Greetings Earthlings! 🙂
After many posts where I’ve mentioned them, this week, I’ve finally bought a weighted blanket! I have been dying to try one out for years, but they are often quite expensive, usually retailing around the 100-200 euro-ish region for a full blanket. However on a Googling whim, I recently found that Dunnes Stores here in Ireland stocks them for as little as €35, so naturally I couldn’t say no!
So first things first, what exactly is a weighted blanket?
Weighted blankets (also known as gravity blankets) are pretty self explanatory- they are flat blankets that usually contain metal, glass or plastic beads in evenly spaced, quilted pockets across the entire surface of the blanket. The blanket is designed to evenly apply deep, calming pressure to the user across their body, like simulating a hug. As the blankets are weighted, you are also more restricted, making it harder to toss and turn in your sleep. Many of these blankets are even designed to stay cool in summer and warm in winter. For optimal use, blankets shouldn’t exceed 10% of the user’s weight.
But how does this benefit autists?
As I’ve discussed previously, autists have higher levels of stimulatory neurotransmitters and lower levels of calming neurotransmitters, meaning that our brains are more “switched on” and harder to turn off than most. The deep pressure applied by the blanket is designed to stimulate the release of the calming neurotransmitters serotonin (which helps regulate the sleep cycle and temperature) and dopamine to relax and soothe the racing mind. It’s also thought that deep pressure can stimulate the limbic system, the emotional centre of the brain, which could potentially help calm you down during a meltdown.
So how did I find using it?
It was quite an unusual sensation to begin with- as you would expect from having a 6kg blanket pressing down on your body 😛 It’s somewhat of a workout moving it about when making the bed and moving it around the house! 😂 I found it was quite restrictive getting used to the sensation of the blanket on my body and learning how to move onto my side beneath it. It sometimes feels like someone is sitting on your chest at times, but in a good way!
After an adjustment period, I did find that my mind was much slower at night when I lay beneath it. The heaviness mimics that heaviness you experience just before you fall asleep which can be quite hard to resist. In general I found it a lot easier to sleep with the blanket on, and if I did wake during the night, the added weight made it very easy to slip back into sleep again. On the downside however, it can be a lot harder to get out of bed in the morning trying to push off the extra weight if you aren’t a morning person😂 I’ve had some pretty epic naps using the blanket as the weight keeps it from moving and prevents any nasty draughts from getting into your cosy burrito.
It will be quite interesting to know going forward how the blanket may work in a meltdown situation for me in the future.
Weighted blankets are not for everyone however, as they can be difficult for kids to get in and out of bed without the help of an adult They are also not easily transportable for travel so it isn’t the best idea to get a child dependent on them for sleeping. You can however buy weighted lap pads or weighted vests that can be much easier to use for children with autism and ADHD.
Hope you enjoyed this post dear Earthlings!
Have a lovely weekend,
Aoife
A Is For Aoife Not Autism 