It is probably one of the scariest feelings in the world:

That moment when you realize you almost fell asleep while driving.

I’d never had a problem with this in all my years of driving until last week. Last week I had an interesting line-up of events which made for a series of nights featuring very little sleep: The Killers concert, a Mae concert and a Disney birthday celebration, all an hour and a half away from home. So each time, after a full day of school and work, I’d head over with some friends to Orlando, Fla., — town of magic — and partake in the spectacle of activities. Needless to say, with 8 a.m. classes on the following days, I got from 3-4 hours of sleep per night and spent about $100 in gas in three days. Ah, the price we pay for epic experiences.

If you’ve been in this situation before, you know how it gets when you’ve been standing for five hours straight and jumping up and down constantly for two. Then you have to drive back. For an hour and a half. Did I mention I got up at 6 a.m.? Exactly. An hour into the drive, the lines on the road started to blur, the loud and upbeat music wasn’t doing it anymore, and I was desperately taking sips from a Steak N Shake milkshake in hopes that the sugar would go straight to my brain and re-energize it. This sucks. And is EXTREMELY dangerous. I mean, going 70 mph while exhausted should probably be as illegal as driving drunk, but I guess they just don’t have a way to breathalyze exhaustion.

So, after experiencing this firsthand several times that week, here’s what I did. And then, here’s what I decided I should do next time.

What I did (in order):

Sipped Steak N Shake milkshake – effective for a short period of time.

Blared Upbeat music – effective mainly while singing.

Slapped my face – hurts. Not that effective.

Turned off all music – somewhat effective, snapped me out of my musical trance.

Talked to my sister – MOST effective. Talking to people when they’re asking you questions is quite helpful.

What I should do next time:

Switch drivers, if possible.

Pull over at the nearest McDonald’s and set a 10-minute alarm. Nap!

Here’s to staying awake,

Sarah