Anyone take naps at work?

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pascal
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Anyone take naps at work?

Post by pascal »

Do any of you take naps at work?

I strongly believe it increases efficiency if I am are staring at your computer all day without meetings where I am driving. Also I am a general light sleeper and have problems getting 7-8 hours of sleep every night. If I do take such a break, I usually stay back more than the duration of the break to get stuff done.

Just wondering if people take naps at work and if anybody has inputs on how they view such breaks?
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il0kin
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Re: Anyone take naps at work?

Post by il0kin »

Shortly after the birth of my son when we were barely sleeping, I would go to the parking lot and take a catnap in my car during lunch for 15 minutes. Right or wrong, it would be viewed very poorly to take a nap in my office. I agree with your stance and think all offices should have a nap room or two but it is a hard norm to break.
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Re: Anyone take naps at work?

Post by nisiprius »

The answer is that while I was working, a) yes, I did take naps, and b) I didn't do it too openly. I generally took my naps out in the car in the parking lot, during lunch break, and I usually parked my car on a sort of second section of the parking lot, built when the company headcount was higher, which was farther from the building and usually had few cars parked in it. I don't know how it was "viewed."

I think it should be allowed. I think US culture is still out of sync with research and reality... but it is. I think it falls in the category of things that most bosses will not make an issue of if you're otherwise a "good" employee, and if you keep it discreet enough that the boss's boss doesn't become aware of it!
Last edited by nisiprius on Wed Jul 11, 2018 12:33 pm, edited 3 times in total.
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Luke Duke
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Re: Anyone take naps at work?

Post by Luke Duke »

I only know/knew one guy who naps at work. He's an older guy that works more hours than he needs to (I presume that he gets bored at home) so no one really cares. It was at a smaller company where everyone knew everyone else. I think that the perception would be bad at a larger company.
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Re: Anyone take naps at work?

Post by Teague »

pascal wrote: Wed Jul 11, 2018 12:22 pm Do any of you take naps at work?

I strongly believe it increases efficiency if I am are staring at your computer all day without meetings where I am driving. Also I am a general light sleeper and have problems getting 7-8 hours of sleep every night. If I do take such a break, I usually stay back more than the duration of the break to get stuff done.

Just wondering if people take naps at work and if anybody has inputs on how they view such breaks?
My boss often did. He seemed to enjoy that. His pet employee did as well, the one who would keep an eye on us, and that seemed fine with the boss. The rest of us, not so much. As far as how we viewed this, well, individual opinions were frowned upon.
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Re: Anyone take naps at work?

Post by Pajamas »

I have on rare occasions but have worked with people who did so on a regular basis for various reasons.

If you don't have any furniture at work suitable for napping, consider getting a folding camping cot or lawn chair that fully extends. It's easier to make up a reason other than napping for having a lawn chair at work if that is necessary.
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Re: Anyone take naps at work?

Post by dcabler »

Frequently - after lunch, I often go out to my car, lay the seat down, and take a 15-30 minute siesta. We have a parking garage, so I can usually park away from everybody else. In the past, when we didn't have a garage, I could park in the far reaches of the parking lot under a tree.

My dad did this his entire life. Hopefully it's one of the things that helped him live to 92 with all of his faculties intact. And hopefully it'll work similarly for me!
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Re: Anyone take naps at work?

Post by Rupert »

Only one guy naps at my work. He's well past full retirement age. We thought he had narcolepsy because he would nod off while sitting at his desk without even realizing it, but, after testing, it was determined to be sleep apnea. Either way, he probably should retire. Napping is not part of our workplace culture in general. Previously, we had a pregnant employee who napped. She brought in a sleeping bag and pillow and napped on her office floor after lunch. She was hugely pregnant and a fine lawyer in general, so she got a pass.
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lthenderson
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Re: Anyone take naps at work?

