27 Comments
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My son has always had the gift of the short nap, from babyhood to even now, in his early 40s. He dozes off for 20 minutes and wakes up as if nothing had happened.

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It's a valuable life skill!

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Apr 14Liked by Don Akchin

Love your writing and wicked sense of humor. But G-d! Everything I love - from naps to chocolate - is either gonna kill me or give me dementia! Aaaarrrgh!

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author

It's not fair!

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Apr 13Liked by Don Akchin

Count me as an enthusiastic endorser of the nap! NO DOWNSIDE!

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author

Huzzah! Just keep 'em short.

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My fav way is to drink coffee and the take a nap, it's more effective than just coffee

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This is spot on. I'm a longtime advocate for the power of power naps. Sharing.

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author

Thanks, Arnie!

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I'm with you on that one Don. We are early dinner eaters.

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Apr 14Liked by Don Akchin

Don, if that's what they were, my mid-morning naps seemed to make history in the seventh grade. You may remember the teacher snarling at me. She went nuclear on occasion.

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author

I don't remember your naps, but I certainly will never forget Mrs. Alford. She was intense!

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I rarely nap however during my years in B to B sales, I too would find myself dozing during the Monday morning re cap meetings-ugh!… very painful to try to stay awake.

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It's worked for Southern Europeans since the beginning of time. I love my siesta.

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author

I agree, although I've never agreed with the related concept of 10pm dinners.

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I like to nap sitting up. It feels completely organic to just doze off for 10-20 minutes after lunch without actually lying down. If I lie down, I'm already "telling myself to take a nap," which doesn't work very well.

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I'm glad that works for you. I'm committed to my practice of horizontal meditation.

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Luv this! Before I say more, you know what I’m about to do….

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Apr 13Liked by Don Akchin

So true, Don.

I read somewhere that 17 minutes is the optimal nap duration. I'm sure that level of precision isn't needed but I set my alarm for exactly that several times a week and wake up refreshed.

Very entertaining and well-written article. Thanks.

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Thank you, Brian. It's good to know the optimal, but I think I'll continue to round up.

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Glad to see the conflicting evidence parsed out. And sorry to report that editing my next book puts me to sleep.

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Maybe you should try the Ultra Power Nap Trip: Drink a cup of coffee, lie down for 20 minutes, and wake up ALERT! Apparently that's how long it takes caffeine to take effect.

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Apr 13Liked by Don Akchin

This is music to my ears, Don. Just knowing I can lie down for a half hour break has a calming effect on me. When I do lie down, setting a timer helps to relax me even more.

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Apr 13Liked by Don Akchin

Nice article. Churchill was an avid napper.

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Apr 13Liked by Don Akchin

And an avid drinker!

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“Unwilling to take this lying down” you had me right there!

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