Daytime sleep of 10-minutes can be helpful, but limit your snooze to 30 minutes or less to avoid waking up feeling more exhausted. The feeling of sleep inertia you get after a nap is described as such. You are more likely to experience it the longer your slumber. The worse it is, the longer it will take you to get up and return to work.

Not only infants can nap. Adults can benefit from an afternoon nap, according to studies. There’s no reason to feel sluggish about sleeping during the day. A quick nap in the middle of the day can help with memory, job performance, mood, alertness, and stress reduction. Enjoy these slumber benefits while cozy.

Use these suggestions to get the most out of your daytime sleep so you don’t wake up feeling foggy. Why do I feel worse after taking a daytime sleep?

That familiar groggy feeling is called “sleep inertia,” which means that your brain wants to keep sleeping and complete a full sleep cycle. Sleep inertia results from waking abruptly out of deep sleep or slow wave sleep, the kind of sleep you start to fall into approximately 30 minutes into snoozing.

This is why experts recommend keeping daytime sleep to just 10 to 20 minutes, among other nap best practices. It’s all about the sleep stages, which go as follows:

Non-REM (NREM) Stage 1
NREM Stage 2
NREM Stage 3 (deep sleep)
REM Sleep

NREM Stage 1 lasts five to 10 minutes; NREM Stage 2 lasts 10 to 20 minutes, and then NREM Stage 3 sets in. During NREM Stage 3 sleep, your muscles relax more, your blood pressure and breathing rate decrease, and slow brain waves begin to emerge.

Pulling yourself out of this very deep sleep results in the characteristic grogginess and impaired performance of sleep inertia, which can last anywhere from mere minutes to hours.

Sometimes it feels like there are only two ways to awaken from a nap: either feeling incredibly energetic and ready to take on the world or feeling so foggy you question your current decade. And even when they are suffering from a severe afternoon slump, many people resist the impulse to take sleep because they know it will just make their symptoms worse.

Fortunately, taking a nap won’t stop you from conquering the rest of your day. Experts have provided advice on how to make sure you get the rest you require and genuinely feel refreshed when you awaken. Learn why you feel worse after a nap, how to stop feeling so groggy after a nap, and when you should think about skipping the nap in the sections below.

What makes me feel worse after a daytime sleep?

Sleep inertia, which is the term for your brain’s desire to continue sleeping and finish a full sleep cycle, is what causes that familiar sleepy feeling. A sudden awakening from deep sleep or slow wave sleep, which is the type of sleep you start to go into about 30 minutes after dozing, causes sleep inertia.

This is why, among other nap best practices, experts advise limiting daytime sleep to only 10 to 20 minutes. The stages of sleep are everything, and they go as follows:

Stage 1 Non-REM (NREM)
Stage 2 of NREM
Stage 3 of NREM (deep sleep)
Sleep in REM

NREM Stage 1 lasts for five to ten minutes, followed by NREM Stage 2 and NREM Stage 3, which last for twenty to thirty minutes. Your muscles continue to relax; further, your blood pressure and breathing rate slow down, and slow brain waves start to emerge during NREM Stage 3 sleep.

When you wake up from this really deep sleep, you experience sleep inertia, which can cause you to feel groggy and perform poorly for anywhere between a few minutes to many hours.

Why does taking a daytime sleep make me grumpy?

After a nap, crankiness or any other type of negative mood is more of a side effect of sleep inertia than a true aftereffect. Nobody likes to have their good sleep interrupted, and the loud beeping of an alarm interrupting deep slumber is enough to make anyone’s mood miserable. A protracted slumber could rouse you up from a deep sleep, leaving you irritable and sleep drunk. Your total nap time should be 15 minutes.

This provides you with roughly 10 minutes of uninterrupted sleep (assuming you need 5 min to fall asleep).

If it feels okay, try a 20-minute complete nap and see how it goes.

Depending on how long it takes you to fall asleep and how you feel, adjust the length of your nap: You’ll nod off and enter deep sleep more quickly if you slept little the previous night.

Why?

Stage 1, stage 2, deep sleep, and REM sleep are different stages of sleep.

You don’t want to be startled out of a sound slumber because that could result in sleep inertia, making you feel worse off than you were before the nap.

According to research, only a small number of persons who snooze for 10 to 15 minutes have a deep sleep. Why does taking a nap make me grumpy?

