We’ve all heard it before: naps can help those who have trouble sleeping at night to feel refreshed and more rested during the day.

Yet a recent article on Medical News Today sings the praises of naps for helping you solve everyday problems more creatively.

How do you like that?

According to the article, researchers at  the University of California San Diego suggest that “REM (rapid eye movement) sleep directly enhances creative processes more than any other sleep or wakeful state.”

REM sleep is a stage of healthy sleep, and it can indeed be arrived at during a nap. So, if you’re working on a new project or challenge, a little shuteye during the process may help you come up with more creative ways of addressing it. According to these researchers, “REM sleep stimulates associative networks helping the brain to make new and useful connections between unrelated ideas, the key to creativity.”

My husband is an avid nap-taker. He wakes very early in the morning. After a couple of hours doing something, he’ll lay down on the couch or the bed for a little rest. His naps usually last for 20 minutes or so. Not long. But he’s much more clear-minded afterward.

I know this is not very scientific, but whatever works, works for me.

Photo Credit: Steve Weaver