Mastering The All-Important College Skill Of… Effective Napping!

Sometimes college students aren’t known to pick up the most positive of habits, such as drinking too much or procrastinating work and then performing poorly. While those topics and habits deserve their own discussions, not all college-related habits are negative. Once you’re in school, you’ll inevitably start napping, which done correctly, can be one of the healthiest habits to pick up!

The nap though, like any habit, is too often abused. Since college life is associated with not enough sleep, longer naps seems to be the solution, at least most students think. It’s true that if you slept only two hours the night before, the power nap just won’t cut it, but try not to let those naps stretch into marathon sleep sessions. At some point, naps become sleep, as in that they’re just like sleeping for a night… except it’s 2 o’clock in the afternoon. The best naps will last you 10 to 30 minutes, giving you that boost of energy that no matter what the latest marketing trend says, will still be better than an energy drink.

The time that you nap is also important. Taking a nap too late can make it difficult to fall asleep at night. The best time to nap is around 2 or 3 p.m., which can really be nice if you get sleepy after lunch. Sometimes your class schedule won’t permit an ideal nap time, but that’s why if you keep it short, an evening nap can still help reinvigorate the rest of your day. And if you’ll be up late anyway, that evening nap is just what’s needed. If you’re worried you’ll sleep too long, set an alarm; it’s an obvious yet underused solution. Instead of risking it, set your alarm and wake up before it’s too late and that nap becomes a hibernation.

Naps aren’t for all students, though. If you’re already not sleeping well or enough at night, a nap can sometimes further cause problems to your sleep cycle. And if despite your use of an alarm, if you know that nap will turn into an hours-long activity, you’re probably better off focusing more on trying to sleep well at night. Naps are all about trial and error. If you find you sleep better in the 4 to 5 p.m. range and it isn’t worsening your sleep at night, aim for that time as opposed to the earlier afternoon. Fortunately it’s easy to tell when effective napping is working: you’ll feel better and more energized.

If napping can help learning, memory, and mental acuity, as a college student who’s there to learn a thing or two, napping sounds like a healthy habit, and it is. But if napping replaces regular nighttime sleeping, you’ve crossed the line. Only use naps supplementally for the healthiest and the most feel-good results.