Another one of my theories: We live in a sleep-deprived society that's slowly killing us.

In the current U.S. business world, the 40-hour working day is a myth. Many really put in the 60–80 hour working days.

These are the kind of people whom executives want—those whom willingly trade in their personal time for their careers. Those that clock out exactly at 5:00 PM are subjected to dirty stares and "What? You're leaving already?!" comments from their coworkers.

We're all persuaded by these invisible pressures to work work work. Sleep becomes a distant need, nay, luxury.

Even college students have it this bad. The average college student sleeps only 4-6 hours a night. At least I know I did. Whether the excuse is a heavy study load or party load, the result is the same:

Sleep deprivation

The less sleep we get, the more groggy, anxious, and irritable we get.

When was the last time you had only two hours of sleep and still managed a sweet disposition in the morning?

And if you did, then whoa… I salute you. You freak.

I'm not a morning person in any sense of the word. I need a full night's rest. If I stay awake too long, I begin to get weird. Sort of like being intoxicated—my inhibitions drop like my eye lids and I start to babble and drone on and on and on and on…

There's a solution though. Power naps, baby, power naps.

A power nap is a quick nap during the afternoon to recharge your mental batteries. Studies show that power naps can be very effective. And many companies are taking heed of this research and allowing their employees to have midday siestas like other cultures do.

It's a wonderful thing. I used to do it all the time in college. A nap in my 11:00 PM class here, a nap in my 3:00 PM class there.

Ummm, well, maybe it wasn't so much the need for a power nap as it was the excitement level of the lectures that induced these impromptu siestas. But hey, they felt good just the same.

And I was so much less groggy, anxious, and irritable back then.

. . .

Are you sleep-deprived too?