Napping-Yea or Nay?

[iheartscience]

Perhaps PSers can help me settle a long-running debate on napping I've had with a few family members.

What are your thoughts on adults napping? How often do you nap? Feel free to add any and all thoughts about napping! (I'm keeping my opinions to myself for now so I don't bias the results. )

 

[TravelingGal]

I believe in the power nap (15-20 mins tops). And now that I have a kid, I believe in the hide in your room for as long as you can, nap. Even if it means hours.

Seriously, I'd love the spanish way of the siesta here. Nothing better than an afternoon rejuvie.

 

[Hudson_Hawk]

I like napping, especially when it involves a cuddly baby in my bed. I'm not a good power napper and unfortunately most naps leave me feeling less rested than before the nap, so I tend to not bother with them.

 

[Tacori E-ring]

YEA! I don't really get to nap anymore since my kid dropped her nap, but I highly enjoy them.

 

[kenny]

Yea

I nap almost every day for an hour.
I consider it to be a fantastic habit.

 

[Skippy123]

I get naps now that I am Pregnant with twins, probably 2 -3 x a week. I don't sleep well at night so a nap helps with that. Yay, for the nap! Before preggo I would nap on Saturday sometimes.

 

[Laila619]

LOVE naps. I took them for granted until I had a baby. Now I wish I could get them so badly. My ideal nap is 1.5 hours. Ahhh!

 

[ForteKitty]

Definitely a big YAY for me. I'm at work 11 hours a day, so I love my 45 min lunch naps. My car is stocked w/ a pillow, a fuzzy blanket, and scented eye shades. Napping gives me enough energy to actually work out effectively after work!!

 

[Haven]

Wait--some people don't nap every day?

How do you manage to make it to bedtime?

 

[that_someone_special]

I can't imagine why anyone would care if someone decides to nap... or not. I'm pretty sure there are more things in the world to worry about.

 

[Kaleigh]

Nothing like a good nap, so yay for Naps!!

 

[soocool]

I have napped since I was a baby...Napping helped me get through college with all those sleepless nights studying for midterms and finals. I used to nap in my car at lunch sometimes at work so that I could put in the long hours after 5 pm. I napped 1 naptime with DD when she was little and cried when she no longer napped because I couldn't nap anymore. I nap whenever I can in the afternoon (20 minutes tops) to refresh me, especially if I am going out for the evening.


And I have to say that when I nap I am not grouchy.....that's why my family lets me nap.

 

[NewEnglandLady]

No kids here, but I can't remember the last time I had a nap. I'm not much of a sleeper, anyway, I always feel like I'm missing out on something else I could be doing.

I was just reading some survey results about how more people have started napping in the past year. Apparently, as a society, we are getting tired!

 

[Italiahaircolor]

If I can manage a nap...absolutely, yes, napping all the way.

There is something really nice about just getting that period--15 minutes, an hour, whatever--of extra rest. The again, I'm up and out of bed at 5a and most nights don't call it quits until midnight. So, yeah, if I can sneak away from life for an hour, I'm all over that.

 

[shihtzulover]

I am a huge fan of napping, and have been since high school. Honestly, I had a lot of issues with anxiety back then, so my doctor put me on a SSRI antidepressant. It really helped my anxiety a lot, but it made me so tired all of the time - I would fall asleep in class, even when struggling to stay awake while trying to write out notes, and even when I had seven or eight hours of sleep the night before. Still, I stayed on them for eight years, and just worked around it.

When I got my first job out of college, I couldn't take my little naps throughout the day in order to stay awake during important times, and I started to fall asleep at my desk. I got into trouble, so I ended up getting off the meds. After that, I stopped falling asleep at my desk, but to this day (over a year later) I still struggle to stay awake alllll day (I often feel sick if I don't nap for at least a little while), especially if I don't get 8-9 hours of sleep the night before.

I'm not sure why I'm like this now - maybe the medicine changed me, or maybe I would have turned out this way, anyway. In any case, I definitely really enjoy my naps when I am able to take them.

