Moody Monday? Try a Caffeine Nap!
** Disclaimer: This does not replace actual sleep! Make sure you allow for recovery time after long periods of wakefulness!**
Starting years ago when I volunteered as an EMT covering Friday nights, I swore by coffee power naps. I had this logic that the body needs some time to digest caffeine before it can take its full affect, and as a result a 20 minute nap would allow me to rest until my brain was recharged. Seven years later, I still swear by this routine if you are in need of a little pick me up, and the science behind it is starting to catch up!
**Science Alert**
As your brain works throughout the day, a molecule called adenosine builds up. Adenosine is a neurotransmitter, a tiny chemical messenger that the cells of your brain send to communicate with one another. As your brain works throughout the day, adenosine helps transfer energy during various processes and works in signaling pathways in our brain. Now for the cool part, as your brain works more throughout the day, adenosine builds up, and once it gets to a certain point it begins to make you feel tired. The build up of adenosine that is now making you hit that 3 pm wall can only be cleared by sleep.
So your body's way of using energy throughout the day to feed your brain, is what builds up and makes you feel tired, ultimately leading to your need to sleep. Finally, clearance of that neurotransmitter is only accomplished through sleep, this allows you feel to refreshed and alert all over again.
OK, that's all great. But, where does coffee fit in? Caffeine, a molecule similarly shaped to adenosine, can cozy up to the adenosine receptors and actually take their place on cells in the brain. Caffeine can take up some of the adenosine receptors, so that as your brain works it cannot recognize how much adenosine there is in your brain. This allows to feel more alert for longer periods of time.
The trick is, in order for this to work best, you have to release some of the adenosine from their receptors and the only way to do that is through sleep. So, a cup of coffee followed by a 20 minute nap allows the brain to clear out some of the adenosine build up, leaving receptors open to caffeine. This in turn allows you to stay awake and feel alert longer!
So, what do you need to do? If you are trying to pull an all nighter, working late on a project, or just switching to the night shift? I recommend a cup of coffee (little to no sugar, and skim milk if needed) and then a 15-20 minute power nap. By then the coffee will be ready to take a affect and you are ready for whatever the night (or Monday) has in store!
Check out these site below for more information! Including some scientific studies that showed caffeine naps improve alertness (definitely still a long way to go in understanding these mechanisms!)
http://www.news-medical.net/health/What-is-Adenosine.aspx
http://science.howstuffworks.com/life/inside-the-mind/human-brain/sleep2.htm
http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/8026448
http://www.vox.com/2014/8/28/6074177/coffee-naps-caffeine-science