For this new episode of Club Bonheur, we had the pleasure of welcoming Patrick Lesage .
Sophrologist, author and member of the French Society for Research and Sleep Medicine, he talks to us today about naps, its benefits and the reasons why we should all allow ourselves to do so at work but also at home. He also gives us all his advice on how to best practice it, how to integrate it into our daily lives and how to learn to rest.
Why take a nap?
Taking a nap is actually responding to a natural physiological need, a need to recover in the middle of the day, linked to the drop in body temperature, and which it is important not to deprive yourself of.
The benefits of a nap
- It helps reduce the secretion of hormones linked to stress, cortisol.
- It has an impact on everything cognitive, memory, creativity, and concentration.
- It has an impact on the cardiovascular system, a drop in blood pressure.
- It allows you to recover your muscles and relax both mentally and physically.
- It has an impact on productivity, allowing you to do as many things while being less tired.
- Napping allows you to have a better relationship with others, by being more relaxed contact will be improved.
- It limits the risk of road accidents.
When to take a nap?
The first thing to do is to ask yourself if your sleep was restorative (fit, in the morning, when you wake up). Otherwise, states of drowsiness may occur during the day. The nap can then complement these non-qualitative nights. For night workers, a nap is more than necessary, it becomes an essential complement to the sleep time which will have been cut.
The ideal nap according to Patrick
- Choosing the right time that meets our needs
- Put in place everything you need to get to relaxation as quickly as possible (a sleep mask, earplugs)
- Use one or two means to wake up
The ideal position : Sitting with a back slope of 40°, chair tilting slightly, head rested
The ideal time : It depends on chronobiology, morning people, who get up early, the nap will be around 1 p.m., afternoon people around 3 p.m.
The ideal duration : 10-15 min for some, and 20-25 min for others, but do not exceed 30 min. The nap should not be too close to the end of the afternoon so as not to affect nighttime sleep. The benefit of this very short nap allows you to recover without impacting the following night.
“The night prepares for the day”
Patrick recommends practices like meditation , cardiac coherence , and positive psychology so as not to arrive in a state of tension as night approaches.
Avoid blue light in the evening which will block melatonin, the hormone that makes it easier to fall asleep. To do this, you can find applications like F.lux and Twilight which apply an anti-blue light filter directly to your screens or opt for anti-blue light glasses.
Finally, find Patrick’s advice and recommendations through our “ Tonic Quiz ” (quick questions – quick answers) :
- A book to recommend : “ 2h Chrono to sleep better (and gain energy) ”, by Patrick Lesage, published by Dunod.
- A place to take a nap : Your car on a road trip or at home.
- An activity to relax : Do something you enjoy.
- A drink to relax : Water.
- A sound that puts you to sleep : The sound of the moment.
- One last piece of advice : “When you do not have a pathology, you can significantly improve your sleep by respecting the way your body functions.”
If you enjoyed this episode, find Patrick Lesage on his website , in his book “ 2 hours to sleep better (and gain energy) ”, published by Dunod, on his Linkedin profile, and in a video produced by Konbini .
For information, Patrick also organizes training:
- Conferences (1h30).
- Practice (mindfulness meditation, cardiac coherence) combined with theory (3h30).
- Whole days (surveys, questionnaires, discussions).
Very good listening and see you next week for a new episode of Club Bonheur!
Listen to the episode on your favorite platform.
