Afternoon nap anyone

[dmc12]

Hi all, I hope today is a good day for you all. I have had RA since I was 18 and now 45 I am on a lot of medication including steroids which I have been on continually for over 20 years. I was medically retired from work in July of last year and I am finding it incredibly difficult to get through the day without a nap (well I say nap but usually it is a very deep sleep for about two hours) . I also have an underactive thyroid and I am on levothyroxine. Is it normal to need a nap , does anyone else do this or do I need to try to push through it? I feel very guilty for indulging and having this nap so any similar experiences appreciated.

[premierscfc]

Hi DMC12,

I like you can't go a day without my afternoon Nap, it allows me to go to bed at a normal time in the evening!

I would be interested to see if we are the only 2?

[dmc12 in reply to premierscfc]

me too, I hate giving in but it makes me feel better and I really cannot go without or like you I would be in bed by eight or asleep in front of the tv!

[sylvi]

I try not to sleep during the day,but this week i have slept in the afternoon,so if you need the sleep take it and don't feel guilty for needing one.xxxxxx

[dmc12]

thank you sylvi its good to hear I am not the only one. xx

[bassiefromholland]

Hi dmc12,

Don't feel guilty at all. I an 56, have RA since 24 years. I am on steriods, mtx, hydro, sulfasalasine , I also am medical retired. I take a nap every day, after lunch. Our body's need it, as simple as that !

So don't feel guilty at all, we simply need it😉

Sorry for my poor English I am Dutch !

Wish you all the best, big hug

Bas

[dmc12 in reply to bassiefromholland]

Hi Bas, thank you for your reply ( in great English) it is good to hear other peoples experiences .

I am going to go woth the flow and start to enjoy my napping.

Best wishes

Donna

[gillpalmer]

Since having R.D. I often have a nap in the afternoons. I believe its our body telling us to slow down so I do has I'm told.

[dmc12 in reply to gillpalmer]

Good to hear I am not the only one.x

[nomoreheels]

I got into the routine of a siesta when I lived abroad, an afternoon lie down. It helps to ease & straighten my back & if I fall asleep then I consider I needed it! I usually go at 4 o'clock one dog comes with me & my h walks the other. My h sends my other dog to get me up at about 5.30pm. It really helps me cope with the rest of the day & if I don't have one for any reason, like lately whilst going to & fro sorting out new car I notice a difference in coping, I get the grumps.

[dmc12 in reply to nomoreheels]

Me too, I lived in Spain for a while and was so much healthier out there but still enjoyed a nap, Siesta's all the way for me.

[farm123]

A simple yes but the causes vary. I also started around 19 and am now 49. It is worse when I am not well controlled. A late night or bad sleep the night before and away I go. Sometimes a Friday afternoon after my Abatacept on a Thursday. And of course the good old done too much. I find it is better to give in if I get the feeling than to keep going - the family are used to it now. Farm

[popsmith1874 in reply to farm123]

Yes you can't beat a siesta in the afternoon ,my wife usually wakes me up after a couple of hours probably because I'm snoring by then

[dmc12 in reply to farm123]

Hi Farm, I am not well controlled re RA and keep getting infections which stops my Rituximab so I guess this could be a reason. Strangely I do not seem to be so bad in summer, think I need a warmer climate!

[cathie]

That short extra sleep is so sweet! Its so much more restful often than the normal night. I dont always have a sleep but sometimes, and I try to set an alarm on my phone so I dont do it for more than an hour - so I dont wreck my normal night's sleep!

So take the sleep, it can really get us through the day.

[dmc12 in reply to cathie]

Thank you Cathie, no more guilt for me x

[flow4]

I would like an afternoon nap. At the moment, work and teenagers don't allow it... So I push on through, and I'm often over-tired by bedtime.

[dmc12 in reply to flow4]

Hi Flow, I did that for the last few years whilst still working but now I am medially retired I give in, not every day but it is a great luxury and seems to be a much better sleep than night time when my joints flare up. Hope you can get yours soon x

[flow4 in reply to dmc12]

I can dream, dmc Officially I have another 17 years til I retire...

[jane1976]

I've been told that RA can cause tiredness but, I'm never sure how much is the RA & how much is the shed load of melds I'm on?? After lunch time I really struggle to get going again & often fall into a deep sleep! Many days I wake up tired.

[nomoreheels in reply to jane1976]

Don't try to work it out, just yield to it, whatever the cause it's your body telling you to rest.

[dmc12 in reply to jane1976]

Me too Jane , I counted up last night as I took my meds, 16! so I like you dont know which is meds or RA but I know that nap is great.

[Jacey15]

As a child a nap feels like a punishment. As an adult it's a reward! I love an afternoon nap 😴😴😴. Make the most of it.

[dmc12 in reply to Jacey15]

Thank you Jacey I plan to start enjoying them guilt free x

[cyprusmum]

Nothing wrong in letting your body tell you what it needs. The medication can make you very tired too. The leaflets I have read about RA, all say to try to push through and not nap, but still to take care of your fatigue. A bit of a contradiction, as I too feel exhausted some days and really need a sit down for an hour. Fatigue is the body telling you to slow down for a bit. 😌

[dmc12]

Thank you cyprus, I was told when I was in hospital to nap on an afternoon and they also have quiet hour in hospital usually 2-3 so maybe that is what we are meant to do. x

[cathie]

I used to go to a library for research and sometimes meet my daughter for lunch. Late morning at my desk it was easy to drift off and once I was fast asleep and she came along and said gently,Cathie are you asleep? You can't fight it!

[kohai]

5 years ago I too needed an afternoon nap, I struggled so hard to concentrate at work if I didn't.

(I used to manage a large online chess site from home, then come my evening, the boss is america took over, him being 8 hrs behind me), so there were teams I had who all knew what they were doing, they thought I was off on the testing area if I was quiet for a few hours, the didn't know I'd gone for a nap. But for me, it turned out I had fatigue when my going to bed at 2pm, getting up at 4.30pm turned Into a daily going for a nap at 2pm, waking up at 9pm, have a coffee, take my evening 9pm meds then actually sleeping again through till 7am the following morning.

Being a workaholic, I convinced myself it was just exhaustion until that quick nap became a more regular "around the clock" sleep.

I booked a few days off work and saw my GP. He said it was fatigue.

Thankfully I'm now back to my couple of hours nap, but evert 3-4 weeks I'll still sleep around the clock, just now it only lasts 3 days or so, then normal naps return.

My husband said "you spend 25-30 years on 5 hours sleep a night, working 60-80 hours a week, karma will catch up with you"

Lol so he says phooey to fatigue, that if I sleep that much, my body must need it.

No idea if he's right or wrong on that one.

I saw on another site this comment

How do you know if you have fatigue?

A: Because you can go for a sleep and actually not care if xyz needs doing around the house"

[kohai]

.want to add, I 100% agree with everyone else about a nap.

Why make yourself feel worse pushing through it, we already have enough to cope with, so like to everyone says, enjoy your nap, don't feel guilty about doing something that makes you feel better

[chicana7]

I typed in anyone else nap and found this. I retired at 62 and have napped everyday since then - sometimes 2 1/2 hours. Felt guilty in the beginning but then told myself since I only got 4 or 5 hours of sleep most nights during my working career, then why not?

It really is a treat to my body.