Taking a nap for half an hour after dinner is an impossible dream for most adults. Although experts in unison say: it is useful to sleep during the day. It improves memory and creativity.
Since the late 1990s, psychologist Bill Anthony, director of the Center for Psychiatric Rehabilitation at Harvard University, has been studying the benefits of daytime naps. He found that a 20-minute siesta promotes a “reboot” of brain cells, resulting in improved memory and a person more effectively absorbs new data. Other studies claim that daytime sleep speeds up mental activity by 20%.
It is no coincidence that many geniuses from Archimedes and Isaac Newton to Victor Hugo and André Gide practiced afternoon naps. As they say, they could afford it. We can only envy them.
Siesta is a tradition of hot countries. The word itself comes from the Latin “sexta”, that is, “sixth”. In this case, it means the sixth hour of the day. It is believed that it is six hours after waking up that we want to fall asleep again.
Michel Tyberg, a neurologist at the Sleep Research Center in Toulouse, confirms: “Human beings are genetically programmed to fall asleep at 14-15 pm. At this time, attention decreases, the eyelids begin to stick together, the head becomes heavier. Some nod off, others begin to think worse.
“Afternoon is the peak of traffic accidents,” warns Anne-Marie Malabre, a biologist at the Paris Science Museum “Palace of Discovery” and curator of the exhibition “Sleep, the art of living.”
A sign of weakness or maturity?
We perceive the desire to take a nap during the day as a small weakness. We try not to react to it and cheer up in different ways. However, experts say that trying to drive away drowsiness with coffee is going against nature. The brain will repeat the signal a little later.
“Every hour and a half, the so-called “sleep window” opens – an interval of 1-2 minutes when it is easiest for a person to fall asleep,” explains Michel Tyberg. — This archaic rhythm is inherent in us by nature. Primitive man slept little, but often. In order not to become the prey of wild animals, it was impossible to stay in one place for a long time.
Leonardo da Vinci also practiced polyphasic sleep – 15 minutes every two hours. Perhaps this was the secret of his performance.
Lucille Garma, a neuropsychiatrist in France, argues that the ability to enjoy and benefit from daytime sleep is a sign of maturity: “A person becomes an adult when he begins to love daytime sleep. After all, small children are forced to sleep. And in adolescence, most prefer to go to bed late and wake up late.”
Nevertheless, you should not abuse daytime sleep – this can cause nighttime insomnia or even depression. So you need to limit yourself to 20-30 minutes.
Sleep according to the rules and without
So, sleeping during the day is natural and healthy. But unfortunately, this pleasure is available only to those who work from home – it is easy to get a reprimand for sleeping in the office. But in China and Japan, employers, on the contrary, set aside time for a midday nap, after which the employee begins to work more efficiently. Most large companies provide special lounges.
In the American offices of Facebook and Google went even further: they installed capsules for meditation
Just 20 minutes – that’s how long one session lasts – helps to restore peace of mind and fill the body with energy. The relaxation effect is achieved through color therapy, soothing melodies and exposure to microcrystalline plates that block harmful electromagnetic waves.
In Moscow, such a capsule has recently appeared in the Mahash Spa salon of the InterContinental hotel on Tverskaya. So the employees of the nearest offices can well afford to take a nap there during the day.
Two minute pause
In general, to reboot the brain, it is enough to take a nap for just 2 minutes. You can even in the office chair. Do the preparatory work: turn off the monitor, turn off the phone. If you have a separate office, close the blinds and turn off the lights. If not, just close your eyes.
You can put some documents in front of you, as if you are carefully studying them and thinking.
Mentally say to yourself, “I want to take a break and I can afford to completely disconnect from my work. And then I can do even better.”
Relax your face, arms and legs. Imagine some pleasant moment. For example, you are lying in a sun lounger on the beach or sitting at home in your favorite chair. Watch your breath. Feel how with each breath you are filled with fresh strength and energy, and with each exhalation, fatigue, tension, anxiety and care leave you.
Perform this exercise, focusing on a predetermined time or on your feelings.
If you repeat it regularly, you will soon learn to make the most of these two minutes. And daytime sleepiness will recede without coffee and energy drinks.