Would you nap at work?

Sabre0001

A write-up from the Irish Examiner points to studies that say napping can make us more productive, better thinkers, and happier. Plus it ticks a box for corporations who like to emphasise work-life balance (though in many cases this seems to be for show).

The article talks about how naps could be the new caffeine...but it also goes on to mention that we could just be more alert during the working day by sleeping better.

So, would you take a nap at work? Or, if you do already, do you find it makes a difference?

I do enjoy a good nap, so I'd be very tempted, but I'd say for the first while it would be tricky to drift off and then there are timing issues - not at the same time as all your team...or the snorer!

Linky

Tom Mann Centuria

Take a nap every lunchtime, try and get at least half an hour. Even if I don't sleep I close the eyes and relax.

seamus

No, I don't nap. Can't do it, never have.

Dial Hard

seamus wrote: »

No, I don't nap. Can't do it, never have.

Same. Wake up feeling like I've a hangover without fail. Besides, it's bad enough having to get up once a day!

Boom_Bap

Nope, if I'm feeling tired at work I go for a glass of water and a walk.

I'm like a demon after waking up from a nap, nobody needs to witness that.

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Shenshen

I don't do naps, never did.
My mother swears by them, I remember she used to try and force me to take naps when I was little, but I never could much as I tried.

I do take a good break at lunchtime, though. Usually either going for a walk or (if the weather is bad) reading a book for about 30 minutes.

Malari

seamus wrote: »

No, I don't nap. Can't do it, never have.

Me either. I have tried the odd time, when I'm really exhausted but it never works. I never fall asleep during the day.

Ubbquittious

I am napping now at work this very minute

I'd always be in bits after a daytime nap.
When I was on work experience from college in a Cork pharma plant one of the lads there (must have been 60 odd at the time) had a snooze in his office every lunchtime.

If we had a nap room i totally would

McMurphy

Only if I have worthwhile material.

Edit. Sorry I thought the title said fap.

Greentopia

I work at home and yes I nap every day. I have a siesta after my lunch. Love it. Have definitely been more productive and alert in the afternoon since I started napping.

valoren

I get out of the office and walk for 45 minutes to an hour (or go for a run) instead.

hairyslug

Nope, I would wake up groggy and more tired than what I would have been before the nap.

lawred2

seamus wrote: »

No, I don't nap. Can't do it, never have.

same... simply wouldn't fall asleep no matter how tired I was

somesoldiers

From our company Employee handbook, Rule 345: No napping, no fapping

heroics

hairyslug wrote: »

Nope, I would wake up groggy and more tired than what I would have been before the nap.

Trick is to set alarm for 15-20 mins. I do it the odd time.

One of the lads in here does it all the time you can hear him snoring across the office.

redcup342

Went for a kip in the car once, was up at 4.30am, had a flight in at 6amand went straight to the office after working until 9pm the day before.

Was sitting at my desk and my eyes were so heavy I thought I might bang my head :pac:

andekwarhola

bluewolf wrote: »

If we had a nap room i totally would

This. Would love a facility like this at work although I assume it'd be hard enough to get a free one.

Tabnabs

Business hammocks, if only there was a place to get such a thing...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IujLD7nSf8Q

Tom Mann Centuria

....... wrote: »

Where?

We used to have a staff member who would sprawl out over her desk and sleep - in an open plan office - it really looked so unprofessional.

Theres nowhere I could nap at work (I definitely would if I could) - except my car but youd mostly be cold out there.

Car, always make sure I park at back of car park, in summer windows down, listen to to the birds in the bushes, winter zip up me coat.

Aglomerado

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Jaysus I've seen some strange stuff but nothing like that!!

(Our desks are only about 4' wide with partitions between them so not exactly comfortable...)

I'd love a nap today (cat woke me up last night at 4am barfing up a hairball) but I'll just have to settle for a walk at lunchtime....

Badly Drunk Boy

Due to very little sleep on Monday night, I nearly fell asleep a few times yesterday. I'm in an office by myself where you have to swipe in, so I tried to fall asleep with head resting on my hand (elbow on the desk, with arm upright). If anyone came in, I'd hear the beep and come to life. I was really just resting my eyes.

At one stage my manager came in to ask about a job he couldn't do, so for the first few groggy seconds, I was down to his level of incompetence.

angeldelight

Thread title reminded me of a crazy lady I used to work with. She took her sleeping tablet too late one night so was still majorly zonked when she arrived into work (retail). She sat down in the back for a minute, fell asleep and slept for a good hour and a half - she was a complete wreck the head so I was much happier with her asleep so I left her to it. Her mortification when she woke up was also quite enjoyable

seamus

heroics wrote: »

Trick is to set alarm for 15-20 mins. I do it the odd time.

