I started using a napping app and now I can take 26-minute naps that make me feel fully rested

• I love taking naps, but taking one without feeling groggy afterward is rare.
• In fact, often, I'll wake up from a nap feeling even worse than I felt before.

For as long as I can remember, I've had a love-hate relationship with naps. I have chronic migraines and headaches, which tend to leave me fatigued during the day when I get them, staring longingly at my bed; however, no matter how tired I am, it can be hard to fall asleep knowing I have things to get done.

It's also easy to nap for too long, which leaves me even more groggy than before my head hit the pillow. Getting a nap right is like a science, and one that's hard to perfect.

So a few years ago, when I found the app Nap26 — which claims to help users take 26-minute power naps to "rest and rejuvenate" — I was skeptical but open to trying it. When I found it worked for me, I was thrilled.

Listening to binaural beats can help induce sleep

The app utilizes binaural beats, which means listening to sounds of different frequencies at the same time. When you listen to binaural beats for a sustained length of time, studies have found it is possible to alter your brain activity; depending on the frequency of those sounds, you can do things like improve your ability to fall asleep or increase creativity.

When you first turn on the app, it prompts you to turn on "Do Not Disturb" mode so that you can take your nap in peace. Then, after pressing start, a calming voice asks you to adjust your volume to an appropriate level (Nap26 recommends using headphones or earbuds rather than your phone's speaker) while you get into a comfortable position and begin to relax.

"Listen actively as powernaps rests, relaxes, and rejuvenates you," the voice says. I remember raising my eyebrows at these promises, even with my eyes closed, the first time I used the app.

Then, the binaural beats start. It essentially just sounds like white noise, but something about it feels different from using a typical white noise machine. It kind of feels like a brain massage — even if that sounds creepy, I'm not sure how else to put it.

The time limit stressed me out at first, but it still worked

The first few naps I took, the knowledge that I only had 26 minutes total to nap — including the time it would take me to fall asleep — stressed me out at first, and I kept thinking, "When am I going to fall asleep?" Basically, I was on a loop of the nap-time version of "Are we there yet?"

But by "listening actively" to the sounds, as suggested, I've found that it's hard to continue ruminating on my own stress-thoughts. I almost always find myself drifting off fairly quickly and easily each time I put it on.

Even the few times I haven't felt like I've fallen fully asleep, I've still felt more rested afterward, almost like I was in a sort of meditative state. At the very least, it's better than all the times I've gotten in bed to take a nap without it and set an alarm for 30 minutes, only to lie there worrying about when I'd fall asleep and getting caught in a cycle of my own thoughts.

It wakes you up in a pleasant way

At about 24 minutes in, the binaural beats stop, and the app goes silent for a couple of minutes. Then, some pleasant bird sounds start, and the voice comes back, letting you know, "It's time to wake up now." It's a much less jarring way to wake from a nap than the alarm I typically use on my phone.

The app claims to give you the "rest of a 3-hour nap in just 26 minutes, without feeling groggy." I can't say I haven't felt any grogginess at all after waking up from taking a nap with the app, but I definitely feel less residual fog than I typically do and feel more rested.