Many advantages to daytime sleep have been discovered by sleep scientists. Taking a nap can assist in lowering stress, strengthen the immune system, and lift our spirits. Post-lunch daytime sleep can keep us awake and increase our performance at work. There is even evidence, albeit from tiny research, in favor of the “nappuccino,” which involves drinking coffee shortly before a nap and waking up feeling revived as a result of the interaction between caffeine and sleep.

Despite all of this, not everyone enjoys napping. Many people experience morning drowsiness. When we take daytime sleep that lasts longer than 20 minutes, we are more likely to experience a condition known as “sleep inertia.” Although the specific reason of sleep inertia is unknown, it may be related to the adenosine molecule, which accumulates in our brains during the day and lowers during sleep.

If the adenosine hasn’t completely dissipated by the time we wake up, we could feel groggy. However, even brief daytime sleep has the potential to result in this condition (one reason why we should always give ourselves time to fully wake up before, for example, driving). Taking daytime sleep is not advised if you suffer from insomnia because it can make us feel less drowsy at night.

Given that newborn sleep, duration appears to be influenced by genetics, our genes may also contribute to the difference in how some adults feel after a nap. Feel no pressure to nap if it’s not your thing; focus instead on having a restful night’s sleep instead!

How to stay awake and cheerful after a nap

You should be aware that you can prevent the negative side effects of daytime sleep if you strive to avoid taking them at all costs because you constantly seem to awaken confused or irritated at everyone and everything. Here are four suggestions for getting up from daytime sleep feeling rejuvenated rather than exhausted:

Plan your nap accordingly.

The time of your slumber is everything. According to Dr. Dawn Dore-Stites, an assistant professor in the pediatrics department of Michigan Medicine’s sleep disorder center and a member of the Reverie sleep advisory board, the more problems a nap normally causes, the longer it is.

According to Dore-Stites, the likelihood that you may enter deeper phases of sleep increases with the length of your sleep. “The grogginess and anger can result from waking up from those stages. The ideal nap length is 20 minutes. You’ll frequently feel more rested when you awaken.”

The only exception is if you have enough time to take a nap that lasts the whole 90–120 minutes of a sleep cycle. You’re best off waking up before you ever enter a deep slumber, though, unless you’re extremely tuned into your sleep cycle and can determine the precise time you need to wake up.

You should also make an effort to take a nap as early in the afternoon as possible. In particular, if it’s already becoming dark outside when you wake up from your sleep, taking a nap close to when you go to bed can throw off your body and leave you feeling foggy for the rest of the evening.

Immediately after waking up, leave your bed.

It can be very tempting to press the snooze button or to scroll on your phone for a while but resist the impulse. Being in that kind of half-asleep, extremely sleepy state while still in bed can intensify or prolong post-nap grogginess.

And when you do get out of bed, make sure your body understands that it isn’t time for bed and that there are still things to do by exposing yourself to natural daylight by opening curtains or blinds. How to stay awake and cheerful after a nap

After your slumber, engage in anything stimulating.

If the natural light from the sun isn’t enough to get you going, consider one of these strategies for a more potent wake-up call:

Face-washing or a quick burst of cold water
Sup on some water.
Consume a balanced supper or snack.
Take a few mild stretches.
Take a quick walk
Playing music

According to research, listening to music and washing your face can both help you feel better after a nap. Intense workouts and light activities like stretching and walking can both improve mood and energy, preventing afternoon slumps.

Enjoy a coffee snooze.

That is a thing, yes. The term “coffee nap” describes taking a nap after drinking a lot of coffee. If all goes according to plan, you’ll wake up extra rested and energized because caffeine’s effects peak between 30 and 60 minutes after consumption, which is close to the time you should awaken from a nap.

However, if you drink coffee too soon before you intend to nap, you run the danger of missing the chance since the caffeine will start to take effect and keep you awake. Coffee daytime sleep, therefore, depend on the timing, just like suggestion number one.

When to take a daytime sleep and when not to

Even if you feel as though you can’t keep your eyes open in the afternoon, Dore-Stites argues that taking a nap isn’t necessarily the solution.

Dore-Stites advises taking a quick nap if you genuinely don’t get enough sleep at night in order to maintain your energy levels during the day. However, taking daytime sleep when you aren’t sleep deprived can interfere with your ability to doze off, making your nighttime sleep less restful.

Dore-Stites told, “Overall, it is better to have one good long period of sleep at night than to sleep in “pockets” during the day and night. Such sleeping habits frequently increase feelings of exhaustion and poor vitality.

