Content

• Steps
• Part 1 of 3: Choose a Suitable Location
• Part 2 of 3: Choose your sleep duration
• Part 3 of 3: Get the Most Out of Your Daytime Sleep
• Tips
• Warnings
• What do you need

A short nap during the day can help combat sleepiness, invigorate and recharge. If you need to take a nap, do it right to wake up refreshed, not even more sleepy.

Steps

Part 1 of 3: Choose a Suitable Location

1. 1 Find a suitable place to sleep. To get the most out of your sleep, you need a quiet, quiet place where you won't be disturbed.
   • Sleep at work... In a study by the National Sleep Organization (USA), it was found that approximately 30% of people are allowed to sleep at work, and some employers even set aside special places for this. If you don't like naps at work, you can take a nap in your car.
   • Sleep on the road... If you sit behind the wheel of a car, stop at the designated parking space. Don't just stop at the side of the road. Be sure to turn off the engine and apply the handbrake. At night, park in a well-lit and sufficiently crowded area and close your car doors.
   • Sleep at school or college... If you have the time and opportunity, try taking a nap in the library. This is usually the quietest place. If you go to college by car, you can sleep in it.
2. 2 Choose a dark room. In the dark, you can fall asleep faster.If you can't find a dark room, wear a sleep mask or sunglasses to dim the light.
3. 3 Make sure the room is not too cold or hot. Sleep in a comfortable environment, so find a location that is cool enough. Typically, a temperature around 18 ° C is best for sleeping.
   • If the room is cold, cover yourself with a blanket or wear a comfortable jacket. If it's too warm in there, try turning on a fan or air conditioner.
4. 4 Listen to sleep-assisted recordings. There are many videos, audio recordings, and various applications to help you relax before bed. They can be found on the Internet and downloaded to a mobile phone or tablet.
   • If you use a mobile phone before going to bed, set it to airplane mode so that you will not be disturbed by calls and beeps.
5. 5 Play soothing music. Relaxing music will help you create the right mood. If music distracts you, try using white noise. If you are trying to fall asleep in a car, you can turn on the radio and place it between stations to create white noise.

Part 2 of 3: Choose your sleep duration

1. 1 Decide how long you are going to sleep. Strictly speaking, naps should last between 10 and 30 minutes. However, a shorter or, on the contrary, prolonged sleep also has its advantages. Decide how long you are going to sleep and stick to that time.
2. 2 Take a 2-5 minute nap. If you are short on time and sleepy so much that you can’t do your own thing, try taking a 2–5 minute nap (called a “nano sleep”) to invigorate.
3. 3 Take a 5-12 minute nap. Sleeping for 5-12 minutes will help you invigorate, increase stamina and performance. This is the so-called "mini-sleep".
4. 4 Get 20 minutes of sleep. This is roughly the length that many people have in mind when they talk about daytime relaxation, and is ideal for most people. Such sleep helps not only to relax and invigorate, but also to clear the brain of unnecessary information stored in short-term memory, and improve muscle memory.
   • Resting for 20 minutes helps you take advantage of the first two of the five stages of your sleep cycle. These two stages occur in the first twenty minutes of sleep. In addition to making you feel refreshed and refreshed, electrical signals in the nervous system will strengthen the connections between neurons that are involved in muscle memory, which will make your brain work faster and more accurately.
   • A nap is especially useful if you are trying to memorize a lot of important information (for example, before an exam).
5. 5 Get 50 to 90 minutes of sleep. This extended daytime sleep helps to achieve the stage of slow-wave (deep) sleep. This means that you have time to go through a full sleep cycle.
   • If you have time and are very tired of physical and mental stress (for example, after a night shift), this sleep will give you enough time to recover.
6. 6 Consider the effects of 30 minutes or more of naps. Although prolonged sleep has its benefits, you are more likely to experience increased sleepiness and lethargy (called "sleep inertia") after sleeping.