Post by lthenderson »

Knew a guy who told me about his late night and how tired he was. A few hours later rumors started swirling that he had been fired. When I saw him later, he had said that he just had to take a nap to get through the day and had chosen to nap underneath the conference room table. It was one of those that had three solid sides underneath with an opening on one end to allow for someone to crawl underneath and wire things on top like speakers and phones. Unbeknownst to the guy who was fired, the CEO had a meeting in that very same conference room and the guy I knew evidently snores.

I never took a nap at work. I made sure I was well rested before I came to work. If I reached a point where I just had to grab a nap, like others, I would probably do it in my car. It sets a bad example to employee moral with some people taking naps and others working away.
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Re: Anyone take naps at work?

Post by Nicolas »

One of my colleagues did, he kept a dog bed under his desk for this purpose. Also he worked the graveyard shift on weekends, nobody else around.

I did too, once in a while, when I was still in the workforce, out in my car during lunchtime.
Last edited by Nicolas on Thu Jul 12, 2018 5:08 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Pajamas
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Re: Anyone take naps at work?

Post by Pajamas »

Rupert wrote: Wed Jul 11, 2018 12:34 pm Only one guy naps at my work. He's well past full retirement age. We thought he had narcolepsy because he would nod off while sitting at his desk without even realizing it, but, after testing, it was determined to be sleep apnea. Either way, he probably should retire. Napping is not part of our workplace culture in general. Previously, we had a pregnant employee who napped. She brought in a sleeping bag and pillow and napped on her office floor after lunch. She was hugely pregnant and a fine lawyer in general, so she got a pass.
I have worked with people who would routinely fall asleep in meetings for unknown reasons.

Half the fun is waking them up so they can deny ever having been asleep. Another fun way to handle it is to quietly leave and turn out the lights when the meeting is over.
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Re: Anyone take naps at work?

Post by bhsince87 »

Occasionally. But not intentionally! :oops:
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Re: Anyone take naps at work?

Post by btenny »

I had an older guy (60-70?) who worked in my group and on my project and other projects who took a short nap almost every day. He was a good guy and good employee. No one thought much about his napping. I never talked to him about it even when he worked directly for me. It was just what he did. He just set his head down on his desk and went to sleep for 30 minutes or so every day after lunch. If he had meetings he would skip the nap. He was a steady worker who never goofed off or talked much about anything but work. So he was very productive and good at his job and fit in well as a respected co-worker even though most of us were only 30ish.

So I think a short nap should be fine in most work places. But just make sure you are completing your work as necessary and interfacing with others as necessary.

Good Luck.
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Re: Anyone take naps at work?

Post by daheld »

The company my wife works for has apparently ok'd napping, so long as the time is not being charged to a charge line.

It's obviously different if you're just a straight hourly or salaried employee and don't have to document any time spent whatsoever. But I think in her company's instance, it's the right call. I think they eventually had to make this decision after having people sleeping on the job and charging customers for that time.
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Re: Anyone take naps at work?

Post by lthenderson »

Pajamas wrote: Wed Jul 11, 2018 12:45 pm I have worked with people who would routinely fall asleep in meetings for unknown reasons.
Worked with a guy that did that. He went for a annual checkup and found out one of his major arteries was about 95% plugged. After they put in a stint and ballooned him, he was back to normal again. If it isn't "normal" behavior, I would definitely suggest getting a checkup.
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Re: Anyone take naps at work?

Post by LawyersGunsAndMoney »

Definitely not. I actually sometimes go to the gym during work hours - more or less the opposite of napping.

If I observed any of my team napping during work hours, I'd definitely have a productive convo with them about their workload, hours and home-life.

If someone had worked really late the night before, or just had a new baby or something I'll tell them to come in late or send them home. The optics of seeing/catching someone napping during the workday are generally problematic and can sow discord.
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Re: Anyone take naps at work?

Post by VictoriaF »

Even when I was working, I tried to get adequate night sleep and did not need naps. However, for those who need naps, there is a workplace paradox:
- if you nap during a meeting or a lecture, it's excusable
- if you nap at your desk, it's an offense.

