10 Reasons Why You Should Buy a Weighted Blanket This Winter

Weighted blankets have been increasing in popularity for a few years now. After all, they are calming, cosy, and come in so many stylish designs to suit anyone’s decor.

But what is the big deal about weighted blankets? Why do so many people rave about them? How are they so beneficial?

Here are ten reasons why it might be time to finally get yourself a weighted blanket this winter.

1. Improved Sleep

Not only do weighted blankets provide warmth and a sense of security by creating pressure that is similar to a hug, but they also induce a number of knock-on effects that are beneficial to health.

Research shows that a hug releases the hormone oxytocin in the body, helping to create a feeling of relaxation. Oxytocin also slows the heart and reduces blood pressure, prompting the body to relax, resulting in improved sleep.

2. Reduces Anxiety and Restlessness

Researchers have found that this “deep touch pressure stimulation” or “proprioceptive pressure” promotes the release of two brain chemicals — dopamine and serotonin which have a calming effect that combats anxiety, stress, and depression.

When the weighted blanket stimulates serotonin, melatonin hormones are also released, promoting sleep and helping regulate the sleep cycle.

A weighted blanket can help you sleep better so you feel refreshed and less anxious the next day. By promoting the ‘calming’ hormones and neurotransmitters, a weighted blanket helps to calm both the body and the brain.

3. Eases Insomnia

The release of serotonin through deep touch pressure stimulation through the use of weighted blankets can help regulate your sleeping patterns, giving you a firm but gentle pressure any time you need it, ensuring a better night’s sleep.

4. Relieve Symptoms of ADHD

For adults and kids with ADHD, it can be challenging to regain concentration when a trigger makes it hard to calm down. For this reason, weighted blankets are often used as part of a comprehensive strategy to change behaviours and create better behaviour patterns. 

Many parents have found a weighted blanket to be a helpful tool in the middle of a child’s meltdown. And grown-ups with symptoms of attention deficit disorder can also benefit from the calming effects of a weighted blanket for adults. The heft of the blanket grounds your nerves and may stop over-stimulation. When you’re buzzing and unable to concentrate, a weighted blanket feels like a firm hug.

5. Helps Fibromyalgia Pain

Characterised by chronic, idiopathic pain in at least 11 out of 18 pain points, fibromyalgia can be debilitating. While certain drugs may help patients manage their symptoms, there is no cure for fibromyalgia. For some people, the gentle but firm pressure of a weighted blanket is an important tool for preventing fibro flare-ups.

6. Promotes Calmness

If you’ve had yet another stressful day, wrapping yourself up in a weighted blanket when you finally get home can help improve your mood. Whether you’re feeling frantic, overwhelmed or anxious, a touch of weighted blanket therapy can help you relax and reduce anxiety. Those aforementioned helpful hormones and neurotransmitters — serotonin, dopamine, and oxytocin — will give you the hug you need.

7. Addresses Symptoms of PTSD

Post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) can affect anyone who has suffered through a traumatic or stressful event, with symptoms often including insomnia and depression. In studies, researchers have observed that weighted blanket therapy lowers blood pressure, reduces pulse rates and helps 63% of study participants feel less anxious.

8. Easing Restless Leg Syndrome

Night-time is difficult if you have restless leg syndrome, as the tingling is often most apparent at night — greatly impairing sleep.

While compression socks provide some relief, they can actually become very uncomfortable if they are too tight. If you have arthritis, you may even have trouble putting the socks on your legs. With a weighted blanket, you get the relaxing pressure without constriction to the legs.

9. Wake up Relaxed

It’s no surprise that sleeping well means you wake up feeling better, brighter, and ready to tackle the day. Snoozing under a weighted blanket for adults often means having a better morning. And if you have a good morning, chances are good that these relaxed feelings will extend throughout your day, too.

10. Upgrade Your Bedding for a Great Price

At Calming Blankets, if you enter your email, you’ll receive a coupon to score $110 off your first blanket immediately! What a great deal!

Related: Calming Blankets Weighted Blanket Review

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