel okay. <\/p>\n
On the other hand, young people who are woken by an alarm \u201cfeel groggy and crap\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cPeople will know what works for them,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n
The other idea is to sleep on Friday morning if you don’t have any commitments. <\/p>\n
Just be careful you don’t KO all day and then can’t sleep on Friday night, throwing your whole weekend out of kilter. <\/p>\n
Dr Hare says: \u201cIf you do have to make major decisions then get whatever sleep you can, even if it messes up your following night’s sleep, otherwise power-nap through it.\u201d<\/p>\n
So good luck, brave election adventurers – whatever you do, you should be fine by Monday. See you on the other side! <\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
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