Devoted nap-takers explain the benefits of sleeping on the job
People who make a habit of sleeping on the job comprise a secret society of sorts within the U.S. labor force. Inspired by famous power nappers Winston Churchill and Albert Einstein, today's committed nap-takers often sneak in short rest breaks because they think the practice will improve their cognitive performance but still carries a stigma.
Multiple studies have extolled the benefits of napping, such as enhanced memory and focus. A mid-afternoon siesta is the norm in parts of Spain and Italy. In China and Japan, nodding off is encouraged since working to the point of exhaustion is seen as a display of dedication, according to a study in the journal Sleep.
Yet it's hard to catch a few z's during regular business hours in the United States, where people who nap can be viewed as lazy. The federal government even bans sleeping in its buildings while at work, except in rare circumstances.
Individuals who are willing and able to challenge the status quo are becoming less hesitant to describe the payoffs of taking a dose of microsleep. Marvin Stockwell, the founder of PR firm Champion the Cause, takes short naps several times a week.
'They rejuvenate me in a way that I'm exponentially more useful and constructive and creative on the other side of a nap than I am when I'm forcing myself to gut through being tired,' Stockwell said.
The art of napping
Sleep is as important to good health as diet and exercise, but too many people don't get enough of it, according to James Rowley, program director of the Sleep Medicine Fellowship at Rush University Medical Center.
'A lot of it has to do with electronics. It used to be TVs, but now cellphones are probably the biggest culprit. People just take them to bed with them and watch,' Rowley said.'
Napping isn't common in academia, where there's constant pressure to publish, but University of Southern California lecturer Julianna Kirschner fits in daytime naps when she can. Kirschner studies social media, which she says is designed to deliver a dopamine rush to the brain. Viewers lose track of time on the platforms, interrupting sleep. Kirschner says she isn't immune to this problem — hence, her occasional need to nap.
The key to effective napping is to keep the snooze sessions short, Rowley said. Short naps can be restorative and are more likely to leave you more alert, he said.
'Most people don't realize naps should be in the 15- to 20-minute range,' Rowley said. 'Anything longer, and you can have problems with sleep inertia, difficulty waking up, and you're groggy.'
Individuals who find themselves consistently relying on naps to make up for inadequate sleep should probably also examine their bedtime habits, he said.
A matter of timing
Mid-afternoon is the ideal time for a nap because it coincides with a natural circadian dip, while napping after 6 p.m. may interfere with nocturnal sleep for those who work during daylight hours, said Michael Chee, director of the Centre for Sleep and Cognition at the National University of Singapore..
'Any duration of nap, you will feel recharged. It's a relief valve. There are clear cognitive benefits,' Chee said.
A review of napping studies suggests that 30 minutes is the optimal nap length in terms of practicality and benefits, said Ruth Leong, a research fellow at the Singapore center.
'When people nap for too long, it may not be a sustainable practice, and also, really long naps that cross the two-hour mark affect nighttime sleep,' Leong said.
Experts recommend setting an alarm for 20 to 30 minutes, which gives nappers a few minutes to fall asleep.
But even a six-minute nap can be restorative and improve learning, said Valentin Dragoi, scientific director of the Center for Neural Systems Restoration, a research and treatment facility run by Houston Methodist hospital and Rice University.
Bucking the trend
While workplace dozing is uncommon in the U.S., some companies and managers encourage it. Will Bryk, founder of AI search startup Exa, swears by 20-minute power naps and ordered two sleeping pods for employees to use in his company's San Francisco office.
Ice cream maker Ben & Jerry's has had a nap room in its Vermont headquarters for a couple of decades, and a handful of employees use it, company spokesman Sean Greenwood said. 'Employees who feel taken care of are much more likely to use this responsibly,' he said.
Arianna Huffington, the celebrity author who co-founded news website Huffington Post, became an advocate of a good night's sleep and occasional naps after she collapsed from exhaustion in 2007. She installed a nap room at her former company, now called HuffPo, and at Thrive Global, a wellness technology company where she serves as founder and CEO.
