Typecast

I don't mind admitting that I thought it would be hard to review a weighted blanket in the height of summer but this is about more than warmth.  I had recently been researching weighted blankets as a sleep aid because my sleep patterns have been all over the place.  I've tried memory foam pillows, bamboo pyjamas, and already use a feather topper on the mattress but nothing seemed to work effectively.   Weighted blankets are designed to mimic 'deep touch therapy' which gives the illusion of being held or hugged. This type of pressure can (and here is the science bit) increase serotonin which is a neurotransmitter that helps with sleep by stimulating a calming effect.  A weighted blanket can also encourage your body to produce oxytocin which relieves pain and stress, helping you to sleep better at night with studies showing that 63% of people have reported having lower levels of anxiety after using the blanket. Weighted blankets have been used by adu...

Recently I have been tracking my sleep pattern after waking up tired. The results were a bit shocking, to say the least. Using a wearable fitness tracker I found that I was awake (or restless) more than I was asleep in a 7-hour period so it was no surprise that I was still tired when it was time to get up. I did a bit of research to see if anything helped and here are my five top tips to help get a good night's sleep . Emptying my head. I write a to-do list for the next day (and we all know how I love a good list). This is a bit of psychobabble that I probably made up but getting rid of the tasks I haven't done - even if I'm putting them off until tomorrow - means that I'm not mulling things over as I'm winding down. A bedtime routine isn't just for babies. Winding down is important. For me this means that I have to switch my laptop off a good half hour before I know I'm going to bed or I get caught up in a(nother) Twitter conversation or B...

Living with someone who has to take a myriad of pills to keep them on an even keel for a number of reasons means that I am very aware of dependency, the side-effects and the reason for taking them in the first place.  But for a while now I have been worried about my sleep pattern.  I am a light sleeper and my husband is a deep sleeper, to the extent that he snores really loud.  I was experiencing a maximum of four hours broken sleep a night and it got to the stage where I was delirious through lack of sleep, I was snapping at everyone and was resentful if they were enjoying a lie-in at weekend. One trip to the doctors resulted in me chatting about relaxation techniques (tried and tested with a big fat fail as a result) and not much more including trying out something along the lines of  Gold Bee - Botanical Supplements & Hemp Products .  Nowadays there is a wide range of unique supplements that can be used to aid sleep and for...

Today's post is from Susie who I know through the "Parent Blogging" network that has sprung up over the past few months.  Susie writes about positive thinking over on her blog   New Day, New Lesson   (check out her " Kindness Club " posts) and is also on  Twitter -  @NewDayNewLesson .  Over to Susie...

No, we're not doing the hokey cokey (although we might do at the end if you sit nicely and behave)... no, this post is about bedroom behaviour... oh bloody hell... I mean SLEEP!! It's a hot summer night... (no, this is not that Meatloaf song ) and you can't sleep.  You lie on the bed and cover yourself up... AARRGGHH it's too hot.  You fling the duvet back (narrowly missing your loved one's shoulder if you share the bed with someone) and sprawl out like a starfish, then you try lying on top of your duvet, then back on the sheet, tossing (don't be rude) and turning, flipping your pillow over to the cool side... and finally end up covered up with your duvet BUT with one leg uncovered, either hanging down by the side of the bed or hooked round the edge of the duvet. Why, oh why is that just right?