It is not possible to include naps in the life of the average adult. It seems that this dream is useless and unrealizable. But many psychologists say the opposite. This not only helps the body to be overloaded during the day and reduces stress levels, but also develops our creative abilities as well as all kinds of courses.
Harvard University researcher Bill Anthony studies the phenomenon nap for several decades now. He came to the conclusion that this taking a break from work actually overloads the brain, restoring its cells. A siesta, or nap, helps improve memory and prepares the body for more effective absorption of information. Moreover, it increases significantly, which allows you to improve the quality of work and improve academic performance. It is probably for this reason that many great minds of mankind, from Archimedes to Hugo, practiced naps. Who knows: maybe this innovation will make you the most successful person in the world?
Typically, a person wants to sleep six hours after waking up. Historically, we begin to nod off and our eyelids begin to droop around lunchtime. And it’s not surprising, because after a hearty lunch you should get a good night’s sleep. By the way, when we try in every way to cheer ourselves up, we harm our body. Eastern philosophy confirms this: you need to listen to your body and give it everything it requires. Daytime naps are no exception. Listening to yourself is the secret to longevity and good health.
Wanting to sleep in the middle of the workday is not a sign of weakness and... When you realize that sleep is important for the mind and body, and do it when necessary, then you can call yourself a mature person. After all, you understand that you shouldn’t joke with your health. No one will take care of him like you. Not getting enough sleep can ultimately lead to depressive state or insomnia.
It is strange to see a person sleeping during the working day. Moreover, you can get a pretty serious reprimand for taking a nap during the day. However, for example, in China and Japan this is considered a necessary measure. In every office in the Middle East you can find a break room, which will definitely have sleeping places. They understand that in this way the staff will be higher than usual. You can benefit from everything, including an afternoon siesta.
If, however, conditions do not allow you to take a break for a nap, then there is a practice specifically for such workaholics. It will be enough to devote a few minutes to this within your workplace. Clear the space around you of any kind of technology, close your eyes and focus on some pleasant moment in your life. Feel your breath and how relaxed your body is. This is not exactly a dream, but it also has a positive effect on your body: this practice can also keep you calm.
People spend one third of their lives sleeping; this is an important process in their body. A person cannot stay awake, but a night's rest does not always bring relief. How to sleep correctly, is it possible to save time on it and be cheerful and active - these are the most popular questions for many people.
What is sleep
One scientific definition not yet. A rough description of this phenomenon sounds like this:
(lat. somnus) - natural physiological state, characterized by a reduced reaction to the outside world. 
The study of this phenomenon began relatively recently - about 50 years ago. Before this, information about what happens to a person in this state was quite primitive and abstract. There were beliefs that the soul goes to some astral travel, and all dreams are impressions and echoes of such travels. And although the science of sleep - somnology - is developing very actively and rapidly and has learned much more than in the entire existence of mankind, there are still a lot of mysteries in this area.
It is reliably known that during oblivion the following reactions occur:
- the sleeper is in relative peace and relaxation;
- the sleeper’s perception of reality is somewhat limited, but not completely - some senses still work;
- various cyclical reactions occur in the brain, which differ from the reactions of the brain during wakefulness;
- active regeneration of cells throughout the body occurs;
- the information received during activity is organized;
- neurons rest and energy accumulates for the formation of new neural connections;
- blood circulation slows down, pulse decreases, becomes deep and slow;
- Only the stomach is actively working, the pace of work of the rest internal organs decreases, body temperature decreases.
A person spends 7-8 hours a day in the kingdom of Morpheus. This time is divided into several cycles, approximately 4-5. Each cycle consists of a slow and a fast stage. Each stage is caused by activity in one lobe of the brain. 
The slow phase consists of three stages:
- Stage I- drowsiness, immediately after falling asleep, does not last long, quickly disappears due to external stimuli, breathing, eye movements slow down, absurd thoughts and dreamlike hallucinations appear;
- Stage II- light, shallow, this phase takes up more than half of the total sleep time, the activity of all muscles, breathing, temperature decreases, but a person in this phase is still easy to wake up;
- Stage III- slow deep dream or delta phase: it is very difficult to wake up a sleeping person, all processes are slowed down as much as possible, brain rhythms are reduced to 2 GHz; in this phase, various disorders may occur, as a result, sleepwalking and talking in a dream appear.
