Napping our way through Covid19

I’ve touched on the topic of napping before here, but thought a little refresher is in order, seeing as a LOT of us are napping a LOT right now - our beds are just so darn close to where we work, and anxiety around the Covid situation is making us seriously lethargic.

Can you relate (like I can)? Are you a fellow napper?

Well, power to you, because napping should no longer be scorned by society as an act of the lazy.

Two well-known wellness heavyweights recently confirmed in an interview that they love a good ol’ nap, as they know it poses a gamut of health benefits: Joe Wicks and Louis Theroux. Similarly, according to James Wilson, The Sleep Geek, naps are great for improving our performance, productivity and our alertness.

Plus, a recent study shared in the Journal of the American Geriatrics Society confirms these statements – according to the research, folks who nap for 30-90 minutes have better word recall (a sign of good memory), decreased stress levels and healthier hearts.

But if you want to sleep well at night, don’t overdo the nap – keep your shut-eye to a respectable 30 mins max. This is also called a 'power nap' – which could increase alertness, productivity and focus, and usually better mental health too - ergo, POWER.

Another nap rule: steer clear of daytime shut-eye anytime after 3 pm.

Here's Nightire's quick guide to ace-ing the nap:

• If your room has sunshine streaming through during the day, perhaps invest in an eyemask. These super soft Nightire bamboo ones are ace.
• Hydrate when you wake up, and perhaps snack on something sugary if you feel groggy and disorientated.
• Cover yourself for coziness (we love this duvet from Nanu) to snuggle up like a boss.
• Pop some music or a white noise machine on in the background to soothe you and mask any daytime city noises.

So! To sum up, if you’ve had a disturbed night’s sleep or just need a tiny bit more rest, nap away (just set that alarm so you can wake up before the 30 mins timer is up)!

Written my Nina Clark, Nightire founder