'If people have been up all night because of a sick child or a delayed flight, if they have the opportunity to nap, ... then they will be much more productive and creative for the rest of the day instead of dragging themselves or trying to boost their energy through multiple coffee or cinnamon buns,' Huffington said in an email.
Kirsten Perez, 33, is a devoted napper. She used to use her lunch break at work to catch a few winks in her car. When she got her own office, she closed the door for an afternoon siesta while sitting at her desk.
Nowadays, working from home as a marketing manager at Nvidia, the Atlanta resident usually takes her daily nap in bed. She sets an alarm for 15 minutes, falls asleep within a minute and wakes up 30 seconds before the alarm rings.
'I can tell when my reasoning, my mood are dropping, just kind of feeling the drag of the day,' Perez said. In those situations, she asks herself, ''Do I have a chunk of time in the next hour or so?' And then I'll figure out when I can find 15 minutes and find myself horizontal.'
Creating space for sleep
Naps are accepted and even a necessity in some occupations. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention encourages naps for nurses working night shifts. But many nurses can't sleep at the hospitals where they work because they're too busy and aren't given access to beds.
Nurses 'regularly struggle to have sufficient time to use the bathroom or go outside for fresh air, no less take a nap,' Michelle Morris, spokesperson for the National Nurses United union, said.
Some companies are trying to fill the void. Inspired by his mother who worked as a nurse, Neil Wong founded Nap York, which offers sleeping pods in Manhattan and Queens that can be rented for about $27 an hour.
His regular customers include super-commuters, UPS drivers, a security guard who works two full-time jobs, and doctors who work at nearby hospitals. Nap York also gives half-off prices to essential workers such as police officers, firefighters and emergency medical service personnel.
'In this society, you really only have two place to sleep: you have your bed at home and you have a hotel room you can probably get for 100 bucks,' Wong said. 'There's really no third space that's quiet, that provides some privacy, where you can also rest.'
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Associated Press
a few seconds ago
- Associated Press
Taliban say efforts to release a British couple from Afghan prison not yet complete
ISLAMABAD (AP) — The Taliban said Wednesday that efforts to free a British couple from an Afghan prison are not yet complete and denied that their rights were being violated despite concerns from their families and U.N. officials. Peter and Barbie Reynolds, who are in their 70s, were arrested in early February after being taken from their home in central Bamiyan province to the capital, Kabul. The husband and wife run an organization that provides education and training programs. Family members in the U.K. have said they are being mistreated and held on undisclosed charges. U.N. human rights experts on Monday called for the couple's release, warning their physical and mental health was deteriorating rapidly and that they were at risk of irreparable harm or even death. The Taliban's Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi rejected concerns about rights violations. 'They are in constant contact with their families,' Muttaqi told reporters at a media briefing in Kabul. 'Consular services are available. Efforts are underway to secure their release. These steps have not yet been completed. Their human rights are being respected. They are being given full access to treatment, contact and accommodation.' He did not say what steps were being taken to secure their release. According to the U.N. experts, the couple's spell in detention included time in a maximum-security facility and later in underground cells, without sunlight, before being moved to above-ground cells at the General Directorate of Intelligence in Kabul. Peter needs heart medication and, during his detention, has had two eye infections and intermittent tremors in his head and down his left arm. He recently collapsed, the experts added, while Barbie suffers from anaemia and remains weak. Officials from the U.K. Foreign Ministry visited the couple on July 17, family members said. Peter and Barbie have no bed or furniture and sleep on a mattress on the floor, the family said in a statement Sunday. Peter's face is red, peeling and bleeding, likely due to the return of skin cancer that urgently needs removing. 'We, their four adult children, have written privately to the Taliban leadership twice, pleading for them to uphold their beliefs of compassion, mercy, fairness, and human dignity,' the children added.
