Take a Nap If You Need It

Time changes always seem to make me tired. I look in the faces of those that I take care of and wonder wow they do not seem that tired and then I found this article from New York Times. The New York Times in 2006 took into object the daylight savings time and the claim that Thomas Edison claimed that sleep was a waste of time in an attempt to prove that as one gets older less sleep is needed. 

You would be surprised how many residents at the nursing home, any nursing home stay awake at least part of the night. Research has been done to suggest that Americans at the age of 70 spend about 2 hours less in bed each night than they did at the age of 30.

I work the early shift and getting up is harder for me than for many of them.  I often take a power nap during my lunch hour. Perhaps, when I am their age I will be able to rise and shine as well. It is more common for the elderly to rise in early morning than it is for younger individuals. Rising early and staying up in the night have little to do with the natural urge to rest growing weaker instead it is the way of sleep changes and spending less and less time in the deep, restorative stages of sleep. 

There is also a greater likelihood that sleep will be disrupted by chronic illness, pain or some other discomfort. As a result, you end up with fewer hours of sleep each night -- and subsequently a need to make up for that loss during the day. So taking a nap is what is needed.