I Pulled an All-Nighter and Felt Like a Zombie in HD” by Anushka Bhatt

 

I Pulled an All-Nighter and Felt Like a Zombie in HD”

by Anushka Bhatt

One night, everything hit at once… two quizzes, a bio paper I’d barely started, and, for some reason, an overwhelming urge to reorganize my closet at 1 a.m. (Don’t ask. It felt urgent.) I told myself I’d just power through. No sleep, no breaks, just “grind mode.” Spoiler: I did not thrive.

I didn’t even nap. I just kept moving, kept working, kept sorting through biology notes and mismatched socks like a caffeinated robot. By morning, I looked like a human being but felt like an open browser with 47 tabs — all glitching.

I sat in class, physically present, spiritually gone. At one point during a test, I stared at the paper for so long I forgot how to spell my own name. That’s not a joke. That’s what happens when your brain is operating at 4%.

People romanticize all-nighters like they’re proof of dedication. “Grind culture,” they call it. But let me tell you: there is nothing empowering about forgetting entire concepts you understood the day before, or feeling like your limbs are underwater while trying to raise your hand. Sleep isn’t a reward you earn …it’s oxygen.

Now, I protect my sleep like it’s the final boss in a video game. I dim my lights like it’s a ritual. I make wind-down playlists to slow my thoughts. I say no to one thing each night, even if it feels small. Because that “one more thing” is what used to keep me up.

Rest isn’t weakness. It’s the secret weapon everyone sleeps on. Literally.

(Medical Fact: Chronic sleep deprivation increases risk for heart disease, anxiety, weakened immunity, and memory loss.)

Personal Fact: It also makes you forget the spelling of “photosynthesis.”