Oh, and my anxiety issues have come back somewhat, but I'm trying to manage them without starting on a new med.

 

[iheartscience]

I can't imagine why anyone would care if someone decides to nap... or not. I'm pretty sure there are more things in the world to worry about.

Great insight! You should probably go worry about more important things and leave all the dumb stuff like napping and diamonds to us dummies!

 

[Bleed Burnt Orange]

I don't like napping anymore because it affects my sleep schedule. I'd rather get a good night than rely on napping. HOWEVER...there are times when my eyes just won't stay open and they feel really good! A 10 minute power nap does a LOT for me at those times.

 

[iheartscience]

No kids here, but I can't remember the last time I had a nap. I'm not much of a sleeper, anyway, I always feel like I'm missing out on something else I could be doing.

I was just reading some survey results about how more people have started napping in the past year. Apparently, as a society, we are getting tired!

This is exactly how I feel, but we are clearly outnumbered! A few of my family members and friends LOVE naps and will nap every day if they can. I actually hate to nap because I always wake up feeling AWFUL and like I wasted the day.

 

[kama_s]

When I lived in Dubai, the afternoons are SO hot that it was universal for everyone to take naps. All shops etc would close between 2 and 4pm. School would be out at 1pm, most offices would work from 7 am to 2pm (office hours have since been changed, but the rest is still the same). It was expected that everyone would take a nap from 2-4pm. Just too hot for the body to function otherwise!

I don't nap here anymore, even if I had an entire day free. I have issues with insomnia, so if I even take a 30 min nap I wake up disoriented, which ruins my evening and I will most definitely have serious trouble falling asleep at night. Just not worth it for me!

 

[yssie]

I'm a bad napper.

My naps always wind up lasting "just another ten minutes"... until it's three hours later and I'm later for whatever it was I had planned... So much as I do love my sleep, I just don't dare try!

 

[TravelingGal]

No kids here, but I can't remember the last time I had a nap. I'm not much of a sleeper, anyway, I always feel like I'm missing out on something else I could be doing.

I was just reading some survey results about how more people have started napping in the past year. Apparently, as a society, we are getting tired!

This is exactly how I feel, but we are clearly outnumbered! A few of my family members and friends LOVE naps and will nap every day if they can. I actually hate to nap because I always wake up feeling AWFUL and like I wasted the day.

I'm a night person, so it actually helps me be even more productive at night!

But what I've found is that a long nap does make me feel groggy. Recently I've tried the power nap, setting my alarm for 30 minutes, and assuming it will take me a few minutes to fall asleep. I found that when I wake up after 20 minutes, I'm WIDE awake, energetic and ready to go. I usually go workout soon after that, and it's not too much of a nap where I'm up all hours of the night. Now I don't even have to set an alarm...I just wake up after 20 minutes. This is assuming I haven't had lack of sleep the night before, as then I'm just tired and can sleep forever.

The 20 min power nap is awesome. It does everything a nap should do, without wasting a lot of time.

 

[Haven]

I can't imagine why anyone would care if someone decides to nap... or not. I'm pretty sure there are more things in the world to worry about.

Sounds like somebody needs a nap.

 

[LadyBlue]

I don't like to nap. I feel it cuts my day. But that may change when I have kids. I'm not against other people napping. But, I don't like when my husband naps because I feel bored

 

[iheartscience]

I can't imagine why anyone would care if someone decides to nap... or not. I'm pretty sure there are more things in the world to worry about.

Sounds like somebody needs a nap.

SNORT. Agreed!

 

[tyty333]

I love to nap and would do it every day if I had the time. Now I only manage to squeeze in 3 or 4 a week which isnt too bad!

 

[iheartscience]

No kids here, but I can't remember the last time I had a nap. I'm not much of a sleeper, anyway, I always feel like I'm missing out on something else I could be doing.

I was just reading some survey results about how more people have started napping in the past year. Apparently, as a society, we are getting tired!