After the end of the third phase, the fast stage begins or REM phase. During this phase, brain activity increases, eyeballs they begin to move quickly, all processes in the body are activated, but the muscles, on the contrary, become constrained and seem to be paralyzed. This period accounts for the largest number of dreams. But even during such activity, waking up a person is still problematic.
Did you know? Musical group R.E.M. named after fast phase sleep.
After graduation REM sleep one cycle ends, which lasts 90 minutes, and a new cycle begins with the first stage of the slow phase. It is best to wake up between 90-minute cycles. In this case, the person feels cheerful and rested and easily gets out of bed. 
The study of brain function and the activity of the body as a whole made it possible to determine basic sleep purposes for humans:
- rest for the muscles and organs of the body;
- replenishment of body energy;
- cleansing the body of toxins;
- memorization and formation of long-term memory;
- analysis general condition body and correction of identified deficiencies;
- formation of cells, including cells.
Benefits of healthy sleep
The positive properties of sleep determine it benefits for human health:
- health promotion and wound healing, treatment of diseases;
- complete rest for the whole body;
- maintaining a good figure - with lack of sleep, a feeling of hunger appears and excess weight begins to gain;
- maintaining normal attention and concentration;
- prevention of depression;
- disclosure of creative abilities.
Not sleeping: harmful to health
It would seem that a person sleeps quite a lot - a third of his life is spent sleeping. Is it possible to sacrifice this time and spend it on study, entertainment or work? History and research suggest that doing this is extremely harmful. Suffice it to remember that deprivation of this type of rest was one of the methods of torture and even execution.
With prolonged wakefulness, the following consequences are observed:
- impaired glucose absorption and, as a consequence, the development of diabetes mellitus;
- muscle pain;
- color blindness;
- visual impairment;
- depression;
- psychosis, attention and concentration disorders;
- hallucinations;
- tremor of the limbs;
- pain in the head, throat, nausea.
It turns out that refusing to travel to Morpheus is a rather dangerous idea, and it is undesirable to do so. 
Sleep-wake schedule
Any extreme is harmful, and the secret of success will be in the golden mean - correct mode rest and wakefulness. And here you need the right approach and some preparation.
What time do you go to bed?
Both ancient mystics and modern scientists have identified several time zones in which it is recommended to go to bed. They can be characterized as follows: fall asleep as close to sunset as possible. That is, the optimal time to fall asleep is from 22.00 to 23.00. It is during this period that the part of the brain that is responsible for the mind and psyche rests. Therefore, those who go to bed after 23.00 have impaired mental activity. If you continue to stay awake after 11 pm, your vitality also begins to decline. 
At first, negative changes will not be noticeable, but over time they will accumulate and make themselves felt.
Important!Therefore, it is necessary to follow the regime and go to bed around 22.00. This rule is true for both children and adults.
Healthy sleep
To sleep properly and healthily, you need to follow these rules:
- you should always go to bed same time- both on weekdays and on weekends;
- two hours before going to bed you should not take any food;
- no need to drink alcohol or other tonic drinks, herbal ones are better - they will help you relax and calm down;
- will help you fall asleep Fresh air, it’s best to take a leisurely walk or go out onto the balcony;
- you need to clear your mind of worries and thoughts, get in the mood for the night: don’t watch TV, but rather read, knit, do a calm activity that will calm and relax, for example, a warm bath is good for relaxation and sets you up for rest;
- ventilate the bedroom;
- you need to sleep in the dark or with a dim, dim night light;
- It is not recommended to look at the phone during or before falling asleep - the bright light of the screen will drive away drowsiness and put the body into an excited state;
- you need to sleep comfortably, preferably with a minimum of clothing, it is better to cover yourself with another blanket so as not to freeze;
- the bed should be flat, not too soft, but not hard;
- You need to wake up slowly, smoothly; calm music with increasing volume and gradually increasing light in the room are suitable as an alarm clock.
These simple rules will help you sleep peacefully and fully. 
There is no definite data on the duration of rest, because for some people 3-4 hours is enough, and for others 8 hours is not enough. Research conducted by the US National Sleep Foundation, after studying more than 300 scientific works about sleep, showed that the norm varies depending on the age of the person, that is, the younger the person, the more time is required.
