A nap is basically a short period of sleep in addition to the normal nocturnal long(er) period of sleep.  They usually take place during the day.

Thousands of studies have been done on napping.  The results that I found while researching  Naps were varied and contradictory, such as:

Naps are good for us.

Naps are not good for us. 

The length of the nap determines whether it was good for your health or not.

The length of the nap has no bearing on our health.

The photograph above is of our former dog Cookie and was taken on a winter afternoon.  There was a window next to her that faced south. For a short period of time each day, the sun would cover the bottom corner of the bed where she was napping.  It was not unusual for me to find Cookie curled up napping in that spot.

Have you ever heard of taking a cat nap?  Cats, like dogs, take short naps to refresh and reset their energy level.  That is why a short, daytime sleep is sometimes called a cat nap.

I have been napping recently.  I don’t nap every day or for the same length of time.  But I have noticed that the longer I nap the more likely I am to feel groggy when waking up. However, naps less than an hour can leave me feeling just as drained of energy as before the nap. 

For me, it seems that there is a “sweet spot” in napping that determines whether or not it refreshed my energy level.

Do you nap?

Do you feel better after you take a nap or do you feel groggy when waking from your nap?

Does the length of time of your nap determine whether you wake up groggy or refreshed?

Please feel free to share your napping experiences or habits in the comment section while I go take a nap!

A larger version of the image Winter Napping can be seen here: