Do You Take Naps?
I LOVE NAPS… and they have physical and mental health benefits! Naps are supposedly even more effective (and cheaper) than coffee or energy drinks.
According to the National Sleep Foundation, adults in the United States are more sleep deprived than ever before. They claim “while naps do not necessarily make up for inadequate or poor quality nighttime sleep, a short nap of 20-30 minutes can help to improve mood, alertness and performance.”
Even companies, like Google, are now starting to allow (and dare I say encourage) employees to take naps.
Personally, I love taking naps, especially around 2:30pm in preparation for my second shift (aka when my kids come home from school). Sometimes I enjoy the luxury of being able to nap. Other times I feel completely guilty. And sometimes I go for that cup of coffee instead. I’m still evolving… still learning.
Napping Benefits
According to the Mayo Clinic, napping offers various benefits for healthy adults, including:
- Relaxation
- Reduced fatigue
- Increased alertness
- Improved mood
- Improved performance, including quicker reaction time and better memory
Napping and Stress
Over at Casper.com, they take their napping seriously. As a sleep startup, they believe napping is an important way to de-stress. Below is their Napping 101 graphic that includes types of naps as well as reasons why you might want to start incorporate more naps into your life.
Happy Napping!
