With all things going on in our world, two months ago I started my quest for living a healthier, better life. I changed my diet, started exercising and I decided to try out the latest trending product to hit the health and wellness scene: weighted blankets. The Kudd.ly weighted blanket to be exact. I am happy to report that the two months have been a success and I owe much of the thanks to my weighted blanket!
I was never one to suffer chronic sleep loss. Still, I am no stranger to dealing with bouts of insomnia, anxiety and depression. More recently, I’ve started to experience symptoms of fibromyalgia.
Weighted blankets have become the go-to tool to help offset these conditions and the associated effects they can have on my body.
After browsing the internet for the top weighted blanket brands in the UK, I opted for the Kudd.ly blanket , as they offered the highest quality product, with the most reasonable attached price tag.
Their reviews were great:
You can read their reviews here…
And I took advantage of their sale price. I scored 2 blankets for £89 – 1 for me and 1 for the hubby.
Once I pressed the complete order button, I was itching to try out my new purchase. The company offers free next day shipping, so I didn’t have long to wait, which was another plus.
A day later, my parcel arrived, and I gleefully tore into it. Here is a photo of my Kuddly!
My first thought after opening the parcel was the feel. My God, THE FEEL. You could easily drag your hand back and forth along the plush fabric for hours, which I ended up unconsciously doing as I brought my new weighted blanket to the sofa with me for a night of TV shows and indulgence.
As a child, it was easy for me to fall asleep and stay that way through the night. As I aged, however, I found it harder and harder to fall asleep and stay asleep until morning. I periodically wake up in the night to switch positions, feeling uncomfortable and restless.
I am happy to report that such restlessness has diminished since I made a weighted blanket my sleeping buddy. The amount of times I wake up and shift positions has effectively dropped to zero. At night I feel warm and cosy under the heavy blanket, and the weight helps to keep me in a comfortable position for hours of peaceful sleeping.
Overall, I’ve felt calmer, more at ease, and fully rested after a night sleeping under this weighted blanket.
Surprisingly (or not so surprisingly if you look at the science behind it), I’ve felt like I’ve had more vivid dreams too. REM sleep, also known as Rapid Eye Movement sleep, is a vital part of our sleep-wake cycle- it is our deepest level of sleep, when the body repairs itself, and the brain cements new connections between our memory and consciousness. REM is also when dreaming takes place.
The benefit of remembering more of my dreams is great in and of itself. However, its not much of a stretch to assume that because I felt like I dreamed more, I could have reached a deeper, better level of REM sleep due to the effects of the weighted blanket.
I only ever used to wake up to the blaring sound of my alarm, never naturally occurring. However, after just a few nights snuggled up under a weighted blanket, I found myself returning to a state of wakefulness before my alarm went off, which was a lovely surprise.
The first morning after I slept with a weighted blanket, I woke up feeling like I had achieved a deeper level of sleep than what I was previously used to. As a result, I finally learned what it’s like to be like a morning person.
They say it can take a few weeks to feel a difference, but after a couple of nights, I was pretty impressed.
Before they hit the mainstream market, weighted blankets were used by occupational therapists to help patients dealing with ADHD, autism, and other sensory disorders.
The gentle pressure of a weighted blanket stimulates deep touch pressure which in turn induces a calming sensation throughout the body. This sensory stimulation calms the nervous system, which in turn generates those happy hormones while relaxing muscles and easing away stress.
In the words of Tom Haverford and Donna Meagle from Parks and Rec, TREAT YO SELF. This was my go-to mantra for the weekend, and really, for any session of self-care. Whether it’s taking the time to retreat to my room for a quiet moment, reading one of my favourite books, or bingeing an entire series in one sitting, the Kudd.ly blanket makes for a pretty cosy companion.
I found that I was able to sit and enjoy the task at hand for longer, without the need for readjusting positions or for lack of concentration.
Cuddling up with my Kudd.ly also helped me drown out the rest of the world. Those anxious feelings were muted, and I felt a more profound sense of security overall.
As a bonus, I was not the only one to benefit from this great purchase. Since picking out my cat Ellie from the shelter three months ago, I can count on one hand how many times she jumped onto the bed to cuddle with me, as she is still pretty timid.
In the first weekend of sleeping with a weighted blanket, my cat slept on the bed. She snuggled up next to me on the blanket. Every. Single. Night. So not only did I procure an excellent night’s sleep, so too, did my sweet fur baby, and it left me feeling more connected to her than ever.
So far, I have thoroughly enjoyed my experience using the Kudd.ly weighted blanket. So much so, that my family is already annoyed with how much I’ve brought it up in conversation.
You can say that I have jumped on the weighted blanket bandwagon, but that’s a mouthful.
I hope too that a weighted blanket will benefit your life like it has mine.