On holidays, do you fall sleep in the Afternoons ! (not a Q to those fortunate to sleep on all days of
the week !) Sleep
is every day activity. Many a times, when you get up after a short [or
long sleep in AN] – you may have some confusion on the time of the day – is it
morning or evening ?
A few decades ago, most
people believed sleep was a passive activity during which the body and brain were dormant. “But it turns out
that sleep is a period during which the brain is engaged in a number of
activities necessary to life—which are closely linked to quality of
life.”
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For many of us addicted to social media, the sleeping time is
getting reduced. When one is sleep-deprived, eyes and mind crave for a
nap. Napping offers various benefits for healthy adults, including:
relaxation, fatigue reduction, increase in alertness, good moods, quicker
reaction and better memory. The timing of sleep in humans depends upon a
balance between homeostatic sleep propensity, the need for sleep as a function
of the amount of time elapsed since the last adequate sleep episode, and
circadian rhythms which determine the ideal timing of a correctly structured
and restorative sleep episode.
Siesta, a ‘Spanish’
word from the Latin hora sexta – "the sixth hour" (counting
from dawn, therefore noon), hence "midday rest”. It is the
traditional daytime sleep of Spain, and through Spanish influence, of many
Latin American countries. Factors explaining the geographical distribution of
the modern siesta are mainly high temperatures and heavy intake of food at the
midday main meal. The
"siesta" can refer to the nap itself, or more generally to a period
of the day.
The afternoon sleep is often
called ‘Catnap’. A catnap is a short sleep, usually one which you have during the
day. The phrase dates back to at least
the early 1800s, with notable literary use in 1916 by Edgar Rice Burroughs in
"The Son of Tarzan." The term
takes its origin from how cats take a series of naps throughout the day and
night. This idiosyncratic cat-like behavior is thought to help cats stay their
alert and agile selves, and humans can take afternoon napping to reap similar
benefits. There’s no medical definition of a catnap, and there’s no strict
limit on how long they last.
In case you get confused
when you get up of the time of the day ! – thinking of getting up, brushing
your teeth as in the morning, while it is evening, don’t feel bad and never
start crazily querying on forums and searching on web. If you do so, you
might get influenced by some modern phraseology like :
Confusional arousals - a sleep disorder that causes you to act in a very strange
and confused way as you wake up or just after waking. It may appear that you
don’t know where you are or what you are doing. One may have slow speech,
stammering, confused thinking, poor memory, blunt responses !! When
a confusional arousal occurs, you may seem to be awake even though you have a
foggy state of mind. Episodes often start when someone else physically wakes
you up forcefully.
Sleepwalking or shouting during an episode is common. Some people with confusional
arousals also grind their teeth. Confusional arousals is considered a
parasomnia.
‘Sundowning" refers to a state of confusion that occurs in the late
afternoon and lasts into the night. Sundowning can cause various behaviors,
such as confusion, anxiety, aggression or ignoring directions. Sundowning also
can lead to pacing or wandering. Sundowning isn't a disease. It's a group of
symptoms that occurs at a specific time of the day. These symptoms may affect
people with Alzheimer's disease and other types of dementia.
வேதநூல் பிராயம் நூறு மனிசர்தாம் புகுவரேலும்
பாதியும் உறங்கிப் போகும் நின்றதில் பதினையாண்டு
தொண்டரடிப்பொடி ஆழ்வார் - திருமாலை பாசுரம் - ஓர் தினத்தில் உள்ள அறுபது நாழிகையில் முப்பது நாழிகை உறக்கத்தில் கழிகிற கணக்கில் வேதசாஸ்திரத்திற்படியே
நூறு வருஷங்கள் வாழ்ந்திருப்பர்களேயானாலும், அந்த சதாயுஸ்ஸில் பாதியான ஐம்பது வருஷமும் உறக்கத்தாலே கழியும் !!!
There is still some
stigma about naps but as long as it does not affect your work, your mind or
your night sleep, never mind. Don’t have any guilt, it is acting to the
demands of body and mind. Sleep well and happy – have naps and do not
have interrupted sleeps. Life is too beautiful to be spent worrying.
Pictured here is a White Tiger – cat-napping at Vandalur
even as restless visitors wanted it to be active ! – it did get up to the amusement of
onlookers. White tigers, a color
variant of Bengal tigers, sleep 16-20 hours per day on average, much like other
tigers. They are crepuscular, most
active at dawn and dusk for hunting, so they rest extensively during daylight
in shady spots like thickets, caves, or under trees to conserve energy after
intense bursts of activity.
This long sleep helps them
recover from high-energy hunts, maintain their large body mass (up to 500
pounds), and avoid human conflicts by aligning rest with daytime human
activity. However, life is different for them in captivity. Captivity alters white tiger (as is the case
of most caged / zoo animals) sleep patterns, reducing total sleep time compared
to the wild (16-20 hours daily) while increasing fragmented resting and
stereotypic behaviors like pacing due to unnatural environments and feeding
schedules.
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Fresh from today’s
afternoon sleep – yours friendly aasami sirippu sinthanaiyaan.
7.3.2026
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