Power napping: Day 8

I’m starting my second week of taking power naps during the day. For the last two days I’ve been napping without using any music or the Pzizz software I had been using last week. I want to have a control to see if I find a certain method works better for me.

I have noticed that when I “go it alone” I have been having a much more difficult time getting settled down and actually relaxing. My office is on a busy hallway and there is a lot of foot traffic and noise outside my door all day long - it’s very noticeable even when the door is closed (apparently because my door is made of balsa wood!). Couple that with the general noise of our warehouse (it’s on the other side of my back wall) and you end up with a pretty noisy environment in which to be resting and relaxing.

But I’ve been doing my best and while I find it’s taken me long to get relaxed without headphones and Pzizz playing, I can do it. I’ve also noticed that once I do get relaxed I feel like it’s at a deeper level. By the end of my nap I’m almost completely asleep and after stretching and “waking up” I find that I have more energy.

I think it’s possible because there isn’t anything other than normal office noise that my brain is concentrating on (and it’s learned to tune that out for the most part). When I used Pzizz last week I felt like I was able to get settled down much more quickly, but when I don’t use anything I feel like my naps have been deeper and more restful.

My plan is to finish out this week with no music or Pzizz while I nap. Next week I’ll use some soothing and relaxing music from a CD I own which doesn’t promise any specific restful results. My quest is to find out the best and most restful way to power nap. After doing it for the last week, I’m confident as I start on my second week of power napping that it’s a very valuable tool. I feel much more relaxed and energetic during the day, and I feel like my stress level is lower too. I highly recommend you give it a try if you’ve been reading these articles, but haven’t yet tried it for yourself.

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Here are some related articles you might also enjoy!

• Power napping: Day 100 - The Benefits
• Power napping: Day 11 - the caffeine nap
• Power napping: Days 9 - 10
• Power napping: 21st century-style.
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February 15th, 2006

Entry Filed under: Time Management, Productivity, Improvement, Habits