by We are big supporters of the power nap. We know sleep heals. We believe you can make up on missed sleep even if it kills you.
When research confirms the benefits of napping, we want to take a quick shut-eye break to celebrate:
It turns out that toddlers are not the only ones who do better after an afternoon nap. New research has found that young adults who slept for 90 minutes after lunch raised their learning power, their memory apparently primed to absorb new facts.
Other studies have indicated that sleep helps consolidate memories after cramming, but the new study suggests that sleep can actually restore the ability to learn.
Universities and colleges need to provide formal, private, nap spaces for students and faculty and then build mandatory sleep windows into every schedule.
We already have temporary nap spaces: Student lounges, library tables and the campus green — but why should we have to search for a safe and comfortable place to rest our eyes and regain our capacity to learn?
It is in the university’s best interest to sponsor and support the regeneration of eager minds through a protected golden slumber.
I love a good nap. The only down side is sometimes I wake up from a nap and am confused. What day is it?
Then again, sometimes I wake up from sleeping and have had such an intense dream that I don’t know who I am for a minute.
Those are both signs of excellent naps! That’s why we need a certain “wake up” period to get our bearings and to realize where we are — a nap isn’t just a head down/head up event. It’s the preparation of the mind for dreaming and then re-anchoring in the real world.