“Learn from yesterday, live for today, look to tomorrow, rest this afternoon.”
~ Charles M. Schulz, Charlie Brown’s Little Book of Wisdom
Rest is so important for my healing journey right now that one of my doctors actually wrote ‘daily nap’ and ‘one complete rest day each working week’ on a prescription pad for me.
But naps are actually good for everyone. Here’s why:
- Getting all our sleep in one hit is a fairly recent concept. Humans evolved to be biphasic sleepers – having one long sleep period and one shorter one, often taken during daylight hours. This is where the concept of the siesta came from, and it extends back at least as far as early Roman times.
- Napping improves health. It has been shown to reduce the stress hormone cortisol, and to increase human growth hormone, immune function, digestion, sexual function and sex hormone levels. It boosts our ability to heal. Napping makes you healthy AND sexy!
- Taking a short nap increases our post-nap alertness. NASA studies show that a forty minute nap was a more effective boost to cognitive function that caffeine or other stimulants.
- Napping downloads and clears the buffer in our brain, creating space for faster synaptic patterns and associations. After naps that tangle of thoughts in our head is gone and we feel refreshed and are able to think more clearly.
- Naps help us hold and assimilate new information, enhancing our capacity to learn and retain that learning. More sleep, rather than less sleep, is the key to learning complex tasks or information.
Image from Fast Company - Taking a nap enhances our mood, giving us elevated serotonin and a more relaxed and positive outlook on life.
- Napping prevents burn-out. Short sleeps help us to cope mentally, physically and emotionally by allowing us time to tune out from stress, giving us a break and rebooting our coping mechanisms.
- When we nap our subconcious and unconscious mind are free to work on problems, helping to boost our working creativity and problem-solving ability once we wake.
- Napping enhances memory. Exhaustion does the opposite. Short sleeps glue our brains back together when we’re frazzled, stressed and broken.
- Naps reduce sleep deprivation and can help us get by with less overall sleep.
Most importantly, naps are not only good for us, they make us FEEL good. A nap refreshes, soothes and restores.
If you can’t fit a nap in during the week, at least shoot for one on the weekend. Don’t fight that urge to nap. Especially if you’re tired, stress or unwell. It might be just the thing to get you feeling brighter again.
Happy to see someone finally post about one of my favorite times of the day!
Oy! I’ve never been a “good” sleeper and I deal with sleep deprivation as part of my every day life. My husband, one of the hardest working people I know, is an avid napper. He’s also one of the most positive and productive people I know. Looks like there really is something to this napping business. I think I’m going to make it my new hobby! –Lucinda
not too many posts today, we’re all busy napping! :o)
http://www.orgoknight.com/for-your-health/my-lymes-disease-cure-protocol-that-worked-for-me-in-points – I strongly feel that the turmeric should help you with something, be it pain or other things that it might help resolve. Also check the others inputs in this link, although you might have tried them all.
Sorry for posting here, I just discovered your blog and would have much to say, but for now this should be enough – I put it here so that it doesn’t get lost in an old post.
grateful,
me 🙂
i absolutely love this post, thanks aGAIN 🙂 now, just to convince that matronly part of my busy brain that I HAVE TIME & it’s OK!…
ps that kitten is just lush
Reblogged this on From & For Kids and commented:
The Benefits of Napping
I do cherish my afternoon naps especially if a nice doggy happens to curl up by me. I have always been a napper and can sleep any time and anywhere if I need one. This I feel is one of the best things I can do for myself. Thanks for the affirmation. Sleep tight