Yesterday, with 25 minutes to spare, I plunked down on the couch, was asleep within 3 minutes, and up and out the door with 2 minutes of the 25 to spare. As rough as that first minute is, when you awaken from a power nap, the effect is lasting. Where I would normally become groggy on my hour+ ride out to get the kids, I was alert and awake. I should do that every Weds.

Beest, those are the advanced secret black hat techniques that you refer to. People find regular napping difficult to grasp that's why they laugh at your suggestion. Their brains can't handle it and their laughter masks their fear.

My dad would speak of sleeping while marching in the Marines.

He knew how to nap.

My dad as well said that it was the Army that taught him how to nap--because he was so exhausted, all the time, that he either had to learn how to nap for ten minutes under a tree, or fall over dead.

For me, I have to be sure to signal my body to keep things at the dozing level, rather than deep REM sleep. Dozing is on my back and with at least indirect lighting still on. If I turn on my side, which is how I sleep at night, I'm a goner. Two hours minimum and I'm nauseous and groggy for the rest of the day.

Exactly! the back is key to staying out of REM, also on top of the covers because as your metabolism slows you get chilly and that can help wake you.

Waking is not problem for me. If you have difficulty waking from a nap, I can rent you one of my family members at a very reasonable rate.

Re napping while marching, I can micro-sleep without feeling groggy.
On public transport for example. And I snap out of it feeling refreshed.

I just think I associate beds too much with hard-won sleep to ever do anything than completely surrender in them.

And yes, awake ridiculously early again and wishing I was asleep.
I really need to sort my sleep patterns out.

:lol2:

I see I'm in the presence of pros. Although I have micro-slept while standing through Paschal services. The trick is to catch yourself before everything relaxes and you fall down.

I stayed awake by taking humor in watching the other alter boys fall asleep.

My husband fell asleep spectacularly when he was an altar boy, so I'm told.

My boys didn't have the option of being spectacular. And my daughter had no option at all.

I did fall asleep during a Guns & Roses concert.
But there were extenuating circumstances.

Some years ago I visited Yellowstone and, while waiting for Old Faithful to do her stuff, went into the visitor centre and settlled down to watch a video about the geological and seismic activity that shaped the area over aeons.

I suspect that the soundtrack was as loud as the volcanic activity that was being portrayed but accuracy is everything. It was probably loud enough to prompt complaints from the dead.

Now, my sleep pattern, never very consistent at the best of times, hadn't recovered from the long flight and I had done far too much driving so was pretty worn out. Consequently I nodded off in the middle of a massive on screen volcanic eruption.

No mean achievement.:eek:

Well done!

It helps if you walk around exhausted all day, in my experience. Timing is key as well. My nap sweet spot is from 1:30 pm to 4pm. I can nap at the idea of a drop of the hat in that span of time most days. I was born at 1:20 am.

When your in the military sleep is a a premium,
The pic is about 36 hrs in to a 48 hr exersize in 29 palms ( Mojave desert ) , not me , ( i took the pic ) this is in an Armored personel carrier called an Amtrack , and the Video is a Marine guard thats been up WAAAAAAAY to long , he gets a bit Looooopy