On weekends, at noon, the sun is shining
A takeaway belly, open a play
Lying on the couch in a daze, I fell asleep
Wake up
Looking at the empty room
Listen to the noise, noise, and laughter outside
Will you feel isolated?
Loneliness comes to mind at this moment
Image source: Stand Cool Helo
Why do you feel a sense of loss after taking a nap for too long?
How long is it best to take a nap?
The answers to these few questions are told to you today.
Man is awake, but the soul is still asleep
1. First introduce a concept - sleep inertia.
This is a temporary groggy, less awake state that arises after waking up from sleep, also known as sleep inertia [1].
At this time, you will feel that your mind is not clear, and even some feeling of wandering.
In this waking state, your alertness is reduced, your consciousness is not clear, your attention is not fully concentrated, and your cognitive functions such as feeling, memory, and thinking are not fully mobilized [1].
That is, you appear to be awake in behavior, but your consciousness is not fully awake.
2. What kind of people are prone to sleep inertia?
It's you, Hit the Worker!
Office workers are busy working, holding meetings, writing PPT, and rolling up during the day, working overtime until the early hours of the morning to go home, and are reluctant to sleep immediately. Brush dramas, play games, watch short videos, and drag them until two or three o'clock.
In this way, people's work and rest disorders will have sleep liabilities, and the possibility of sleep inertia will increase significantly [1].
3. Under what circumstances is sleep inertia prone?
Sleep inertia often occurs when sleep is interrupted, such as early in the morning or after waking up by an alarm clock during a lunch break.
The deeper the previous sleep, the more pronounced the sleep inertia became, and it was more difficult to quickly switch from a deep sleep state to a awake state.
If the lunch break is too long, such as more than 1 hour, it is more likely to have sleep inertia [2].
As a result, you are prone to the feeling of "being in a trance", lonely and lost.
If you often have this depressed feeling, you can try to do mindfulness training.
In addition, the "stress hormone" cortisol can also affect the state of the person.
The right amount of cortisol will put people in a good state of stress resistance. You'll be alert and prepared to cope with stress.
Typically, cortisol secretion is higher in the early morning and peaks around 8 a.m. [3]. From noon to afternoon, cortisol is gradually reduced, so the state and energy in the afternoon are certainly not as strong as before noon.
For a worker who is accustomed to running and being aggressive, waking up in the afternoon is in the inertia of sleep, that is, feeling paused and sluggish. You feel like you're no longer in sync with the world around you, so there's a moment when you feel like you've been "abandoned by the world."
Of course, sleeping in one afternoon on the weekend will also produce a sense of loss and self-blame that the rest time is wasted for the workers who cherish time.
Don't underestimate sleep inertia, something big can happen
As mentioned earlier, people in sleep inertia may not be very clear in consciousness and less responsive, and may make mistakes [2], such as stepping on the air and spraining their ankles when going downstairs, or losing their hands and dropping things.
These small things may seem insignificant, but for some special professions, there is a hidden crisis.
In 2010, an air express company reportedly flew from the United Arab Emirates to India.
As the plane was about to reach its finish line, the captain, who was napping in the cockpit, woke up and took over the plane's operation.
At this point, the co-pilot repeatedly reminded him that the angle of landing was wrong, asked him to pull up the plane and try again, and finally screamed that there was no runway ahead. The plane eventually exploded and caught fire.
After investigation, the tragedy occurred because the captain was in sleep inertia.
Someone did a study that woke up subjects after 40 minutes of napping, and then conducted a series of tests, and found that within nearly 1 hour after waking up, sleep inertia had a significant impact on people's ability to think, remember, and pay attention [4].
This shows that the effect of sleep inertia on cognitive function is an ongoing process. To really "wake up", it takes 40 minutes or more to transition.
People with nap habits usually have a shorter duration of sleep inertia; while people who usually do not have nap habits and occasionally take a nap for a long time have a longer duration of sleep inertia.
How long is the best nap to sleep?
Studies have found that napping for more than 10 minutes can significantly improve fatigue and drowsiness, making your reaction speed and alertness increase.
A little longer nap time, such as 20 to 30 minutes, can also achieve a similar effect of relieving fatigue.
However, naps of more than 30 minutes are prone to sleep inertia [5].
Therefore, nap time is best to take about 20 minutes, not more than 30 minutes.
But more importantly, ensure the time and quality of sleep at night.
brief summary
Naps are a beneficial addition to sleep deprivation at night, especially for early risers. (That's right, our retired mom and dad, and our miserable workers...) ）
If you don't have the habit of napping, you can follow your own rhythm and rest as usual, without having to deliberately use naps to make up for sleep.
The holidays are here, so let's enjoy it
Don't forget to share this article with your friends
Audit expert: Xiao Zhenyu
Assistant Researcher, Institute of Psychology, Chinese Academy of Sciences
bibliography
Chang Dachuan, Zhao Zhongxin, Zhang Peng, et al. Research progress on sleep inertia[J].Chinese Journal of Neurology,2008,41(9):643-644.
Zhao Zhongxin. Clinical Sleep Disorders[M].Shanghai:Second Military Medical University Press,2003.
Yao Jianting,Xu Hongfeng,Wu Mengru. Research progress on factors influencing salivary cortisol secretion rhythm[J].Xinjiang Journal of Traditional Chinese Medicine,2017,35(1),78-81.
[4] Hou Yanhong, Huang Fuen, Miao Danmin, et al. The Effect of Sleep Inertia on Cognitive Function After Nap[J].Chinese Journal of Behavioral Medicine,2003,12(1):95-97.
[5] Wen Hao,Fan Shuangyi. The effect of nap habit on human health[J].World Journal of Sleep Medicine,2017,8(4),213-214.
Editors: Zhang Jie, Zhao Yanan, Zhang Liang
Typesetting: Han Ningning | Proofreader: Wu Yihe
Operations: Li Yongmin | Coordinator: Wu Wei
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