Take a Nap!

It's 3:00 P.M., and you're trying to make mincemeat of your to-do list. But suddenly, you're overcome by a serious case of the groggies. You have zero energy, your brain has shut down, and your eyelids feel like lead. What do you do? The answer is simple: Take a nap!

Studies show that a short daily snooze can improve your mood, increase your productivity, and make you more vital, alert, and decisive. This is especially important in our sleep-deprived society, where high-octane schedules often keep us from getting the eight-hours-a-night we crave.

Although a number of companies are jumping on the napping bandwagon, instituting "opportunity napping" policies and providing official "nap" rooms, most employers still frown upon the idea of "sleeping on the job." Even telecommuters, full-time moms, college students, and others with more flexible schedules equate napping with laziness. "Our culture has placed napping and productivity at opposite ends of the spectrum," says Professor Bill Anthony, co-author of The Art of Napping at Work (Larson Publications, 1999).

It may seem counterintuitive to think that you can have a more productive day by taking a half-hour break to sleep. But a growing number of nappers swear by a brief siesta as a fine way to recharge their batteries.

Here are some secrets of the brief snooze that will help get the habit ingrained:

• Take a nap at the same time every day. Professor James B. Maas, author of Power Sleep: The Revolutionary Program that Prepares the Mind for Peak Performance (HarperCollins, 1999), suggests that it's ideal to schedule your forty winks about eight hours after you wake up in the morning and eight hours before you head for bed. Any later, and you might create a shift in your biological clock that could make it harder for you to fall asleep at night.
• Keep your naps short. Many sleep experts agree that a 15- to 30-minute nap is optimal. If you nap any longer, you may drift into a deeper sleep state, and find waking up difficult. Make sure you have a dependable alarm clock--or friend--to rouse you.
• Don't worry if you can't fall asleep. If it's your scheduled naptime and you're not particularly tired, try to lie down and have a brief rest anyway. Close your eyes, focus on your breathing, and let go of mental clutter. You'll find it rejuvenating.
• Create a comfortable napping environment at home. Find a favorite napping spot, whether it's your bed, the couch, a comfy chair, or a hammock. Add soft lighting, soothing music, a blanket, a favorite pillow, an eye mask, and/or a teddy bear--whatever works for you.
• Create a comfortable napping environment in your office. If your office doesn't have an official pro-napping policy, try to doze during your lunch or coffee break. If you have a private office, close the door, turn off the lights, and unplug the phone. Conk out in your chair or spread a blanket or exercise mat out on the floor. If you don't have a private office, or if the boss frowns on your napping practices, then nap in your car (weather permitting), or go to the least used rest room in the building, sit on the toilet, and rest your head on the toilet paper roll.
• Find time to nap, even if you have a baby. We've all heard the advice "Sleep when your baby sleeps"--and laughed in disbelief. After all, the baby's naptime is the one and only opportunity we have to return phone calls, do the laundry, and have a semblance of a life, right? Compromise by giving yourself a 15-minute nap as soon as the baby dozes off, then knock off your chores once you awaken. You'll feel more efficient and energetic that way.
• Include your small children in a "family naptime" routine. If you have small children at home who no longer regularly nap on their own, try to get them to nap with you. After lunch, curl up in bed together, read a story, and then announce that it's "quiet time" for the next half hour. Provide (quiet) activities for them to do if they don't want to sleep. If all else fails, you can lie down on the couch and close your eyes while they watch a (quiet) video. But teach them early that Mom must have her rest.
• Deal with "sleep inertia." For some people, after-nap lethargy can make it hard to return to the land of the living. If you have trouble getting back into focus once awake, ease the transition by walking around, splashing cool water on your face, and having a cold drink.

So, isn't it time you woke up to the idea of napping? Forget that double cappuccino to get you through the afternoon. Just grab a pillow instead. Sweet dreams!

Source: Rebus Publishing, NYC
Reviewed by: David Edelberg, M.D., Senior Clinician and Founder of WholeHealth Chicago and Assistant Professor at Rush Medical College, Chicago.

Back