The number of insomnia victims are rising due twenty-first century’s stressful lifestyle. Many of them seeking professional and medical help to reduce stress and having a good night sleep.

Weighted blanket is becoming popular among insomniacs due to its positive outcomes. These heavy blankets are filled with tiny plastic balls, pellets or chains that creates a sensation of tight hug and help to fall asleep faster.

What is a Weighted Blanket?

Weighted blanket is simply a blanket which heavier than your regular blanket. A standard weighted blanket for adults weighs between 15-20 lbs.

So how does it work?

It provides pressure evenly to your body while sleeping. It’s particularly helpful for patients suffering from stress, insomnia or anxiety. Researchers found that weighted blankets help to comfort people who are upset, nervous and anxious. The feeling of a firm hug helps to get an intimate feeling.

According to prominent psychologist Dr. Melissa, the pressure created by weighted blankets aids our body to feel relaxed. It artificially recreates a condition where we feel safe and secure.

A quality weighted blanket usually has two parts. The most important section is the inside where weights are inserted in the form of tiny plastic or metal pellets/balls.

These weights are evenly distributed by storing them in separate small pockets. Each small pocket or chamber securely holds same amount of weight to distribute even pressure. In most cases, these pockets are squire sized.
Typically, in a good quality weighted blanket like, pallets are soft to ensure maximum comfort. Companies like YnM produce high quality weighted blanket by using best quality durable material. If you want to buy an YnM weighted blanket in affordable price range, check out their website.

On the other hand, cheap weighted blankets use hard pallets which make them heavy but not comfortable.

Weighted Blankets in the Treatment of Various Disorders

As we discussed before, weighted blankets help users to feel relaxed and calm them down. Using a weighted blanket increases serotonin and melatonin levels of our body which make us feel relaxed.

It creates the effect of being tucked down as baby. This wrapped up feeling support sleeping by confirming relief and comfort. These blankets also has positive effects as a therapy over several disorders like insomnia, sleep disorder, Restless Leg Syndrome (RLS), ADHD, stress, anxiety and Parkinson’s disease.

Research on Weighted blanket

The concept of weighted blanket is creating a simulation of firm pressure to reconstruct the felling of cocooning. This sensation signals our brain to calm down and fall asleep.

The recent study on weighted blanket, which was published in the Journal of Sleep Medicine and Disorders in 2015 found that, patients with chronic insomnia felt using weighted blanket helped them to be relaxed and they liked it.

The study also discovered that, insomnia sufferers had better sleep during night while using a weighted blanket.
Weighted blankets are getting popular day by day and people are still discovering various benefits of using it. So far, from both consumer’s feedback and scientific research suggest that, weighted blankets evidently aid in the treatment of several anxiety and stress related conditions.

If you are suffering from insomnia due to uncountable amount of stress you are dealing every day, weighted blanket could be a smart viable solution. This non-medical therapy supplement can help you manage your stress level thus increase productivity.
We hope this article helps you to know the basics of weighted blankets as its benefits. If you have ever tried a weighted blanket let us know about you experience in the comment section.

References:

Ackerley, R., Badre, G., & Olausson, H. (2015). Positive effects of a weighted blanket on insomnia. Journal of Sleep Medicine & Disorders, 2(3), 1022.

https://www.psychologytoday.com/intl/blog/minding-the-body/201808/do-wei...

https://www.bustle.com/p/6-benefits-of-using-a-weighted-blanket-thatll-m...

Author's Bio: 

Torsi is a professional blogger.