Mothers get grouchy because kids keep them hopping on their feet all day. If done correctly, taking regular day-time naps will give you an enormous surge of energy and make you feel d so you can wake up earlier.
This is not such a strange concept. In many siesta countries (such as Spain and Mexico), taking a regular mid-afternoon nap is a normal part of the culture. There is wisdom behind this approach to life. The key is to not sleep longer than forty-five to fifty minutes as this is how long it takes for most people to accomplish one sleep cycle.
During the first sleep cycle, our body enters deep sleep for the longest period of time, it's at this point that our body temperature begins to drop really low, our respiration, heart rate and blood pressure decreases.
If you've ev er been woken up out of 'deep sleep', you know that it's almost impossible to shake ourselves out of it. Waking up during or after a major deep sleep phase makes you feel lethargic, slow, and disoriented.
It takes about 45 minutes to enter the first deep sleep phase. If you limit your nap to 45 minutes, you will sleep mainly in Stage 2 sleep, which is the stage of sleep that is primarily concerned with restoring our physical energy. If you sleep any longer and are suddenly awakened you may feel too groggy to go on as you are entering stages of sleep that more have to do with the mind.
Yet another danger of entering deep sleep during the day is putting your body temperature rhythm out of whack, it may be difficult for you to go to sleep later on in the night. You may also have difficulty sleeping deeply at night, which will have negative consequences for the day ahead, such as poor energy, headaches and nausea.
The correct way to take naps is to keep them short and to take them at the same time every day.Taking irregular naps is one way that sleeping disorders develop. If you feel tired after a nap that is your cue to shorten, not lengthen the nap by a few minutes.
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If you have never napped before, you are in for a treat. You will be surprised at how energized you feel for the rest of the day when you do take one! Limit the nap to 45 minutes, if you still feel tired after the nap, then shorten the nap time. The amount of time required to enter deep sleep varies from person to person so once again finding your personal threshold for achieving quality sleep can take time and patience. However most people achieve great success by simply setting a gentle alarm for 50 minutes!