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rebellovw
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Re: Anyone take naps at work?

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Image
Afty
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Re: Anyone take naps at work?

Post by Afty »

We have nap pods at my work. In 7 years I’ve used them once. Not a big napper myself.

As a manager, I would have no problem with any of my reports napping as long as it is not affecting their work.
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Re: Anyone take naps at work?

Post by WestUniversity »

Occasionally during lunch, at my desk, with the door closed. When I say occasionally I mean once or twice a month. Usually when I’ve burned too much at both ends...
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Re: Anyone take naps at work?

Post by DartThrower »

Back in the days when I was exercising vigorously for competitions I used to nap in the afternoon the day after a hard workout despite trying hard not to. These days I don't work out nearly as often or as hard and I feel the need to nap much less. Most of the time I can fight it off and just plug along at my computer.

Many people I know say that exercise energizes them. It makes me feel great too, however I do seem to need to nap more often. Has anyone else noticed this?
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Re: Anyone take naps at work?

Post by Random Poster »

In an environment where work intrudes on activities that one conducts at home, it should be perfectly acceptable for such activities to intrude on those that are conducted at work.
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Re: Anyone take naps at work?

Post by il0kin »

LawyersGunsAndMoney wrote: Wed Jul 11, 2018 12:56 pm Definitely not. I actually sometimes go to the gym during work hours - more or less the opposite of napping.

If I observed any of my team napping during work hours, I'd definitely have a productive convo with them about their workload, hours and home-life.

If someone had worked really late the night before, or just had a new baby or something I'll tell them to come in late or send them home. The optics of seeing/catching someone napping during the workday are generally problematic and can sow discord.
What about using your company-granted and approved 1 hour lunch break to nap in your car, away from others? I don't see why a manager should care one way or another if an employee uses allocated break time to nap and then returns fully awake and probably more productive to their desk when they should. Heck, it's arguably better than mindlessly scrolling through Facebook or gossiping. Now if the nap was going over normal break time, or cutting into the 40-hour work expectation, then yes definitely it would be problematic.

Like I said above, shortly after our son was born I did go take naps in my car when I needed to over lunch, but never dropped below my expected 40 hours of work. I don't see why that is problematic, personally.
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Re: Anyone take naps at work?

Post by JoeRetire »

pascal wrote: Wed Jul 11, 2018 12:22 pm Do any of you take naps at work?
I no longer work. But when I did I never took a nap. The only coworker who napped was an alcoholic.

Work is for working. Home is for napping.
Also I am a general light sleeper and have problems getting 7-8 hours of sleep every night.
If you have sleep problems, work with your doctor to deal with them.
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Re: Anyone take naps at work?

Post by Loik098 »

I'm not sure how asking what others do in their own work environments will help to directly answer whether you can/should nap at your own workplace.

The way I see it, you have a few choices: outright ask your boss about his/her thoughts on the matter, fix the sleep issues at home, find a way to nap during a time and at a place where you are not seen or expected to work, or find a way to stay awake.
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Re: Anyone take naps at work?

Post by alpenglow »

rebellovw wrote: Wed Jul 11, 2018 1:00 pm Image
This was my first thought!
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Re: Anyone take naps at work?

Post by MotoTrojan »

Reminds me of polyphasic sleep.

http://time.com/5063665/what-is-polyphasic-sleep/

I tried what is called biphasic for a while (4.5 hours of "core sleep" and a 90 minute nap during the day) but the extreme is called the Uberman, which entails a 15-20 min "nap" every 4 hours. You better be able to nap at work to pull that off, as you'll be hit with intense sleep deprivation symptoms if you miss one of your scheduled naps by too much.

I imagine the Uberman could work wonders for someone doing independent research, but I have to imagine the psychological impact of no longer having a real start and end to your day would get to you.
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Re: Anyone take naps at work?

