Naps: huh?

I am embarking on my last week of class as an undergraduate. Today I turned in a 5-pg paper for review, tomorrow will be a 10 pg paper, Wednesday will be an entire portfolio (10 min oral presentation, 2 nonfiction pieces, some letter, etc etc), and Thursday will be a presentation and another 5-pg paper.
This past weekend was a working fiasco--a yard sale on Friday, a wedding on Saturday, a flood and choir on Sunday, and I am completely exhausted from a lack of sleep.
In the past 2 days, I've taken 2 naps. In the past few days, I've taken 3. I never take naps. EVER. My brain won't shut up long enough TO take naps...it just races as I try to will myself to sleep.
But now, not so. The past 3 1/2 years of my college life, I can count on one hand how many naps I've taken. Sleep is important to me, but I don't live to sleep. I honestly wish I was all Twilight-vampire ish (please forgive me for that terrible allusion) and could stay awake all the time.
Now, I appreciate sleep very much. It's a nice little break between writing papers and researching. Why have I never before discovered this sedative phenomenon?