Hamilton Spectator
11 hours ago
- Hamilton Spectator
US organ donation system faces scrutiny and changes after reports of disturbing near-misses
WASHINGTON (AP) — The U.S. is developing new safeguards for the organ transplant system after a government investigation found a Kentucky group continued preparations for organ donation by some patients who showed signs of life, officials told Congress Tuesday. While the organ removals were canceled, near misses that some lawmakers called horrifying should never happen. A House subcommittee asked how to repair trust in the transplant network for potential organ donors and families — some of whom have opted out of donor registries after these cases were publicized. 'We have to get this right,' said Rep. Brett Guthrie, a Kentucky Republican who chairs the Energy and Commerce Committee and whose mother died waiting for a liver transplant. 'Hopefully people will walk away today knowing we need to address issues but still confident that they can give life,' Guthrie said, adding that he will remain a registered organ donor. The hearing came after a federal investigation began last fall into allegations that a Kentucky donation group pressured a hospital in 2021 to proceed with plans to withdraw life support and retrieve organs from a man despite signs that he might be waking up from his drug overdose. That surgery never happened after a doctor noticed him moving and moaning while being transported to the operating room — and the man survived. Lawmakers stressed most organ donations proceed appropriately and save tens of thousands of lives a year. But the federal probe – concluded in March but only made public ahead of Tuesday's hearing — cited a 'concerning pattern of risk' in dozens of other cases involving the Kentucky group's initial planning to recover someone's organs. The report said some should have been stopped or reassessed earlier, and mostly involved small or rural hospitals with less experience in caring for potential organ donors. The Kentucky organ procurement organization, or OPO, has made changes and the national transplant network is working on additional steps. But notably absent Tuesday was any testimony from hospitals – whose doctors must independently determine a patient is dead before donation groups are allowed to retrieve organs. Here's a look at how the nation's transplant system works. There's a dire need for organ donation More than 100,000 people are on the U.S. transplant list and about 13 a day die waiting, according to the Organ Procurement and Transplantation Network. Only about 1% of deaths occur in a way that allows someone to even be considered for organ donation . Most people declared dead in a hospital will quickly be transferred to a funeral home or morgue instead. How the U.S. organ transplant system is set up Several groups are involved in every transplant: the hospital caring for someone dead or dying; the 55 OPOs that coordinate recovery of organs and help match them to patients on the waiting list; and transplant centers that decide if an organ is the right fit for their patients. Adding to the complexity, two government agencies — HRSA, the Health Resources and Services Administration, and the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services — share regulatory oversight of different parts of the donation and transplant process. How deceased donation works Most organ donors are brain-dead – when testing determines someone has no brain function after a catastrophic injury. The body is left on a ventilator to support the organs until they can be retrieved. But increasingly organs are donated after circulatory death, called DCD – when people die because their heart stops. It usually happens when doctors determine someone has a nonsurvivable injury and the family withdraws life support. Donation groups don't provide hands-on patient care Hospitals are required to alert their area OPO to every potential donor who is declared brain-dead or once the decision to withdraw life support is made. The OPOs by law can't participate in that decision and 'we are not even in the room at that time,' said Barry Massa of Kentucky's Network for Hope. During the following days of preparation, hospital employees continue caring for the patient – while the donation team talks with the family about the process, gathers hospital records showing the patient is eligible, requests tests of organ quality, and make arrangements with transplant centers to use them. Once the hospital withdraws life support and the heart stops beating there's a mandatory wait – five minutes – to be sure it won't restart. When the doctor declares death, the organ retrieval process can begin. Organs are only considered usable if death occurs relatively quickly, usually up to about two hours. Sometimes that takes much longer and thus the organs can't be used – and HRSA's Dr. Raymond Lynch told Congress that doesn't necessarily mean anything was done wrong. Still, he said HRSA is investigating reports of possible mistakes elsewhere. 'This is a technically demanding form of care' that requires 'good collaboration between the OPO and the hospital,' he said. What happens next At issue is how doctors are sure when it's time to withdraw life support from a dying patient — and the delicate balance of how OPOs interact with hospital staff in preparing for donation once death occurs. In May, HRSA quietly ordered the U.S. transplant network to oversee improvements at the Kentucky OPO and to develop new national policies making clear that anyone – family, hospital staff or organ donation staff – can call for a pause in donation preparations any time there are concerns about the patient's eligibility. Lynch said the government now wants more proactive collaboration from OPOs to give hospital staff 'a clear understanding' of when to at least temporarily halt and reevaluate a potential donor if their health status changes. Kentucky's Massa said his group only received HRSA's reports this week – but that after learning about last fall's allegations, it made some changes. Massa said every hospital doctor and nurse now gets a checklist on caring for potential donors and how to pause when concerns are raised — and anyone can anonymously report complaints. ___ The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute's Department of Science Education and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content.