Here's a breakdown of sleep times by age group:
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It is this length of night's rest that will allow you to be calm, focused and active for the rest of the day. 
How many hours to sleep during the day
It has long been known that children under 6-10 years old need to sleep during the day. But do adults need to sleep and how beneficial is it for them?
Did you know? Winston Churchill claimed that the secret of his productivity was a full day's sleep. And in Japan and China, day rest for workers is the norm in most enterprises.
Scientists from the French Association for the Study of Sleep, conducting round-the-clock temperature measurements, determined that at night a person’s temperature drops between 3 and 5 o’clock - these are the so-called “bull” and “wolf” hours: intervals when you especially want to sleep. But during the day, from 13 to 15 hours, a similar picture was recorded - body temperature decreased, although not as much as at night. These data allow us to conclude that you need to sleep twice a day.
A short immersion in the kingdom of Morpheus during the day will allow the body to rest and relieve accumulated tension, increase attentiveness and improve reaction; at this time, joy hormones - endorphins and serotonin - are released into the blood. People who allow short nap breaks during the day reduce their risk of heart attacks and strokes.
During the day, complete rest for one or two hours is not always possible, so you need to sleep without plunging into a deep stage. That is, a nap for twenty to thirty minutes will bring relief and freshness, while a nap for more than 40 minutes will “give” a feeling of heaviness in the head and a decrease in reaction. 
What happens if you sleep a lot
Sleeping too much is just as harmful as not getting enough sleep. Research by Harvard University scientists conducted from 1986 to 2000 shows that with prolonged sleep (more than 9 hours), practically the same deviations appear as with lack of sleep:
- memory and concentration are impaired;
- labor productivity decreases;
- the risk of developing obesity and diabetes increases;
- blood circulation is disrupted, in particular the blood supply to the brain, causing headaches;
- depression occurs.
The state of excessive lethargy and prolonged sleep is called hypersomnia, she is called various injuries headaches, mental disorders, apnea. Often appears in adolescents or as a result of taking narcotic drugs.
Therefore, sleeping more than 12 hours, difficulty waking up, lethargy and dozing during the day can serve. In this case, it is better to see a doctor and get examined. 
How to sleep less and get enough sleep
Using knowledge of sleep phases and monitoring the sleep of infants, elderly people and some animals in the 20th century, it was developed polyphasic sleep theory. The main idea of this theory is to divide the rest time into parts throughout the day. As a result, the quality of sleep improves and its duration decreases. The reduction occurs due to a decrease in the number and duration of the slow phase. After all, the main beneficial features, including rest, occur only in the REM sleep stage, which accounts for 20-25% of the total rest time.
There are several options for polyphasic sleep:
- Dymaxion- 4 times for 30 minutes every 6 hours = 2 hours.
- Uberman- 6 times for 20 minutes every 4 hours = 2 hours.
- Everyman- 1 time at night (1.5–3 hours) and 3 times during the day for 20 minutes = 2.5–4 hours.
- Biphasic- 1 time at night (5 hours) and 1 time during the day (1.5 hours) = 6.5 hours.
- Tesla- 1 time at night (2 hours) and 1 time during the day (20 minutes) = 2 hours 20 minutes.
The transition to a new regime requires careful preparation:
- first you need to get used to the regime - fall asleep and wake up at a strictly defined time;
- when adapting, start with biphasic sleep - sleep twice for three to four hours;
- transition to polyphasic rest, consisting of 3-4 hours of sleep at night and several rest periods during the day.
Important! You should know that this way of sleeping is not recommended for people with heart problems, disorders nervous system, as well as teenagers.
One of the problems with this way of life is the inability to live in rhythm with others around you. Thus, Buckminster Fuller, one of the first who decided to switch to rest in the “Dymaxion” mode he created, was forced to abandon this type of sleep three years later, due to contradictions in the daily schedule with his companions. Steve Pavlina, who decided to repeat Fuller’s experience, also refused to continue this mode of life due to a lack of synchrony with the outside world.
Did you know? Among the adherents of polyphasic sleep and the first practitioners are Leonardo da Vinci, who slept for 15-20 minutes every 4 hours, as well as Salvador Dali, Peter the Great, Goethe. They all managed to rest in a very short time. And one of the variants of polyphasic sleep is named after Nikola Tesla. It is believed that Tesla rested in this mode.