Part 3 of 3: Get the Most Out of Your Daytime Sleep

1. 1 Unplug your cell phone and anything else that might distract you. If you are using your phone as an alarm clock, set the airplane mode so that calls and beeps will not interfere with you.
   • If you can't get rid of the ambient noise, or if your ears are ringing, try wearing headphones and playing quiet, relaxing music. You can also use ear plugs.
2. 2 If you are taking a nap at work, put a Do Not Disturb sign on your door. Mark when you will be available again. As a result, your coworkers won't get in your way.
3. 3 Consume caffeine right before bed. This may seem counterintuitive, since caffeine is a powerful stimulant, but its effect will not appear immediately, especially if you are going to sleep no more than 30 minutes. The caffeine must pass through the gastrointestinal tract and be absorbed, which takes up to 45 minutes. Try consuming 200 milligrams of caffeine just before 20 minutes of sleep to wake up refreshed and energized.
   • However, caffeine should not be used in the late afternoon, or it will be more difficult for you to fall asleep when it’s time to go to bed. Do not use it if you are trying to quit caffeine.
4. 4 Set your alarm. After drinking your coffee (green tea, caffeinated energy jelly, or something else), set an alarm to wake up after a specific time. This will help you relax, as you will not think about oversleeping.
   • Consider how long it takes you to fall asleep. If you want to wake up after 20 minutes and usually fall asleep after about five minutes, set your alarm to ring after 25 minutes. If you fall asleep very quickly, you can add as little as 1-2 minutes to your planned sleep time.
   • If you are the type of person who tends to turn off the ringer to get a little more sleep, place an alarm at the far end of the room (or as far away in the car as possible) so that it is not so easy for you to reach it.
5. 5 Close your eyes and relax. This can be done immediately after you consume caffeine. If you're not using caffeine, just sit back and turn on the alarm.
6. 6 Try exercise 4-7-8 to fall asleep faster. If you find it difficult to fall asleep, try the following exercise: close your eyes and exhale all the way. Then inhale slowly (count to four). Hold your breath and count to seven. Then make a whooshing sound and exhale through your mouth for a count of eight. Inhale the air again and repeat the exercise 3-4 times. All this will take about 60 seconds and will help you fall asleep faster.
   • You can also try to get rid of all thoughts. Concentrate on your breathing. It is very similar to meditation and helps you relax and fall asleep faster.
   • Try to count slowly from 100 in reverse order. If you forget which number you left off, just start counting from 100 again. This will help you distract yourself from thoughts that are interfering with sleep.
   • You can also use special sleep-inducing soundtracks (you can buy them in the store or find them on the Internet).
7. 7 Don't open your eyes. Even if you are unable to sleep, continue lying with your eyes closed and meditate. Even though you won't sleep, your brain will get some rest. In addition, your body will gradually get used to such regular rest (for example, every day after lunch), and over time you will fall asleep more easily.
8. 8 Get up as soon as the alarm rings. Resist the temptation to sleep a little more. Ideally, you will wake up refreshed and refreshed, but sometimes you want to sleep a little longer. Do not give in to this desire, otherwise you can disrupt the daily routine, and next time you will feel sleepy and lethargic.
   • Warm up. To slightly speed up your heart rate, jump or do some push-ups from the floor. You can also run a little on the spot.
   • Wash your face and part the curtains or turn on the lights to wake up completely and ward off sleepiness.

Tips

• Sleeping well into the evening can disrupt your daily routine and make you feel sleep deprived the next morning.
• Force yourself to wake up! Even if you want to get some more sleep, you should get up and go about your business. Naps too long breaks your daily routine, so keep it short and refreshing!
• Too much sleep during the day has a detrimental effect on night sleep. Remember this.
• Try to rest at the same time every day to work out a specific regimen.
• Try taking a nap instead of caffeine, or taking caffeine just before bedtime, as described above. Keep in mind that caffeine on its own is not as refreshing as a short nap, especially in high doses.
• Choose the nap time that works best for you! Some people feel best after 20 minutes of sleep, while others need 30 minutes to fully rest.
• If you feel sleepy, indulge in a little nap.
• Try playing special sleep-inducing soundtracks (like Power Nap). They help the brain fall into deep and REM sleep and rest properly in as little as 20 minutes.
• If you are not in a good mood, you can cry before going to bed - sometimes it helps to distract from sad thoughts and fall asleep faster.
• Remember that getting some naps during the day can help improve performance. Some deny themselves such a dream, as they consider it a sign of laziness, but many prominent people and athletes practice it. During the day, Leonardo da Vinci, Albert Einstein and Thomas Edison slept.

Warnings

• Found in sugary sodas, coffee, tea, and so-called "energy" drinks, caffeine is a powerful stimulant and often addictive. Excessive consumption of caffeine can lead to addiction and negatively affect the sleep cycle. Therefore, try to keep your caffeine intake to a minimum.
• Daytime sleep helps you to rest only to a certain extent; it cannot replace a full night's sleep. If you suffer from insomnia, first of all you need to get rid of it so that you can then be able to take full advantage of the daytime sleep.
• If you don't sleep well at night, feel free to sleep during the day to maintain your strength. At the same time, do not sleep long during the day, so as not to disrupt the entire sleep pattern.

What do you need

• Suitable place for sleeping
• Alarm
• Caffeine (optional)
• Relaxing music (optional)
• Sleep mask (optional)
• Earplugs (optional)