This is exactly how I feel, but we are clearly outnumbered! A few of my family members and friends LOVE naps and will nap every day if they can. I actually hate to nap because I always wake up feeling AWFUL and like I wasted the day.

I'm a night person, so it actually helps me be even more productive at night!

But what I've found is that a long nap does make me feel groggy. Recently I've tried the power nap, setting my alarm for 30 minutes, and assuming it will take me a few minutes to fall asleep. I found that when I wake up after 20 minutes, I'm WIDE awake, energetic and ready to go. I usually go workout soon after that, and it's not too much of a nap where I'm up all hours of the night. Now I don't even have to set an alarm...I just wake up after 20 minutes. This is assuming I haven't had lack of sleep the night before, as then I'm just tired and can sleep forever.

The 20 min power nap is awesome. It does everything a nap should do, without wasting a lot of time.

You make a persuasive case, TGal...next time I need a nap I'm trying the 20 minute power nap. And I'm going to suggest that to my nap-loving family members, too! (COUGH twin sis and husband COUGH)

 

[TravelingGal]

No kids here, but I can't remember the last time I had a nap. I'm not much of a sleeper, anyway, I always feel like I'm missing out on something else I could be doing.

I was just reading some survey results about how more people have started napping in the past year. Apparently, as a society, we are getting tired!

This is exactly how I feel, but we are clearly outnumbered! A few of my family members and friends LOVE naps and will nap every day if they can. I actually hate to nap because I always wake up feeling AWFUL and like I wasted the day.

I'm a night person, so it actually helps me be even more productive at night!

But what I've found is that a long nap does make me feel groggy. Recently I've tried the power nap, setting my alarm for 30 minutes, and assuming it will take me a few minutes to fall asleep. I found that when I wake up after 20 minutes, I'm WIDE awake, energetic and ready to go. I usually go workout soon after that, and it's not too much of a nap where I'm up all hours of the night. Now I don't even have to set an alarm...I just wake up after 20 minutes. This is assuming I haven't had lack of sleep the night before, as then I'm just tired and can sleep forever.

The 20 min power nap is awesome. It does everything a nap should do, without wasting a lot of time.

You make a persuasive case, TGal...next time I need a nap I'm trying the 20 minute power nap. And I'm going to suggest that to my nap-loving family members, too! (COUGH twin sis and husband COUGH)

thing2, I think the difference is whether one is looking to rejuvenate, or whether one wants to sleep because one LOVES the act of sleeping. I sometimes fall into the latter category. With all the kid, hubby and work craziness, it's an escape and I miss the act of being able to laze in bed. But as I said, for me that's not the best for getting that extra burst of energy that takes me through the rest of the day. I'm lethargic because I've been lazy.

A nap is just that...a nap. It should be short in duration. Otherwise you're simply sleeping when the sun is out!

 

[mousey]

I love a nap. You know that time when you kind of wake up, but then you realize you can go back to sleep? That is my favourite time of the day and night. As a grad student I get to spend quite a bit of time napping. One of my first thoughts on getting a job was 'does this mean I can't nap anymore'? My brother really gives out to me for napping during the day- he sees it as a sign of depression- I see it as a sign of laziness (and IMO there's nought wrong w a little laziness).

 

[D&T]

No kids here, but I can't remember the last time I had a nap. I'm not much of a sleeper, anyway, I always feel like I'm missing out on something else I could be doing.I was just reading some survey results about how more people have started napping in the past year. Apparently, as a society, we are getting tired!

I used to be this way when I was single and out of college, but now that I have kids I nap only on the weekends (I work full time) when my kids nap (yep my five year old likes her weekend naps too I have a private office, and I really want to take naps, but for some reason, I just can't myself to do it, in fear that I'll be woken up by a coworker three hours later in a puddle of drool or something

 

[Strawdermangrl]

Hell.Yeah.

I love a Sunday on the couch with the History channel in the background just in and out of sleep. That, to me and my SO, is heaven.

That pretty much sums up my take.