One of these modes allows you to completely relax in a very short period of time. And although this method has not been thoroughly tested by science, numerous experiments and the experience of polyphasic sleep adherents confirm the theory that you can sleep little and be alert and active the rest of the day.
Video: practice of polyphasic sleep
Practice of polyphasic sleep: reviews
To be fully active, I sleep at least 8 times, preferably 9-10. If I don’t get enough sleep, then I just pass out either very early in the evening, or I can sleep for a day
http://saveyou.ru/forum/showpost.php?p=235583&postcount=25
I recently read about how you can increase the duration of the REM sleep phase, about the REM rebound effect. Everything is banally simple: you need to deprive yourself of the REM sleep phase a day before the intended practice. That is, for example, today we sleep from 11 pm to 5-6 am, interrupting the REM phase. The next day the body will try to compensate for the losses. I myself often have to get up early, and just the next day everything works out well with what was postponed.
http://forum.aing.ru/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=13023&sid=31c6d6c4072415d8f867bc77efce99a3&start=30
For myself, I decided to master the Everyman mode, I see it as the best, that is, I plan to take a 20-minute nap several times during the day, and at night as long as necessary. For me, the main thing is not to reduce sleep time, but to get enough sleep and phase. I plan to sleep in transport. As I already said, learning to fall asleep quickly is the hardest thing, while thinking about this problem I came across an interesting method by Steve Pavlin - how to fall asleep in 30 seconds. It is noteworthy that before I found it I decided to try something similar. The essence of the method is to convince your body that the sleep resource is limited, that is, if I now, quickly, do not fall asleep in a few seconds, but lie down and think about all sorts of nonsense, then this time will be at the expense of sleep time, and it will always be so. Only this trick will allow you to fall asleep in a few minutes. During the day you need to take one or several naps, a maximum of 20 minutes, maybe 5. This is in order to show the body - “here’s the time for you to sleep, if you don’t fall asleep, you won’t sleep, and it will always be like this.” This is, of course, also a variant of sleep deprivation, but not as severe as the classic transition to polyphasic sleep. In fact, nothing in the daily routine changes, you just need to clearly get up on the alarm clock, always limiting your sleep time to a certain time, no more, no less, and take a nap several times a day for 5-20 minutes. I also forgot to mention, I’ll have to get rid of caffeine (coffee, tea), this is also a problem for me, so I’ll switch to and herbal teas. I suspect that you can forget about the phase during the training period.
http://forum.aing.ru/viewtopic.php?f=3&t=13023
Sleep is still a mysterious phenomenon, but extremely necessary for a person, because it is impossible to live without sleep. Properly organized, it brings relief and relaxation, improves health, and therefore it is important to prepare for it. The following tips and recommendations will allow you to sleep peacefully and fully.
What you do while you're awake can actually affect your dreams and how you sleep. We often feel like our dreams are beyond our control. Nevertheless, latest research have shown that certain behaviors can actually affect your dreams in good and bad relationship. Find out what habits and daytime activities can have an impact on your rest, and try to change your dreams.
Do you want to learn how to relax better or have sweet dreams? Then listen to these tips:
1.Change your sleeping positions
Your sleeping position can have a significant impact on your dreams. Sleeping on your left side is more likely to lead to nightmares, while resting on right side body is associated with more peaceful dreams.
2.Take music lessons
Do you often hear music in your dreams? Researchers at the Sleep Laboratory at the University of Florence have discovered that young people who begin to study music begin to have “musical” dreams.
The study also found that 28 percent of people who dream about music have heard the tune at some point while they are awake.
3.Don't scare yourself
Watching horror movies or reading suspenseful novels before bed can cause your brain to replay its own scary stories.
In fact, any activity immediately preceding sleep can affect dreams, so take a few minutes in the evening to relax and think about something positive before you drift off.
4. Don't go to bed hungry
Feeling hungry while you sleep can reduce the quality of your sleep and wake you up. low level blood sugar. You might even dream of a delicious hamburger or cupcake!
Try eating a light snack before bed, such as a banana, nuts or crackers, to counteract this effect. Avoid fatty and spicy foods, which can lead to stomach upset.
