# Coffee nap - anybody do this? **URL:** \ **Category:** In My Humble Opinion\ **Created:** [January 24, 2022, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coffee-nap-anybody-do-this/958311 "2022-01-24T14:46:24Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 14\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Shoeless](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/shoeless/32/7099_2.png) [@Shoeless](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Shoeless)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2022, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coffee-nap-anybody-do-this/958311/1 "2022-01-24T14:46:24Z")
Some mornings, my wife will wake up, have one or two cups of coffee, then go back to sleep for another 30-40 minutes. To me that sort of defeats the whole purpose of the coffee, which is to help wake you up. But hey, it works for her. Just curious if anyone else does the “coffee nap” thing. ---
**Author:** ![panache45](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/panache45/32/64_2.png) [@panache45](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/panache45)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2022, 3:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coffee-nap-anybody-do-this/958311/2 "2022-01-24T15:07:35Z")
I’m able to have a deep sleep, after drinking a large mug of strong coffee. The caffeine has no effect on me. ---
**Author:** ![Folly](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/folly/32/3219_2.png) [@Folly](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Folly)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2022, 3:10pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coffee-nap-anybody-do-this/958311/3 "2022-01-24T15:10:30Z")
> [@Shoeless](#): > > Just curious if anyone else does the “coffee nap” thing. No, but I’ve heard of it. Usually more in the context of an afternoon nap. The idea being that it takes a little while for the caffeine to kick in so when you wake up you have a nap boost and a caffeine boost at the same time and feel extra refreshed. ---
**Author:** ![DavidNRockies](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/davidnrockies/32/6279_2.png) [@DavidNRockies](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DavidNRockies)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2022, 3:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coffee-nap-anybody-do-this/958311/4 "2022-01-24T15:12:10Z")
It isn’t _my_ thing, but it is _a_ thing: > **[Coffee Nap: Can Caffeine Before a Nap Boost Energy Levels?](https://www.healthline.com/nutrition/coffee-nap)** > > Though drinking coffee before a nap may seem counterintuitive, many people endorse this habit as a way to boost energy levels. This article provides a detailed look at the science behind coffee naps. ---
**Author:** ![kayaker](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kayaker/32/441_2.png) [@kayaker](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kayaker)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2022, 3:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coffee-nap-anybody-do-this/958311/5 "2022-01-24T15:16:09Z")
> [@Shoeless](#): > > the whole purpose of the coffee, which is to help wake you up. I used to work with a guy whose colon was exquisitely sensitive to caffeine. He woke up, drank a cup of coffee, then ran to the bathroom. He only drank one cup a day, purely for that purpose. And if offered coffee any other time he just had to explain why he declined. ---
**Author:** ![AHunter3](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ahunter3/32/368_2.png) [@AHunter3](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AHunter3)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2022, 3:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coffee-nap-anybody-do-this/958311/6 "2022-01-24T15:17:26Z")
Like panache45, I’m mostly unaffected by caffeine. I can sleep while caffeinated and if I have any reason to forego my morning coffee it doesn’t trouble me any. I guess I can’t say that I don’t feel any effect from the caffeine, it sort of creates a warm buzzy sensation; and I also can recall times when I drank a lot of coffee in the evening and didn’t drop off to sleep as readily. So “no effect” is perhaps an exaggeration, but I definitely don’t have to avoid it after midday the way my partner allthegood has to, and I like coffee with many desserts in the late evening if I’m indulging. ---
**Author:** ![pkbites](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pkbites/32/204_2.png) [@pkbites](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pkbites)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2022, 3:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coffee-nap-anybody-do-this/958311/7 "2022-01-24T15:24:51Z")
I wish I could go right to sleep after drinking coffee. Finally nodding off after a day of high caffeine consumption gives me the craziest dreams ever! A wild ride! Even better than high dose B6. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2022, 3:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coffee-nap-anybody-do-this/958311/8 "2022-01-24T15:56:27Z")
I once had a long refreshing nap after drifting off to sleep with Black Sabbath playing in my headphones, so the idea of a “coffee nap” isn’t that outrageous. ---
**Author:** ![salinqmind1](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/958977/32.png) [@salinqmind1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/salinqmind1)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2022, 4:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coffee-nap-anybody-do-this/958311/9 "2022-01-24T16:01:20Z")
I drink a cup in the morning and there’s a short window of energy, but it doesn’t last. I seem to get a rebound effect and feel logey and blah when it wears off. Drinking more doesn’t seem to help. None after noon, I feel tired at night but the caffeine won’t let me doze off. ---
**Author:** ![Joeu](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/joeu/32/2911_2.png) [@Joeu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joeu)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2022, 4:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coffee-nap-anybody-do-this/958311/10 "2022-01-24T16:04:02Z")
I am a coffee napper! My morning two cups don’t have that effect, but the afternoon cup will often prompt an inescapable nap. I just nod off for 20-30 minutes and it feels great! I sleep well, wake up on my own feeling refreshed and energetic. Most nights, too, I’ll have a cup after dinner, and that makes me ready to slip off to dreamland. My parents always made a pot after dinner when I was young, and beginning at about age 10, I shared in that. ---
**Author:** ![snowthx](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/snowthx/32/10660_2.png) [@snowthx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/snowthx)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2022, 6:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coffee-nap-anybody-do-this/958311/11 "2022-01-24T18:43:11Z")
There are a number of articles mentioning cortisol hormone levels and coffee’s affects on it… The take-away is having coffee too early can induce the nap by increasing cortisol, as opposed to waiting a little while for the cortisol to clear-out, for the caffeine to have a better effect. > **[The Best Time of Day to Drink Coffee (It’s Not When You Think)](https://fitonapp.com/nutrition/best-time-to-drink-coffee/)** > > Plus 5 tips to turn your morning cup from so-so to incredibly healthy. ---
**Author:** ![BrickBat](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/ac91a4/32.png) [@BrickBat](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BrickBat)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2022, 7:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coffee-nap-anybody-do-this/958311/12 "2022-01-24T19:49:26Z")
Though this is the first time I’ve ever heard of a coffee nap, and that’s a “thing”, I can say I’ve successfully accomplished some. I did so using by seeing if I could apply the logic ‘Folly’ mentioned upthread. On my days off, instead of drinking my third mug of morning coffee, I put it in the refrigerator so that I may have an ice-coffee pick-me-up in late afternoon or early evening. On some of those days, for whatever reason, late afternoon/early evening ( primarily during the shorter days of the year ) I feel an onset of fatigue and want to lie down _right now_, even if it’s just for 15-20 minutes. As I don’t want to go to bed that early and throw off my sleep pattern, I’d drink the cup of ice-coffee, and lie down and have a micro-nap. The rising from a 15 minute nap coinciding with the caffeine kicking in has me feeling great all over again. ---
**Author:** ![mbh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/a6a055/32.png) [@mbh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mbh)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2022, 7:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coffee-nap-anybody-do-this/958311/13 "2022-01-24T19:57:14Z")
I can go to sleep after drinking a bottle of Mountain Dew. But I usually have bizarre dreams when I do. ---
**Author:** ![HMS\_Irruncible](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hms_irruncible/32/7394_2.png) [@HMS\_Irruncible](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/HMS_Irruncible)\ **Post date:** [January 24, 2022, 8:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/coffee-nap-anybody-do-this/958311/14 "2022-01-24T20:03:59Z")
I can’t do a planned coffee nap. Drinking coffee perks me up just by stimulus association before the caffeine even hits. However I will say that sometimes I do get a caffeine crash an hour later, and I can get a good nap after that.