That would be 15-20 minutes of me lying there with my eyes closed, thinking about the stuff I could be doing right now.

It just doesn't work. If it's not bedtime, my brain won't shut down and sleep.

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Beasty

Tom Mann Centuria wrote: »

Take a nap every lunchtime, try and get at least half an hour. Even if I don't sleep I close the eyes and relax.

Pretty much do the same. Does me the world of good into the afternoon/evening

RiseToMe

I don't do it everyday but when absolutely shot I'll have a coffee and then set my alarm for 20 mins time and have a nap. Have a nice little pillow set up with a decent chair. I work for myself though.

However, always make sure you lock the office door from the inside. I got every startled by a courier one day.

Blazer

A 20 minute power nap during the day gives you the same recuperating energy as an 8 hour sleep at night.
All the Asian races do it during work etc but they all work 12+ days. It used to be unreal walking into office areas and seeing up to 100 Malaysians asleep at their desk for 20 mins and then wake up like the Duracell bunny on ecstasy.

Dial Hard

RiseToMe wrote: »

However, always make sure you lock the office door from the inside. I got every startled by a courier one day.

A friend of my sister did this one morning years ago; she'd been out the night before, got in before the boss and thought she'd catch a few zzzs before he arrived. He got there, couldn't get in, looked in the window, saw her slumped in the chair with her mouth open, banged and knocked and got no response. He ended up ringing the fire brigade - he thought she was dead :pac::pac::pac:

doolox

Thank god I no longer have to worry about falling asleep at meetings, "looking busy" or other work related nonsense to keep a boss happy, or other drone like behaviour in order to earn a living and keep a HR dept and a coterie of semi skilled semi educated middle management out of my life.

The modern workplace has become too intense and demanding for most people to such an extent that mental health and physical health issues are becoming more prevalent in the face of longer hours, more work demanded in those hours, less time to sleep and rest, longer commutes, less peace in the home environment due to more people in less space due to higher rents etc.

It was common in my former workplace for people to nap in their cars rather than be caught napping at their desks or workplaces. It was common for people to nod off at meetings, complain about being tired all the time etc.

There was a culture of fear and compulsion about having a nap or any other form of rest. Since leaving that place I am self employed and much more focussed in my work and can enjoy myself more. Sleep deprivation is no longer an issue. I can arrange my hours better and sort out my sleeping arrangements much better without the worry and stress of working for a large, impersonal, greedy and predatorial multinational who only want to squeeze the most out of you for the best years of your life and get rid of you when you become a "burden" and are too slow and awkward to change with the demands of the modern workplace.

My partner also had a similar experience, changing from front line nursing to a backroom admin role which she can do mostly from home at her own times and get to rest when needed, not when a shift manager or onerous workloads allow it.

It appears to me that only leaders and independently wealthy people at the top of their game can get away with napping. Hitler was infamous for late rising and not allowing his rest to be interrupted for anything. Churchill was also noted for taking midday work naps and also for drinking during working hours....things which would not be tolerated at any level in the modern workplace.

Margaret Thatcher was also noted for her unusually sleeping hours, they were very short, often 4hrs or less which allowed her to keep ahead of her cabinet in most levels of details for as long as she did.

Trump seems to have the same trait, needing little sleep and tweeting at all hours when the other staff are not around to mind him.

Dramatik

I wouldn't dare, for fear of waking up 10 or 12 hours later. If I'm tired I usually wash my face with cold water and splash some of it lightly into my eyes, I also have eyedrops in my drawer for more severe cases.

I can nap anywhere. I once fell asleep in an anti-aircraft gun - while it was firing. If my job doesn't engage me, I'm at serious risk of falling asleep either at my computer or in a meeting. Thats why I always bring a pen and notepad with me to meetings, its so I can stab myself in the leg if I feel myself drifting off.

If there was somewhere I could go for a 20 minute nap around 3pm I would do it most days.

faceman

We have a bed in a room in the office for employee use.

Would I nap? YES!

Could I nap? Hell no!

In fact no one has used it as far as I know

seamus

Deleted User wrote: »

I can nap anywhere. I once fell asleep in an anti-aircraft gun - while it was firing. If my job doesn't engage me, I'm at serious risk of falling asleep either at my computer or in a meeting. Thats why I always bring a pen and notepad with me to meetings, its so I can stab myself in the leg if I feel myself drifting off.