Post by mega317 »

If I was the boss I'd rather my employees nap during the day than spend that time browsing the internet.
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Re: Anyone take naps at work?

Post by runner3081 »

I do it occasionally during the winter in my car when I am exhausted. It is done during a lunch break (that is usually the only time I take a "break" as they don't happen 99.9% of the time).

It would definitely be frowned upon, but I park on the fringes of the lot. Truthfully, wish I could do it more, but it is too hot 9 months out of the year to nap in the car in Phoenix.

The nap itself can't be more than 20-25 minutes, otherwise, I am too groggy for the next hour to be functional :)
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Re: Anyone take naps at work?

Post by SuperGrafx »

JoeRetire wrote: Wed Jul 11, 2018 2:10 pm
I no longer work. But when I did I never took a nap. The only coworker who napped was an alcoholic.

Work is for working. Home is for napping.
+1, well said.
Napping at work...sounds like a millennial thing.
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Re: Anyone take naps at work?

Post by GT99 »

As a manager, as long as my team is doing their job effectively and not doing something that hurts others, I don't much care what they do. Why should I? That's silly. I've seen many folks napping in cars at lunch in various workplaces over the years. Who cares? Different people have different needs - there is no one size fits all approach to sleep.

When I was young and lived close to the office and frequently went out on weeknights, I often went home and napped at lunch. Now that I have a 5 months old who doesn't want to sleep more than 3 hours at a time, I wish I had the ability to nap during the day.
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Re: Anyone take naps at work?

Post by JoeRetire »

SuperGrafx wrote: Wed Jul 11, 2018 2:53 pm +1, well said.
Napping at work...sounds like a millennial thing.
I never blame any one generation for bad ideas.
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Re: Anyone take naps at work?

Post by mega317 »

GT99 wrote: Wed Jul 11, 2018 2:54 pm Now that I have a 5 months old who doesn't want to sleep more than 3 hours at a time, I wish I had the ability to nap during the day.
3 hours? Lol I also have a 5 month old and it sounds like you're in heaven.
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Re: Anyone take naps at work?

Post by Jayhawk11 »

Sure, both my wife and I take the occasional nap at work. We work insane biglaw hours and sometimes the only way to stay alive after an all-nighter is 30 minutes under your desk.

Yea, if you're working at Sonic on a 8 hour shift, a nap is probably not appropriate. But when you're paid salary and working (well) more than 40s a week, it's appropriate. Like cutting out to get a haircut over lunch, grabbing a prescription or dry cleaning, or something like that.
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Re: Anyone take naps at work?

Post by Elsebet »

Many years ago when I sat all day at work I would get tired often but avoided falling asleep fortunately. Now that I have a standing desk I just don't get tired at work. However I haven't been good at sleeping during daylight hours since I was a child. My husband can fall asleep as soon as he sits down regardless of the time.

In the midwest I've had co-workers who fell asleep at their desks or in meetings and it was always reprimanded, but no one cared if you went to your car and took a nap at lunch. One of my old co-workers had a colicky baby and he told me that he would go sit in a bathroom stall to sleep with an alarm set on his phone because he was afraid of being seen sleeping in his car.

At my last company on the west coast, people often fell asleep at their desks and nothing happened to them.

Personally I don't mind if people go sleep in a dedicated room/car as long as they are otherwise productive but am not fond of people sleeping in work areas.
Last edited by Elsebet on Wed Jul 11, 2018 3:46 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Anyone take naps at work?

Post by FeesR-BullNotBullish »

I am a huge believer in the power of an afternoon nap. I used to take 20-30 minute naps. I felt refreshed and more productive after - naps are way better than afternoon coffee for me. I got away from napping because I didn't have a dedicated space in my office, and it was a pain to set up and break down my nap area. Now that I have an employee, naps are out of the question unless I rent a bigger office with a dedicated nap room.

