I used to hate taking naps as a little kid. I didn’t like the idea of sleeping for an hour in the afternoon. It was one of the few contested moments of childhood between my mom and I. As I got older, I realized the nap was to give her a break from me and my sisters. Seems fair in hindsight.

Now I’m 29 and when they happen, they’re the best!

The adult nap comes in many different varieties.

One is the “falling asleep while watching TV in the afternoon” nap. Another one I’ve taken several times in my 20s is the one you take after a long night out. The third lately has been the “worked early or late” nap. I’ve been up at 330 a.m. for work and have come home from work at 6 a.m.

That first one is the best just because there’s no reason behind it. You just sat on the couch and dozed off.

Waking up from a nap happens in different ways.

You can wake up feeling instantly refreshed, or you’re groggy, questioning the time of day and having the initial feeling of a hangover. That “splash cold water on your face” thing helps.

But there are still times when I know I should take one and just can’t. If I try to schedule it, it’s hard for me to fall asleep. Maybe that goes back to being ordered to take a nap as a kid.

As someone who works in news radio and the normal “9 to 5” is foreign, the nap comes in handy. I had one of those “unintended” ones recently, and it felt really good. Especially since I had the overnight shift later on.

I look forward to the day when I tell my 4 year-old to take a nap and he or she protest it. Thus, the cycle continues.