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Sleep deprivation can trouble anyone, whether it is a school student or a commercial pilot on exam days. Not getting enough sleep can affect the entire day’s performance due to sleep fatigue. Severe lack of energy and tiredness characterize sleep fatigue, which is a common effect of sleep deprivation. Fatigue is caused by a variety of factors that disrupt the regular sleep cycle such as noise disturbances, sleep disorders, not sleeping for more than two days in a row, or forced awakening when you should be sleeping which is quite common among students during exam periods.
Sleep deprivation is common among doctors, medical students, and commercial pilots who work night shifts. Prolonged wakefulness leads to microsleeps, which pose a significant risk of slipping during serious surgeries or flights. People who drive for long periods of time without sleeping are also at risk for microsleeps, a dangerous condition linked to several fatal accidents. Microsleeps are brief, involuntary moments of sleep that last only a few seconds, often happening so quickly that you may not even realize you’ve fallen asleep. The brain shuts down momentarily, making this the brain’s way of responding to extreme fatigue. During these fleeting events, you may even fall asleep with your eyes open as your brain stops processing information for a few seconds.
Sleep deprivation has two harmful effects – sleep fatigue and microsleep. Coffee may seem like a savior, a fan-favorite stimulant to combat sleep fatigue. However, new research conducted by Cassie J. Hilditch from the San Jose State University Research Foundation, NASA Ames Research Center has shown that napping is a more effective solution to prevent sleep fatigue and microsleep. Taking a nap can make longer periods of wakefulness bearable.
Also read: Are you still counting sheep? Deal with sleep anxiety with these alternatives
take a nap the right way
Taking a nap or taking a short nap can make the lack of sleep somewhat tolerable, and help you get through the day more effectively. Here are a few ways you can make sure you are napping correctly for optimal results.
Sleep Environment
For a good quality nap, make sure to create the ideal nap environment. Quality is more important than quantity. The time doesn’t matter as much as the sleep environment. A dark environment tells your brain it’s time to rest, while a quiet place blocks out noise, which doesn’t disturb sleep. Maintaining a cool temperature is also important, as it regulates body temperature, helping you sleep better. Consider an inclined support, don’t fall asleep at your desk. A flat, inclined support provides the necessary alignment and reduces stress on muscles and joints; or prevents body pain from napping at awkward angles in other places. Finally, the environment should be safe for napping, devoid of any worries
body clock
Your body has a sleep clock, a circadian rhythm, to maintain a sleep schedule. Timing your naps is crucial. Avoid evening naps at all costs, as they will inevitably disrupt your night’s sleep, leaving you wide-eyed and counting sheep at night. If you can’t get a good night’s sleep, take naps during the day to recover from fatigue. Night owls need a midnight nap as a more effective way to stay refreshed even if they are awake at night.
Take a nap to avoid microsleeps
Napping or having short bursts of sleep during the day is your body’s signal that you need to sleep. Drop everything and take a nap immediately. Microsleeps signal that you are in dire need of rest. Microsleeps cause a lack of alertness, which leads to potential disaster. To stay safe, meet your sleep needs immediately and take a short nap.
Also read: Social media impacts sleep patterns: Study
The best time for a nap
The effectiveness of a nap also depends on how long you have been awake. Research has shown a relationship between the quality of performance and naps taken after a particular time of waking up. If you have been awake for about 7 hours and take a 10-minute nap at 2 pm, it can significantly boost your performance for up to 3 hours. However, if you have been awake for 21 hours and take a nap at 4 am, the nap will only help stabilize your performance for 1 hour, without any significant improvement. If you have been awake for 24 hours and take a nap at 7 am, the brief rest will not have a significant effect on your performance. The timing and duration of sleep deprivation affect how effective a short nap can be.
But the nap should not exceed 30 minutes. After this time, you go into deep sleep and wake up with sleep lethargy. Sleep lethargy is a period of intense disorientation and lethargy after you wake up. This temporary state slows cognitive function and delays reaction time. It takes about 30 minutes to recover from sleep lethargy and return to the previous state of full concentration. Lethargy after a long nap can disrupt workflow and productivity, so keep your sleep to less than 30 minutes, so you can get back to work immediately after the nap.
Also read: Don’t work in bed, create a buffer zone and other useful tips for creating a peaceful sleep zone in a studio apartment
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