You might want to steer clear of daytime sleep for the most part if you struggle to fall asleep and stay asleep most nights due to insomnia. Dore-Stites advises against taking daytime sleep if you often get enough rest at night. If you do, you risk getting caught in a vicious cycle of irregular sleep patterns, sleep inertia, and the grogginess you’re trying to avoid.

Taking daytime sleep is much better than sleeping through your alarm during the day. However, there is a method to getting it correctly. Sleep specialists suggest the following.

What is a daytime power nap?

“The normal length of a power sleep is 20 to 30 minutes. Taking these naps can really help you maintain alertness if you’re having trouble getting through the second half of the day or if you occasionally feel sleepy. You can do this either in addition to or instead of using coffee or other sources of caffeine, “Behavioral sleep expert at the University of Michigan, Deirdre Ann Conroy, says.

Conroy cautions that not everyone should take a power nap, especially those who have trouble falling asleep at night or suffer from insomnia. “Taking naps during the day might significantly reduce the quality of your nighttime sleep. Therefore, we normally advise those who have problems falling or staying asleep to refrain from taking a nap during the day, “Conroy explains.

The best way to power nap

Conroy offers some advice below on how to power nap when you’re feeling sleepy or need a quick energy boost if you don’t have sleep disorders or insomnia and want to try it.

Set a timer for no more than 20 or 30 minutes.

Even though it may not seem like much, 20-minute naps are the ideal length for making you feel more alert and less sleepy. Conroy suggests using an alarm to prevent excessive snoozing. “If we consider the stages of our sleep cycle, we typically enter very deep states of sleep after 20 to 30 minutes. Because of this, you should avoid sleeping for a lengthy time in the middle of the day. After 20 to 30 minutes of lighter sleep periods, you can feel better, “Conroy declares.

Since getting up from a deep sleep abruptly throughout the day (or anytime) might feel jarring and make you feel less-than-rested, staying in the lighter sleep stages during your nap is crucial to making sure you feel better.

Early in the day is a good time for daytime sleep.

Just as essential as controlling how long you sleep is the timing of your naps. A power daytime sleep taken too late in the day runs the danger of disrupting your nighttime sleep. No matter how worn out you are, you should put a stronger night’s sleep ahead of a brief nap during the day.

Conroy asserts that there is no perfect time frame since “All internal clocks are unique. Although I’ve heard that it’s not advised to nap after 5 o’clock, your definition of that time may differ from mine. I simply want to keep it general, so I’ll say things like early in the morning or late at night, whatever it is for you, “Conroy explains.

Consider possible sleep disorders and address them.

Conditions called sleep disorders to cause changes in how you sleep. Your general health, safety, and enjoyment of life may be impacted by a sleep disturbance. Lack of sleep can make it more difficult for you to drive safely and raise your chance of developing other health issues.

Excessive daytime sleepiness, uneven breathing, or increased activity during sleeping are

a few signs and symptoms of sleep problems. An uneven sleep-wake cycle and trouble falling asleep are two more indications.

The many types of sleep problems are numerous. They are frequently categorized into groups that describe why they occur or how they affect you. Other ways to categorize sleep disorders include habits, issues with your natural sleep-wake cycles, respiratory issues, difficulties falling asleep or staying asleep, and how sleepy you feel during the day.

These are a few examples of typical sleep disorders:

insomnia is when you have trouble falling asleep or sleeping through the night.
You can have sleep apnea, which causes irregular breathing patterns while you’re asleep. Sleep apnea can take many different forms.
RLS is a specific kind of sleep movement disorder. When you try to fall asleep, restless legs syndrome, also known as Willis-Ekbom illness, creates an uncomfortable feeling and the impulse to move your legs.
Extreme daytime sleepiness and unplanned sleep during the day are symptoms of the condition narcolepsy.

Sleep disturbances can be diagnosed in a variety of ways. Once they are accurately diagnosed, most sleep disorders may typically be effectively treated by doctors.

If you live in the Philadelphia area, consider holistic treatment for sleeping disorders at the Philadelphia Holistic Clinic.

At the clinic, the team of licensed medical professionals works under the supervision of medical doctor Victor Tsan.

All holistic techniques, including acupuncture, homeopathy, reiki, hypnosis, Ayurveda, etc., are available under one roof.

Contact the clinic to schedule your appointment for the holistic evaluation and treatment if necessary.