Defining a blanket is harder these days, because somebody came out with a weighted blanket, so that changes things. In the realm of bedding we have comforters, coverlets, bedspreads, quilts, throws and blankets. All of them are designed to go on top of you when you’re sleeping, and try to decorate the bed neatly when you’re away, just in case a lifestyle magazine photographer stops by.
I originally bought the weighted blanket for my mother, but it wasn’t the right fit for her. After keeping it stored away for a while, I finally took it out and put it on my new bed, which just arrived after over a month of waiting (you may remember I ordered it on Labor Day weekend).
The new bed is an adventure, because it’s much higher than my old mattress set. It seems the manufacturers decided to make beds the height of a small hill, and for the average human it requires climbing into. My feet don’t touch the floor anymore! The old sheets are too shallow to fit, so my collection of nice bedding is obsolete. But I have handled these issues, with new sheets, and a foot stool on order from Amazon. So getting into and out of bed will become akin to mounting and dismounting from the examining table in the doctor’s office.
This new innovative blanket is weighted with glass beads which add (in my case) fifteen pounds to it, but some weigh less or slightly more; the idea is that a blanket which weighs about ten percent of your body weight provides comfortable pressure which aids in sleep. Studies seem to indicate that feeling the heft of the blanket can reduce anxiety and help produce natural chemical reactions which speed getting to sleep.
The first night I put it on, I felt its pressure on me and wasn’t sure if it would be comfortable, but I did fall asleep and stay asleep for hours. That’s a good point in its favor.
The bad point is that it slides. All my sheets seem to slide now. And I know it isn’t an overuse of moisturizer because no matter how much I put on, my skin slurps it up. There is a unique sound when a weighted blanket plummets to the floor, rather like a small thud. Though not so loud as if I fell out of bed. Which I may do at least once on this new bed, because it’s so darned high. The house might shake with that thud.
The blanket is really dead weight, too. Sort of like a dog when they don’t want to go to the vet, and they get so rigid they seem to gain ten pounds, or that they seem to be glued to the ground.
Picking up a weighted blanket is a different experience, too. Any other bed cover is just fluff and bulk; this thing oozes out of your arms and doesn’t take well to containment. I’m reluctant to try laundering it yet, because I think my washer will not like it. My washer is ancient, but sturdy, and hearkens back to the days of shallow beds and sheets. I suppose I should throw it in and stand by in case I experience the uneven load dance my washer may do if things don’t go well.
So I’ve upgraded and adapted with a new bed and new accessories, and my sleep seems to have benefited from it. Small price to pay for staying healthy. If I don’t plummet to the ground.
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