I’m fortunate to have the gift of sleeping. I can sleep anywhere. For any length of time. Five minutes, 14 hours, the entire day. I don’t have to be prone, although I prefer it. I don’t have to be in my own bed, although I prefer that too. Planes, deck chairs, any form of public transportation. It’s a gift from my father. I have actually seen him fall asleep in the middle of his own conversation. You’d be listening, waiting for the conclusion of his sentence, and…silence. You’d look over. His head dropped to one side, and he’d be quietly snoring.
Fortunately, I have more control over my sleeping. I need to set the intention. Only once did I fall asleep on the couch without meaning to. I was staying up to watch Denzel Washington on a late night show, and nodded off. By the time I woke up, I had missed him, and was really pretty miffed about it. (You’d have to understand my mad passion for Denzel to understand exactly how miffed.)
I spend an inordinate amount of money on bed linens. I like a high thread count. 300 and up. I want soft sheets, and prefer jacquard. I have three, oh all right, I admit it, four sets of wildly expensive sheets and they don’t itch me, or scratch me, or rub me the wrong way in any way under any circumstances. I feel as strongly about pillows. Down. Two medium, two firm. It takes me longer to arrange my pillows for sleep than to fall asleep.
Every night, no matter what my day has been like, I am grateful for my comfortable bed, my soft sheets, my perfect pillows and the safety to rest with peace of mind. I know how lucky I am. There are people all over the world who don’t have a safe place to lay their heads, let alone a comfortable one.
On weekends, and any weekday I can, I nap. Short naps of 10 minutes at work. Long naps of an hour or more at home. I love napping. I don’t have to set an alarm, just tell myself when I want to awake. Remember when napping held a stigma? People who nap used to be looked upon as somehow lazy and perhaps a little immoral, but recent studies have shown that nappers actually live longer and are healthier.
The benefits of napping include reduced fatigue (really?), increased alertness, improved mood (really!), quicker reaction time, more creative thinking. A 2007 Harvard School of Public Health study showed that nappers were 40% less likely to die of heart disease than non-nappers, and that the best results are found with daily napping (I am all for that!). A 2010 Japanese study also showed a correlation between lack of sleep and obesity. If you enjoy quizzes, National Geographic features an enjoyable sleep quiz at http://ngm.nationalgeographic.com/2010/05/sleep/quiz/sleep#sleep It offers helpful pointers on good ways to get better quality sleep.
And just so you know, March 12th is National Napping Day. The founders, William Anthony, PhD and his wife Camille explain, “Our goal is to encourage folks to take a nap wherever they may be…and to make it a regular part of their healthy lifestyle…It is a day…to lie down and be counted.” (1)
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(1) The Anthonys’ two books The Art of Napping, and The Art of Napping at Work can be purchased through Amazon.
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