Regardless of how well I sleep at home, I still feel a lull in the afternoon that is made worse when I eat a heavy lunch. I think it's unfortunate when people are judged poorly for taking naps that suit their natural rhythms.
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Re: Anyone take naps at work?

Post by TSR »

I'm an attorney and an inveterate work napper. A few thoughts:

1. For most of my career I've had an office with a door that closes (currently my door locks as well, which is helpful). Napping is very difficult without a closed office.

2. The key question for workplace naps is whether you are a quick napper or a long napper. For me, a 5-10 minute nap revitalizes me. For some people, when they fall asleep they are out for 45 minutes at least. The latter category of people should perhaps not nap at work, or at least be very careful in doing so.

3. In the past I have simply lain down on the carpeted floor on my back for quick power naps. Sometimes I put my knees up against each other for stability. The benefit of this position is that if someone knocks on your door, you can just say that you've been experiencing back issues and your doctor told you to lie on the hard floor during the day. Boom.

4. A work friend of mine moved to another state and left me her day bed that she had in her office. Yes, a day bed. It is the perfect napping furniture because it can play both couch and bed, and you don't sink into it too much. (You can use the bad-back excuse with it as well.)

5. In my previous job I had an office chair with a head rest. I sat in the corner of my two-sided desk, and I had hidden a banker's box full of paper underneath the desk in the corner so that I could recline my chair all the way back then put my feet up on the box. This was a pretty great napping position as well.

6. I frequently walk in on my boss pretending not to nap in his office, so I'd be surprised if anyone made too much of a fuss about it. Frankly I don't care. If someone wants me to be working well then I'm going to take a five-minute nap rather than spend twenty minutes nodding off at my desk. If someone decides to fire me for that reason then I guess I'll just have to live with that.
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Re: Anyone take naps at work?

Post by brokendirtdart »

If I anticipate I will have to to go without sleep for more than a 24 hour period, I'll attempt to get a nap in. Sometimes, like last Friday, it doesn't happen.
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pascal
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Re: Anyone take naps at work?

Post by pascal »

JoeRetire wrote: Wed Jul 11, 2018 2:10 pm
pascal wrote: Wed Jul 11, 2018 12:22 pm Do any of you take naps at work?
I no longer work. But when I did I never took a nap. The only coworker who napped was an alcoholic.

Work is for working. Home is for napping.
Also I am a general light sleeper and have problems getting 7-8 hours of sleep every night.
If you have sleep problems, work with your doctor to deal with them.
I'm assuming you never had to work on evenings/nights and weekends -right? There is a large group of people who cannot sleep well and have no solutions from their doctors.
Loik098 wrote: Wed Jul 11, 2018 2:19 pm I'm not sure how asking what others do in their own work environments will help to directly answer whether you can/should nap at your own workplace.

The way I see it, you have a few choices: outright ask your boss about his/her thoughts on the matter, fix the sleep issues at home, find a way to nap during a time and at a place where you are not seen or expected to work, or find a way to stay awake.
No - I didn't say I was looking for direct answers, I was looking to find out what other people are doing. Someone who has sleep issues and yet continues delivering stuff at work has figured this stuff out - somehow. He is just asking to find out what other people do and probably how they do it.
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Re: Anyone take naps at work?

Post by staythecourse »

I'm a physician and can say one should get looked into if one is having daytime drowsiness. BUT it is true naps at work would most likely IMPROVE efficiency and the inability of employers to modify their viewpoint on this is just archaic. It is as archaic as not having more part time/ shared position jobs for folks who want to work part time to spend time with their family.

I sometimes wonder WHEN (not IF) things will change.

Good luck.
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Re: Anyone take naps at work?

Post by TxAg »

mega317 wrote: Wed Jul 11, 2018 3:09 pm
GT99 wrote: Wed Jul 11, 2018 2:54 pm Now that I have a 5 months old who doesn't want to sleep more than 3 hours at a time, I wish I had the ability to nap during the day.
3 hours? Lol I also have a 5 month old and it sounds like you're in heaven.
I feel for y'all! We have a 2 and 4 yo. The first year neither slept very well.
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Re: Anyone take naps at work?

