I can always use more sleep.  Whether I'm post-call from the hospital, scrambling to study for upcoming exams, or was up late taking care of the new baby, the power nap is one of my favorite tools to jump start my brain when I'm feeling a little foggy. 

Drastic times call for drastic measures and to make a power nap even more powerful, I use a little "nap enhancer" or the so-called caffeine power nap. Apparently, in a driving simulator and a series of studies, some investigators, Horne and Reyner, researched the effects of cold air, radio, a break with no nap, a nap, caffeine pill vs. placebo and a short nap preceded by caffeine on mildly sleep-deprived subjects. By far the most effective in reducing driving "incidents" and subjective sleepiness was the caffeine power nap.

Here is how I perform the caffeine power nap:

• I gave up caffeine on a regular basis so as to not develop a tolerance to the drug.  I now reserve this treat for when I need an extra boost most.  By keeping myself uncaffeinated, I can also then fall asleep on a moments notice.  When the kids are occupied or when the hospital quiets down at night, I have no time to lose trying to fall asleep.
  
• I bolus 54.5 mg of caffeine into my system by quickly drinking half of a 24 ounce Diet Mountain Dew, I then fall asleep in a nice cozy place before the caffeine has a chance to kick in.
  
• My watch alarm wakes me up 25 minutes later, around the time that the caffeine should be hitting my blood stream.
  
• I slowly sip the rest of my Dew over the next hour or two to take in another 54.5 mg of caffeine as a maintenance drip.