Forbes
14 hours ago
- Forbes
What Sleep Training A Baby Can Teach Parents About Adult Sleep
Learn how to sleep like a baby As a single working mom-to-be, I decided that the key to my future maternal happiness was to learn everything I could about baby sleep while I was still pregnant. I was determined to have a great little sleeper and – thanks to a little luck and a lot of research – I succeeded. What began as a baby-centered project soon revealed a surprising truth: I was the one who needed sleep training. While my two-month-old newborn peacefully slept through the night, I was up at 3 AM, tossing and turning, wondering if could learn to sleep like a baby. I had always had some sleep struggles; it generally took me a long time to fall asleep and I would wake frequently throughout the night. I had half-heartedly tried some standard sleep advice then quickly abandoned the techniques. But, after seeing the success in helping my daughter develop good sleep habits, I realized that with more consistency, those same methods might work on me, too. The CDC recommends at least 7 hours each day for adults, yet over one-third of American adults get less than the recommended seven hours per night. While sleep depervation is usually expected during the newborn period, research published in the journal Sleep showed that parents did not fully recover sleep satisfaction and duration for up to six years after the birth of their first child. But, just because sleep can be more challenging with young children, for some parents, the sleep science they learn for their babies can actually help them become better sleepers during this period. Creating A Consistent Sleep Schedule According to Andrew Colsky, the founder of National Sleep Center, 'it turns out that adults can learn a lot by observing what helps their baby sleep.' He explains in an email interview, 'Because sleep is a behavioral routine, establishing a consistent sleep/wake time can really help to improve your sleep.' When babies go to bed and wake up at roughly the same time each day, that consistency helps them fall asleep and stay asleep more easily. One blessing in disguise of having children on a regular sleep schedule is that parents no longer sleep in on weekends and have a more consistent sleep schedule themselves. A review in Frontiers in Psychology found that consistent bedtime routines in adults improved sleep onset, quality and duration. And a landmark study published in Sleep Health found that consistent sleep and wake times were more predictive of cognitive functioning and mood than total sleep duration. Babies Aren't The Only Ones Who Need Sleep Cues One of the first principles of sleep training is creating sleep associations—those cues that signal to a baby that it's time to wind down. A bath. A book. A lullaby. Dimming the lights. It's no accident that these rituals are repetitive and sensory-rich; they calm the nervous system and set the stage for rest. Adults tend to forgo these entirely, treating sleep as an abrupt off-switch instead of a transition. We finish emails in bed, fall asleep to true crime and ask our overstimulated brains to simply shut off. But our bodies benefit from signals, too. Just as we condition babies to associate bedtime with soothing rituals, adults benefit from pre-sleep routines that cue the brain for rest. Lynelle Schneeberg, PsyD, a sleep psychologist and fellow at the American Academy of Sleep Medicine, shared in an email interview, 'Whatever a person needs to get to sleep, they need this same thing to get back to sleep. This is known as a sleep onset association.' For children, this may mean being rocked to sleep, but the same idea also applies to adults. 'If you need to have the TV on or need to scroll social media to get to sleep, you may need to turn the TV back on or scroll again to get back to sleep after waking.' A 2023 Sleep Foundation survey found that 71% of adults use their phones in bed and over half of them say it disrupts their ability to fall asleep. A digital boundary such as 'no screens 30 minutes before bed' isn't punitive, it's protective. Awake Cues Are Important Too Dr. Natalie Barnett, VP of Clinical Research at Nanit explained in an email interview, 'For parents, fragmented sleep can be just as harmful as short sleep. When you are having those interrupted nights, getting out in the sunshine early in the morning can help improve your alertness and mood during the day and help reset your circadian rhythm.' Direct sun exposure helps to reset our circadian rhythms, those internal clocks that govern our sleep-wake cycles. Newborns are born without a fully established circadian rhythm, which typically matures over the first couple of months. Exposure to ample daylight and consistent