66. Nap Time!

I believe it is universally accepted that when we become adults we long for the days when we were told to take naps. Ah, those were the days... and we were foolish enough to fight it. Now that we're all grown up we wish we slept more. Studies show that on average 40% of people don't get enough rest. Many countries all over the world combat this by adopting the Spanish custom of the siesta! If only we could understand that. For today's gift, I'm going to try to incorporate some much needed rest into my sleep deprived schedule. While I do that, check out some of the many napping benefits I've found!

• Increase your on-the-job alertness by 100 percent
• Sharpen your thinking so you make more accurate judgments and better decisions
• Ramp up your productivity
• Regenerate skin cells so you look younger
• Help you lose weight by altering metabolism and shifting chemicals that affect appetite
• Reduce your risk of heart attack, stroke, irregular heartbeat, high blood pressure, and other cardiovascular problems
• Lift your mood by bathing your brain in the neurotransmitter serotonin
• Speed up your ability to perform motor tasks, like typing, operating machinery, even swimming
• Improve your accuracy—in everything
• Improve the way your body processes carbs, which reduces your risk of diabetes
• Sharpen your senses so you take in what's important in your environment—and screen out the 24-hour culture chatter that surrounds us
• Put your brain into its creative gear so you can come up with fresh ideas
• Trigger a naturally occurring hormone that blocks the destructive chemicals produced by stress
• Boost your ability to learn something new—and, better yet, remember it
• Zap the need for drugs like caffeine and alcohol to manipulate your mood and energy level
• Relieve migraines
• Improve your nighttime sleep by eliminating that wired feeling and thus shutting off the brain chatter
• Make you feel good all over

If you're like me, you might have trouble trying to take naps and still have any semblance of a normal sleeping pattern. If this has been problematic for you in the past, you might be able to use some tips from sleep expert Dr. Sara Mednick:

1. The first consideration is psychological: Recognize that you’re not being lazy; napping will make you more productive and more alert after you wake up.
2. Try to nap in the morning or just after lunch; human circadian rhythms make late afternoons a more likely time to fall into deep (slow-wave) sleep, which will leave you groggy.
3. Avoid consuming large quantities of caffeine as well as foods that are heavy in fat and sugar, which meddle with a person’s ability to fall asleep.
4. Instead, in the hour or two before your nap time, eat foods high in calcium and protein, which promote sleep.
5. Find a clean, quiet place where passersby and phones won’t disturb you.
6. Try to darken your nap zone, or wear an eyeshade. Darkness stimulates melatonin, the sleep- inducing hormone.
7. Remember that body temperature drops when you fall asleep. Raise the room temperature or use a blanket.



But don't nap on benches.
They're already claimed.

8. Once you are relaxed and in position to fall asleep, set your alarm for the desired duration.

I say do whatever you can to work in a nap (or at least a full night's sleep). The world will be a better place for it - and so will you! Who knows - I may even start shopping for a hammock. What's your favorite way to nap?