Post by TeamArgo »

When I was young, there was an older engineer who had developed the ability to fall asleep at his desk in front of the microfilm reader with his eraser touching the screen. When disturbed, he would grumble "Hang on a sec", move the eraser along a circuit line as if finishing a trace of a connection, and then glare up at the person who had the nerve to disturb him. It was art! :annoyed
Years later, I would go out to the car in the parking lot, start the A/C or heat, and take a half hour nap during lunch. My newfangled digital watch alarm would get me back in before the lunch hour ended.
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Re: Anyone take naps at work?

Post by AllieTB1323 »

Yes, my office had what has been described as the best sleeping sofa ever made. Being the boss, I would leave my door slightly cracked and my partner, wife, would wake me if there was a tire fire needing my expertise. I was undergoing chemo at the time and really needed the rest.
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Re: Anyone take naps at work?

Post by VictoriaF »

Sleep is Contagious, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=50Hc9ZRRdV0 [1m 27s]

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Re: Anyone take naps at work?

Post by masonstone »

I did when I was a resident. There were beds in the hospital for that and we were encouraged to sleep during down times. This is back when we were doing 30 hour straight shifts. Napping probably kept the patients safer.
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Re: Anyone take naps at work?

Post by iamlucky13 »

I have, discretely from time to time, especially if I'm working long hours. At one point I saw some research on powernaps that seemed quite positive about the benefits. I don't remember the details, but it fits my experiences.

What works best for me is a bit of coffee or tea, a 20 minute nap that I awake from as the caffeine starts to take effect, and then a brisk 5-10 minute walk. If there is not a good opportunity for a nap, the walk itself is still very helpful. One of the keys is to keep it short to use up the melatonin the body has produced. If I remember right, it's somewhere around an hour or so that you start to progress into the deeper stages of sleep that leave you waking up feeling groggy.

It's definitely something to be aware of the expectations for, though. My last job was far more focused on getting your work done and taking a fair share of the load than what the clock says. If we're keeping up with our tasks and volunteering for new ones as they arise, we can have RC helicopter races in the office for all anybody cares...and have often done so when needing to lighten up a stressful week.

My current job is more formal, and although I think I could still have a nap occasionally, I wouldn't want to be noticed doing so regularly.
kacang
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Re: Anyone take naps at work?

Post by kacang »

Occasionally.

Work has sanctioned nap areas, employees are encouraged to use it when they need it. We have many people who work/travel across different time zones, it's another way to keep energy and productivity up.
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JoeRetire
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Re: Anyone take naps at work?

Post by JoeRetire »

pascal wrote: Wed Jul 11, 2018 4:58 pmI'm assuming you never had to work on evenings/nights and weekends -right? There is a large group of people who cannot sleep well and have no solutions from their doctors.
LOL! Now that would be a rather poor assumption.

I feel bad that your doctors aren't able to help you. But napping at work is a poor solution, IMHO.

I wish you luck.
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Pancakes-Eggs-Bacon
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Re: Anyone take naps at work?

Post by Pancakes-Eggs-Bacon »

Air traffic controller here. I love a good thunderstorm nap. At least I'm not a firefighter... sleep 'til they're hungry, eat 'til they're tired.


Edit: This post is entirely in respectful jest. :)
Last edited by Pancakes-Eggs-Bacon on Thu Jul 12, 2018 3:02 am, edited 1 time in total.
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VictoriaF
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Re: Anyone take naps at work?

Post by VictoriaF »

Pancakes-Eggs-Bacon wrote: Wed Jul 11, 2018 7:15 pm Air traffic controller here. I love a good thunderstorm nap. At least I'm not a firefighter... sleep 'til they're hungry, eat 'til they're tired.
Who is controlling air traffic when you sleep?

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