I have a confession to make: I’m not actually a human; I am secretly a cat. There are multiple reasons for this identification, but the main one is because I am constantly sleeping. I really like sleeping, but this poses a problem because I am also a night owl. The solution? Naps! I adore naps and I am here today to defend naps against those that think naps are for the lazy or only for children.

As most people know, naps can be very refreshing. For me, I really only take naps when I’m tired or moody. This is considered emergency napping, although I don’t think my needs for napping qualify as an emergency! If I am sad, angry, or irritable, a nap is the perfect way to recover. Naps are also great for recovering from draining activities, such as being out in the sun for long periods of time (please remember to hydrate and use sunscreen!) or engaging in intense physical activity such as chasing toddlers around (shout out to my boyfriend’s sister for having a daycare and doing that on the daily. You deserve a nap).

In relation to recovering from emotional issues, naps can also help you cope with the consequences of poor sleep (or limited sleep), such as stress, which can lead to immune system issues. According to a study published in the Journal of Clinical Endocrinology & Metabolism (JCEM), “a 30-minute nap can reverse the hormonal impact of a night of poor sleep.” Napping increases the hormone involved in “the body's heart rate, blood pressure and blood sugar” and also affects “a protein with antiviral properties.” What this means is that if you get less sleep than you should, you will most likely be stressed and if you continue to get inadequate sleep, you will probably find yourself getting sick more often. Naps help combat this by giving your body more sleep time to produce these necessary hormones. As the study mentioned, it only takes 30 minutes. So next time you’re feeling stressed or sick, put Facebook away for 30 minutes and take a nap instead. It’s actually more productive.

For the sleepy students out there, another study has found that naps help you retain the information that you just learned. Now, this doesn’t mean that you learn one fact and then take that 30-minute nap. The study found that a 6-minute nap was sufficient to “benefit declarative memory retention.” However, if you got a poor night’s sleep but have to power through an afternoon organic chemistry lecture, “daytime naps of 60–90 min enhance perceptual learning nearly to the same extent as an 8 hour period of nighttime sleep.” So next time your parents ask about your sleeping habits and grades, you can say that all is well.

Now that you know why it’s okay to take a nap, you need to know how to maximize your napping benefits. According to the Mayo Clinic, you should “keep naps short (10 to 30 minutes), take naps in the afternoon (around 2 or 3 P.M.), and create a restful environment.” These may seem obvious, but people often don’t follow these guidelines (I’m guilty of taking 2-hour naps at 5 P.M while listening to loud guitar music). If you’re going to take the time to rest, do it right. The 10-30 minute limit will prevent you from screwing up your nighttime schedule, and the afternoon nap will also prevent a nighttime disaster and it helps you power through a post-lunch coma. The restful environment is just nice and will help you fall asleep faster.

You have the knowledge, now take action and go nap!