5. Fall asleep to soothing smells and sounds
When you're dozing, strong smells like coffee or breakfast cooking can subconsciously sneak into your dreams. Some smells can trigger positive dreams, while others can trigger negative dreams. Light it up before going to bed aroma candles or freshen the air with a couple of drops of your favorite perfume, and your dreams will be pleasant! 
Surround yourself with pleasant scents, such as lavender or lilac, and pleasant sounds, such as the sound of the sea. Such environmental cues can influence dreams. In addition, make sure you have a comfortable mattress and a comfortable temperature.
6. Deal with daytime stress
Trying to avoid something or someone during the day, or suppress thoughts? This can lead to dreams that focus on this issue throughout the night, according to the teachings of Sigmund Freud.
Whether it's a work emergency, concerns about physical problems, appearance or relationships, attempts to suppress the issue often move it into dreams. Solve your questions throughout the day to clear your mind.
Maybe, The best way changing your dreams is healthy habits and positive, happy thoughts before bed.
Contents of the article
There is an opinion that good deep sleep good for health. But there is also back side medals: staying in the arms of Morpheus for too long is not just harmful, but very harmful. Mental impairment, bouquet chronic diseases, cardiovascular pathologies - all this is at risk for people who like to soak in bed for more than 9-10 hours a day. Thus, long sleep is extremely harmful to the mind and body. What should those who simply cannot wake up on time do, even after setting several alarms at night, and what does this condition indicate? The answer to this question will be discussed in this material.
What research has been carried out in this direction?
According to research data conducted by Spanish scientists on 3,300 people, respondents who liked to sleep very long in their youth and even take a nap at lunchtime, in old age are 2 times more likely to suffer from dementia in the senile period. The exact reason for this phenomenon is not entirely clear. In addition, recently a mutual connection was discovered between long sleep and the formation of heart and vascular diseases, diabetes, hypertension. Smoking and alcohol abuse have similar effects. Therefore, those who like to set a record on their sleep run the risk of contracting these serious ailments.
Idiopathic hypersomnia
This phenomenon is otherwise called idiopathic hypersomnia. It is a disorder accompanied by the formation of increased sleepiness. People who suffer from this disease experience fatigue, weakness, and apathy, which interfere with normal life activities. It persists even though sleep lasts a very long time. Such patients may sleep significantly more than the required eight hours. Sometimes they set a record and sleep from 12 to 14 hours. Even after this time, they have difficulty waking up.
If you wake up a patient suffering from such a disorder, he will still not be rested. His retardation will be noticeable in appearance. This phenomenon is otherwise called “sleep intoxication.” It turns out that no matter how much an individual sleeps, he still experiences drowsiness. Often, because of this problem, typos affect your career, studies, and social life. After all, prolonged sleep significantly disrupts performance: the patient can look at one point for several hours and ignore reality. You can notice from the outside that a person has forgotten the rules for doing everyday things. Those who sleep a lot may suffer from migraines in 30% of cases. About 15% of all patients show signs of impending depression.
You might suddenly fall asleep right at work.
Despite how long the sick person has slept, his condition does not improve. In this case, there is a possibility of paralysis and hallucinations. But patients suffering from symptoms of hypersomnia do not experience attacks of weakness, as in other similar diseases. The situation with this disease is aggravated by the fact that early diagnosis accompanied by certain difficulties, and late stage It's getting harder to find adequate treatment. It is also influenced by the fact that the level of people’s awareness of this pathology remains minimal, which leads to the process of stigmatization of patients.
Who is susceptible to this disease
Over time, signs this state begin to appear in people over 30 years of age. They are pronounced and interfere with the normal process of life, without changing over time. Although in isolated cases, some symptoms disappear on their own. Prolonged sleep is less common than narcolepsy and occurs only in rare cases in children. Regarding the prevalence depending on gender, the disease occurs equally in men and women. In practice, a family origin of the disease has been observed, but specific genes responsible for this pathology have not been identified.
Long sleep - disease or normal
If a person notices such phenomena in himself and discovers that he sleeps too long, this is definitely pathological process, and it is not the norm. Currently, there are several reasons long sleep why a person constantly wants to sleep.
