Why I Love My Weighted Blanket

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My husband bought me a weighted blanket recently, and I must say it is the best present I’ve ever received.

Unless you live under a rock, weighted blankets have become quite popular. I started to notice advertisements for them pop up on my newsfeed and it even migrated over to YouTube ads.

Initially, I thought it was a gimmick. From just looking at the images, I assumed weighted blankets were no more than an overhyped bulky comforter you could buy from Bed Bath & Beyond. But one day, I finally caved and decided to do some research on why these things were becoming so popular.

My husband caught me a few times relying on Google to school me on everything I needed to understand about a weighted blanket. I remember him asking me one night, “Why do you keep looking those up? What is it for?”

Weighted blankets help reduce stress dramatically. They are also known for reducing anxiety, lowering blood pressure, and help with insomnia and other sleep disorders. Some sites have even shared that they can help calm or comfort those with Autism or ADHD. And that’s just to name a handful of things I found.

After listing these benefits, my husband was pretty sold that I needed to get one too.

I have struggled with high blood pressure, anxiety, stress, and insomnia. I don’t discuss these struggles often. Possibly out of the fear of how others would perceive me or assumptions that would be made. Plus, being a parent doesn’t exactly make it easy to approach these conversations head-on when you’ve got a busy toddler repeatedly asking for snacks and life doesn’t slow down.

Therefore, when my husband recommended that I needed to jump on the bandwagon and get one too, it meant something more. It meant that he notices. It meant that he sees it too.

I have lost count of the number of times I have struggled to fall asleep. If I did manage to fall asleep I would wake up at 2 a.m. unable to fall back asleep due to my racing thoughts, and then anxiousness happens because I don’t know if I will be able to function at my day job on the three hours of sleep I managed to get in.

Relief in the form of a Blanket

My first night of laying under my blanket was an immediate sense of satisfaction. For the first time in a long while, I fell asleep in just minutes. Truthfully, I didn’t even realize that I fell asleep until I woke up feeling refreshed the following morning.

The feeling of a weighted blanket isn’t at all what I thought it would be. It is evenly distributed with small beads in the lining which is how it adds weight. You’re basically receiving a deep pressure stimulation that signals your nervous systems and immediately calms you down. It’s like you’re receiving bunches of hugs.

It’s a sense of relief I didn’t know I needed.

I’ve noticed the benefits of having my weighted blanket overnight. When those racing thoughts start to kick in, I wrap myself inside of my blanket which slows me down and calms my thoughts; even if it’s for only fifteen minutes.

The only con I have for my weighted blanket is that sometimes I can get really hot underneath. But aside from just monitoring the temperature, I haven’t had anything else to complain about with it.

I now understand the initial hype around weighted blankets. It is so much more than a fancy blanket from Target or Amazon, and it isn’t anywhere close to being a Snuggie. I speak so openly about it now because of how much it has helped me manage and cope with my struggles.

I love my weighted blanket not only because of the immediate relief I feel, but because it makes it easier for me to share with others what has helped me. And maybe…it will help you too.