Lively Women

Naps Are So Underrated!

by Kristen King on January 7th, 2007

It’s been a quiet Sunday here at LivelyWomen.com. On this quiet Sunday, I got up early for breakfast (serving my physical needs), headed out to my congregation meeting (serving my spiritual need), came home for some time with hubby and a visit to the property we’re trying to purchase for our dream home (emotional and psychological needs), and then took a two-hour nap because I literally could not keep my eyes open on the way home from the land (physical again). I’m glad I did all of these things, but guess which one I’m most glad about. Yup, the nap. I feel exponentially better, and I’m really, really glad I just listened to what my body was telling me and handled it.

If you’re anything like me, some days you just Can. Not. Get. Going. So you spend the whole day in a fog, feeling cranky and maybe a little sick, and fall into bed at night with the certainty that you Got. Nothing. Done. All. Day. If you’re anything like me, you hate those days. There are a lot of long-term solutions to help prevent them, but there’s one short-term solution to get you through them with a little more peace and productivity: Take a nap.

According to Elizabeth Scott, guide to Stress Management at About.com,

“…Research shows that you can make yourself more alert reduce stress and improve cognitive functioning with a nap. Mid-day sleep, or a ‘power nap’, means more patience, less stress, better reaction time, increased learning, more efficiency and better health.”

Read the whole article to get some tips for getting the most out of napping.

How would your day-to-day life improve if you were more patient, less stressed, more alert, better able to learn and work efficiently, and healthier? How would your life improve overall? And what are you going to do about it this week?

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POSTED IN: Body, Encouragement, Energize Me, Health, Stress, Wellness