One of the reasons is strong physical exercise
- pathologies of a chronic nature;
- endocrine dysfunction;
- protracted infectious processes;
- stress and depression;
- emotional shocks;
- excessive physical activity;
- hunger or, conversely, gluttony;
- high mental stress;
- weakness of the body's protective option;
- brain damage and mental problems;
- diseases of a neurological nature;
- lifestyle changes;
- group of somatic diseases.
So, we looked at why this happens and what are the factors influencing this condition.
Symptoms of hypersomnia
This disease is characterized by many symptoms. It is their presence that allows us to judge that this disease exists. Among the main symptoms of this pathology are the following:
- state of drowsiness;
- pronounced snoring;
- sudden falling asleep;
- broken sleep time record;
- stopping breathing during sleep;
- inability to get enough sleep;
- migraine and dizziness;
- feeling of weakness;
- loss of vision;
- muscle paralysis;
- convulsions;
- changes in pressure in the arteries;
- decreased heart rate.
Symptoms appear depending on the cause of hypersomnia. They can appear at any time. For example, there is a possibility of falling asleep while driving or at work, as well as while performing other important tasks.
Suddenly fell asleep It is worth noting that people who suffer from this condition are never in a cheerful state. As a result, they often have to lose social contacts and refuse to perform work duties. In this case, there may be dreams that the patient most often does not remember after waking up.
Should I get rid of long sleep?
If sleep is too long a process and a favorite activity for you, you should consult a doctor. He will prescribe a set of examinations, including the following:
- Donating blood to determine traces of drugs and drugs; this factor will allow you to establish or exclude certain causes of this condition.
- A detailed study lasting overnight and the next day. It includes carrying out instrumental research at night - polysomnography, which involves recording electrical brain, cardiac, muscle activity and respiratory function. Movements performed by the limbs are also recorded. Thanks to this procedure, it is possible to determine the presence or absence of other sleep disorders that cause or worsen the problems.
- A continuation of the previous examination is carried out the next day and involves studying episodes of daytime sleep. It's called Multiple sleep latency test (MSLT). This study involves a series of sleep attempts during the daytime. A similar study is carried out in the diagnostic practice of narcolepsy.
You need to tell your doctor your sleep record ( maximum time, carried out in a dream), and also follow the basic rules indicated by the specialist.
The sleep record is 40 years. No need to strive there 😉 Features of treatment for sleep disorders
Why this disease occurs is still unknown. However, maintenance therapy in this case not prevent. Traditionally, it is aimed at eliminating the main symptom of the condition – excessive drowsiness. To carry out the treatment process, the same medications, as with narcolepsy. But the difficulty lies in the less pronounced effect of treatment compared to narcolepsy. If you watch all the time increased weakness, you need to follow certain tips that will help improve your condition:
- Supporting a regular sleep schedule in adults. It is necessary to plan the use of medications at times when it is especially important to remain alert and active. If you experience a condition like before going to bed, you should not drive. Vehicle and complexly controlled mechanisms.
- You should not take medications that affect the quality of sleep and general level drowsiness. It is strictly not recommended to abuse alcohol, which has negative impact on the general condition.
- It is worth taking longer to treat sleep disorders, if you have them, and to do it effectively. If there are mental disorders, it is also important to carry out their therapy without delays and difficulties.
- If prolonged sleep occurs, the entire healing process should be carried out under the supervision of a treating specialist, who is always ready to advise and provide answers to all common questions.
Disease prognosis
It is a lifelong disorder that may experience remissions in rare situations. The first signs of a present disease may appear in adolescence. age period. Sometimes a signal that something is wrong in the body appears during puberty. The consequences of this condition seriously affect professional and social life. It is instructive that this condition, compared to narcolepsy, incapacitates a person much more often. That is, even if he slept for several hours and set a record, it is more difficult for him to recover and return to normal activities.
There is a chance to return to an active life! In general, if you follow the rules given in the article, the prognosis is good. If you take supportive medications (and their list is strictly prescribed by the treating specialist) and use other methods of therapy, you can begin to be awake and lead more active life activities.
Thus, if you set record after record in terms of sleep duration, there is no reason to be proud. Usually people sleep 8 hours a day, and this time is considered the norm, that is, it is enough for good sleep, gaining new strength and comfortable rest. If an individual falls asleep for 10 or more hours, up to 14, this is abnormal and requires medical intervention. We wish you good health And wellness any age!