nighttime darkness plays a crucial role in this development. By making this a daily ritual for babies, parents can reap the benefits as well. Understanding the Mechanics of Sleep Pressure For some parents, the end of a long day often means unwinding on the sofa in a semi-conscious state. Some time later, they might find themselves wide awake and restless once they finally go to bed. Sleep pressure is the accumulating drive for sleep that builds during our waking hours, ultimately facilitating the onset of sleep. A brief car nap, for instance, could significantly diminish a young child's sleep pressure, making it nearly impossible to settle them for a proper nap at home. For parents, an evening veg-out session could have a similar effect, dissipating sleep pressure. Barnett offers, 'We talk a lot about sleep pressure in infants—the buildup of the drive to sleep the longer we're awake—and we play careful attention to infant sleep cues to optimize the timing of naps and bedtime. Sleep pressure also applies to adults, but many adults override natural sleep pressure with coffee and screens.' Self-Soothing Isn't Just For Babies A major goal of formal sleep training is helping babies learn to self-soothe—to fall asleep without constant parental intervention. It's a skill that fosters independence and resilience, though it often comes with some protest at first. Many adults have lost the art of self-soothing. We outsource comfort to external stimuli: the endless scroll, the background hum of sitcoms, the dopamine hits of online shopping. These behaviors don't calm us, they distract us. Worse, they often delay sleep or reduce its quality. Relearning how to self-soothe means reconnecting with your own body's capacity to downshift. This might look like breathwork, progressive muscle relaxation, journaling or meditating. A 2022 study in JMIR Mental Health found that adults who practiced mindfulness-based self-soothing techniques, like deep breathing or progressive muscle relaxation, fell asleep faster and reported better sleep quality over eight weeks. Creating A Serene Sleep Environment Colsky shares that all of us, no matter the age, sleep best in a quiet, dark environment. 'Whether it's hot or cold outside, a sleeping temperature of around 65 to 70°F is optimal. If your room is not dark during bedtime, opt for room darkening window treatments and cover any light sources that are causing light pollution. We all have those electronic devices that display a little LED light to let us know there is power coming to the device. Remove them from your room or cover the light with black tape to recapture a dark sleeping environment.' In addition, he offers, 'Weighted blankets for adults are like swaddling for a baby. The pressure activates the parasympathetic nervous system, which helps to reduce anxiety and promote a deeper sleep.' One recommendation from most experts, including Schneeberg, is white noise. 'A sound machine can be helpful both to cue sleep and to mask noises that could trigger a night waking. If a sound machine is used, it's best to leave it on all night rather than using one that turns off after a period of time. This is because the sound machine will eventually become a cue for sleep and the brain may expect to hear it again after a night waking.' Differences Between Adult Sleep And Baby Sleep Schneeberg advises, 'Most babies need 12-17 hours of sleep a day (depending on age) and most adults sleep needs vary from 5-9 hours a night, with most people requiring 6-8 hours.' Colsky adds, 'Newborns sleep for 45 to 50 minute cycles whereas adults average 90 to 110 minute cycles. Babies spend about 50% of their sleep time in REM sleep whereas adults will spend 20 to 25%.' He expands that there are differences between individual adults, too. 'Some people consider themselves to be early risers or 'larks' whereas others are more comfortable in the evening, otherwise known as 'night owls.' These are simple differences guided by genetics and if a lark tries to live a night owl schedule, or vice versa, they may find it very difficult because their body is not naturally tuned that way. Think about a right-handed person trying to use their left hand! Another variation would be the depth of a person's sleep. Some people are simply naturally lighter sleepers, while other people sleep much more heavily.' Consistency, Not Perfection Sleep is a skill that can be learned, protected and cherished at any age. Adults often expect instant fixes: a new mattress, a melatonin gummy, a podcast that promises deep REM cycles in 12 minutes. But sustainable sleep doesn't come from hacks, it comes from rhythm. Consistency doesn't mean perfection. It means prioritizing sleep most of the time and allowing the benefits to compound.