There was a good discussion on reddit recently about the sleeping habits of military personnel and how the basic training basically trained you to sleep anywhere at any time. And your body would naturally drop off to sleep when it seemed like an opportune time (i.e. you weren't actively doing something).

It was fascinating to hear a lot of the other stories of crazy sleeping.
https://www.reddit.com/r/funny/comments/6hzplr/this_is_actually_a_proven_method/

seamus

seamus wrote: »

There was a good discussion on reddit recently about the sleeping habits of military personnel and how the basic training basically trained you to sleep anywhere at any time. And your body would naturally drop off to sleep when it seemed like an opportune time (i.e. you weren't actively doing something).

It was fascinating to hear a lot of the other stories of crazy sleeping.
https://www.reddit.com/r/funny/comments/6hzplr/this_is_actually_a_proven_method/

I remember doing tactics down in Cork a few years ago, and we all got on the truck to go back to barracks which was about 15 minutes away. One of the lads said he had said "Ye're all very quiet" at some point during the journey and then discovered everyone except himself was asleep.

Makes sense I suppose. I regularly fall asleep on the luas, both in the morning and in the evening.

PandaPoo

I'm a stay at home mam and I used to nap every day. My youngest sleeps for 2 hours while my eldest is in school, so I'd sleep for an hour.

I couldn't nap in an office though, because apparently I snore like a warthog, and also I'd get kicked out for not working there.

I'd love to be able to nap at work. Only if I could give it the full hour and a half though, those sissy cat naps don't do it for me at all.

It has to be a full-on, blankie-wrapped, shoes-off, blinds down snoozie snooze.

messy tessy

faceman wrote: »

We have a bed in a room in the office for employee use

I feel you need to explain this further! :P

corner of hells

I used to work night's as part of a small team and if it was a quiet night you could nap for hour an hour once you kept a radio nearby .

Most shifts it worked well , but one ****face wasn't happy with an hour , she reckoned if we were quiet she reckoned should be allowed sleep as long as she wanted.

An hour became ninety minutes then two hours eventually up to 3 and half hours asleep on a 12 hour shift.

Came to head one morning when she forgot to set her alarm and couldn't be awoken by radio chatter.

Boss was not a happy camper finding her asleep under a duvet she brought into work.

seamus

seamus wrote: »

No, I don't nap. Can't do it, never have.

God, I nap all the time. Gone in < 60 s.
Hopefully if it turns out i have sleep apnea and treat it that will change though

bluewolf

bluewolf wrote: »

God, I nap all the time. Gone in < 60 s.
Hopefully if it turns out i have sleep apnea and treat it that will change though

Could easily do, BW. My elder brother was diagnosed in the sleep clinic and when he got his thingy (PAP?) he was bouncing out of bed in the morning like a toddler.

LadyMacBeth_

I can usually sleep anywhere at any time. I often doze off on the couch and when I'm a passenger in the car. I sleep through plenty of noise too. I claim that it is the sleep of the innocent

Mr_Muffin

Had a public sector job in the past where I had a make shift bed and used to sleep for as long and often as I wanted.

Was really nice for a while but it threw my sleep patterns off so I decided to only have a short nap/read a book in my 'bed' instead of sleeping for 3+ hours .

faceman

messy tessy wrote: »

I feel you need to explain this further! :P

There is no way of explaining it without it not sounding dodgy!

It's a single bed in a small room that we call the "first aid" room.

A hangover is a medical issue right?

Cee-Jay-Cee

I do now and then, I try and find a quiet unused office/room and lean a chair up against a wall and nod off for 15/20 minutes.

jamesbere

Yes, but shhhhhhh don't tell anybody

As a general rule I hate napping and never do it as I wake up feeling like crap. However there have been a few occasions where I was so wrecked and hungover I've gone into the jacks for a sleep.

sticker

i work from home and for 10 years try to squeeze an hour nap into the afternoon. Love it but get some stick from my wife... to be fair its not something I'm proud of but it doesnt interfere with my work and its now developed into a habbit. i see it as a bit embarrassing but feel it really shouldn't be.

Hector Savage

I worked in a place that had a room with soft benches in it that you could nap.
there was a fishtank and nice relaxing music, sometimes I'd go in but **** you would come out worse ... just wishing for more sleep as you could only really nap for 30 mins max.

Also be careful of these "fun, trendy, cool" places to work that might have this - especially American companies - its all for show.