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| The author felt tired all the time but didn't think she could fit a nap into her schedule. Courtesy of Cara Strickland |
As a mom, I was constantly running on empty but I didn’t believe I had time to rest.
Eventually, I discovered that a simple nap could completely change how I work and feel.
“Have you tried taking a nap?”
That was my doctor’s response as I described my constant exhaustion the kind that lingered from morning drop-off to bedtime routines. Her suggestion caught me off guard.
In my head, I immediately listed all the reasons napping wasn’t possible. The truth? They all boiled down to one thing: I couldn’t justify using the time my daughter was at school for rest. My to-do list felt endless, and if I couldn’t finish it with a full day, how could I possibly allow myself to sleep during it?
Before Parenthood, My Time Was My Own
When I lived alone, I had the freedom to follow my natural rhythms especially once I began working from home and setting my own hours. I’ve never been a morning person, and even when I woke up early, my energy didn’t peak until much later in the day. In those years, evenings were when I came alive when I felt creative, focused, and productive.
That all changed with parenting. No matter how flexible my work schedule might be, school drop-offs and pickups don’t budge. Even before the school years, my daughter was an alarm clock in human form.
I tried to go to bed earlier, knowing my schedule demanded it. But whether due to my internal clock or “revenge bedtime procrastination,” I found myself clinging to late evenings the only part of the day that felt like mine. And going to bed earlier didn’t guarantee better sleep or more rest anyway.
Even though I brushed off my doctor’s question at the time, it stuck with me. My daily routine felt rigid, but was it really? If I was lucky enough to have a job without strict hours, why was I so unwilling to bend my schedule to give myself the rest I clearly needed?
I Tried Morning Naps and It Changed Everything
Curious and still exhausted, I gave it a try. After walking my daughter to school, I’d return home, set an alarm for an hour to 90 minutes, and lie down again. After waking up, I’d make a cup of tea and officially start my day.
Two things became clear right away. First, I felt noticeably more rested. I had assumed that my level of fatigue was too deep for a nap to make much of a difference. But I was wrong. I wasn’t bouncing off the walls, but I wasn’t fighting through mental fog, either. My mind was sharper, my mood lighter.
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| The author (not pictured) has incorporated napping into her morning routine. Tatiana Maksimova/Getty Images |
Second, I was actually getting more done. I had feared that sacrificing an hour would leave me scrambling. Instead, my productivity improved. The rested version of me worked faster, more efficiently. I wasn’t just keeping up with my workload I was, in many ways, finally ahead.
It turned out that the time I spent napping wasn’t lost at all. It was an investment one that paid off in energy, focus, and emotional resilience.
Naps Are Now Part of My Routine And I Feel Better for It
Now, I’ve built napping into my morning routine whenever I can. The benefits have remained consistent more clarity, better focus, and an improved ability to handle the day. Of course, life still happens. On days when I have appointments, a sick child, or just can’t settle down enough to fall asleep, I skip the nap. But I always notice the difference.
Even if a full hour isn’t possible, I’ll often set a timer for 30 or even 20 minutes whatever feels reasonable that day. Sometimes I fall asleep. Sometimes I just rest quietly. Either way, it helps.
What’s changed the most, though, is my mindset. I no longer beat myself up for being tired. I don’t feel guilty for not sleeping enough at night or needing rest during the day. Instead, I’m learning to listen to my body and adjust, rather than push through with frustration or shame.
My goal now is simple: to support my body and brain so I can show up fully as a parent, as a professional, and as a person. That might not look like anyone else’s routine. But for me, right now, it looks like a nap.
