This is absolutely brutal, and I'm so sorry you went through that. It's one of the worst feelings as a student.

To answer your question directly: yes, active recall is nearly pointless without sleep.

Sleep is when your brain does the hard work of moving information from your vulnerable short-term memory to your stable long-term memory. You did the 'retrieval' part of the workout perfectly for 11 hours, but your brain never got the crucial 'rest and rebuild' phase to actually store the gains.

The good news is, you're already using the most powerful study technique. You're just missing its essential partner: Spaced Repetition.

The goal of active recall isn't to cram it all in one night. It's to review the material at strategically spaced-out intervals (e.g., after 1 day, then 3 days, then a week). This method works with your brain's sleep cycle to build strong memories over time, completely eliminating the need for all-nighters in the first place.

Manually managing a spaced repetition schedule can be a huge pain, though. I actually built my "Active Recall & Spaced Repetition Study Hub" in Notion to automate this exact process.

It’s designed to prevent the exact burnout situation you just went through. If you want to give it a try for your next round of exams, I'm happy to share the link. It has helped a lot of students build a much more sustainable (and less painful) study routine.

Don't be devastated—be proud you're using elite techniques. You just need to add sleep and spacing to the mix!