When night-time sleep is disrupted, unrefreshing or not long enough, many of us are prone to daytime drowsiness, prompting us to take naps or perhaps even nod off unintentionally. Are there any advantages or disadvantages to daytime napping? And how can you make the most of a good daytime nap without impacting your night-time sleep?
Every year, as the Christmas holidays get closer, I start to plant the seeds of falling in love with and making more time for sleep. As the year progresses, we can find ourselves perpetually sleep-deprived. So, is a nap a good idea and if yes, then how should we go about it?
Napping, when done right, can be a powerful way to restore energy and alertness. A brief, well-timed nap can help fight fatigue without leaving you groggy - provided it’s managed wisely. For those affected by insufficient or interrupted sleep, such as night shift workers, frequent travellers, students, and anyone dealing with sleep difficulties, a 'power nap' really can be an effective solution.
What is a power nap?
A power nap is a brief, intentional rest designed to relieve tiredness and boost alertness. The key to a successful power nap is timing it to avoid deeper sleep stages. Waking from lighter sleep stages helps you feel refreshed. Sleeping too long and waking up in a deep sleep phase leaves us feeling rather sluggish - a state known as 'sleep inertia'.
How long should a power nap be?
Research suggests that naps of 10 to 30 minutes are ideal for quickly feeling rejuvenated. Napping for 20 minutes or less helps boost alertness and cognitive function without leaving you groggy. Short naps are also unlikely to interfere with night-time sleep if taken in the early or mid-afternoon. A longer nap - about 90 minutes - can also be beneficial, as it completes a full sleep cycle. Since lighter sleep occurs at the end of each sleep cycle, a 90-minute nap usually leads to minimal grogginess. Longer naps can impact night-time sleepiness, so reserve these for the odd occasion when you really need them.
Benefits of power naps
Power naps can offer a range of benefits:
How to take an effective power nap
To make the most of a power nap, try the following:
Added energy: Some people drink a small amount of caffeine before napping for a 'coffee nap', where they time it so the caffeine takes effect as they wake. Only do this technique if you can still avoid caffeine in the nine hours before bedtime, to maintain healthy sleep at night.
Post-nap tips: To shake off any residual grogginess, try stepping outside for sunlight, splashing your face with cool water, drinking 200mls of fresh cool water, doing some gentle squats, and punching your arms in the air a few times to get the circulation going.
Supplements to aid sleep: Research shows multiple forms of magnesium are very supportive in activating GABA, our relaxation and sleep pathways neurotransmitter. Because gut lining absorption of magnesium can diminish as we age, a magnesium liquid or magnesium powder added to water or diluted juice is considered best practice.
Supplements to wake us up and keep us feeling calm, centred and in control: ‘Daytime Revive’ from SleepDrops is an expert adrenal gland and endocrine tonic for the whole body. Like Rescue Remedy but with the added bonus of 18 herbs to support optimal function of our thyroid, adrenal glands, heart, liver and digestion, it really is a great daytime go-to, to keep us feeling our best all day, especially if life is challenging and energy can’t be improved by coffee because it doesn’t suit your constitution.
A few drops of Daytime Revive under the tongue can be just the treat after waking from a nap, or if life is really demanding too much of you, and a nap is out of the question.
For more information on all our expert sleep and stress support products please visit us at www.SleepDrops.co.nz or give us a call and talk to us directly at 0800 345 999.
