Do You Take Power Naps?

A power nap is a short sleep that stops before the person moves into deep sleep.  The goal is to quickly revitalize the person.  Power naps are meant to last 10 to 15 minutes and not more than 30 minutes.   They can improve alertness directly after waking up.  In the 1980’s, I took a power nap every Monday through Friday from 4:45 pm to 5:05 pm.  I must say these naps felt like a mini vacation and gave my brain and body some much needed rest and relaxation.  I woke up feeling rejuvenated and ready to take on the evening with my young son.

I almost never lay down to take a nap anymore unless I am physically exhausted.  For some reason I dubbed napping as a waste of time and something I no longer needed to do.  Maybe this shift happened when my son grew older and needed to be transported to various sporting events or maybe life got so confusing and stressful I was too overwhelmed to nap.  Whatever the reason my naps stopped and never got started up again.

My mother used to lay me down to take naps when I was 5.  Of course I would fight her on the idea crying out,  “I am not tired.”  My Mom would respond every time by saying, “you do not have to go to sleep, just rest.  Do not go to sleep.”  Once I had permission to “rest” and not “sleep”  I relaxed and my power nap would begin.  I always woke up in a great mood and full of energy.

Power naps worked for me when I was a child, they worked for me when my child was young and they worked for me when I was the mother of teenagers.  Now that I  am an empty nester,  I am committing to taking a power nap at least every once in awhile.   zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz