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Weight a minute...this works?

They're big, they're bulky, but they might just be pure brilliance.

By Nati SaednejadPublished 3 years ago 4 min read
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Weight a minute...this works?
Photo by Susan Wilkinson on Unsplash

I am in a deeply committed, wonderfully happy, relationship with my bed. It's my safe place. When all else in the world seems overwhelming, I know my memory foam mattress and pillow will be there to soften the crushing blows dealt to me on the daily by reality.

I've cultivated the perfect little cocoon - brushed cotton covers, silk pillowcases - and nothing brings me more joy than becoming a human burrito at the end of the day (and invariably during it, too), whilst I scroll through the 'Gram. I thought I'd reached the pinnacle of comfort, when every wallet's nemesis, good old targeted marketing, started filling my feeds with something big and soft that I just HAD to have. A weighted blanket.

Now, don't get me wrong, I'd heard the tales of this mythical harbinger of peace, but I'd always worried it would make me feel more claustrophobic than calm. Plus, at over £100, I just wasn't ready to make that kind of commitment to hyped-up piece of material just yet. So, I stood my ground as various platforms tried to taunt me with promises of relaxation and deep sleep, and huddled deeper into my stupid, lightweight duck down duvet. I didn't need some blanket full of beads to bring peace into my life...did I?

I thought I didn't. Truly believed I didn't, until my birthday began to roll around. I might not normally want to splurge on a blanket, but if I couldn't spend on myself for my 30th, when could I? It's not like it had been on my mind every single day since I first saw the advert. Nope. Not at all. Definitely not.

So, I caved, and found my chosen bringer of serenity, the Mela weighted blanket. It's silky soft grey cover, and expanse of weighted goodness, promising to carry your worries away, had drawn me in, and I couldn't wait to be underneath it. It was all becoming a bit '50 Shades of Grey' but that was '50 Shades of Okay' with me. Plus, it was winter, I reasoned, and I needed to stay warm, so it was an entirely practical present to myself.

When the beautiful matte white and mint green box arrived on my doorstep, I'd never been more excited to get anything, or anyone for that matter, up to my room and out of its packaging. As I reverently unwrapped the blanket, and panicked for a mere moment at how on EARTH I was going to put the cover on this monster, I knew I'd made the right choice. The fact that Mela also donate proceeds from their blankets towards the YoungMinds charity also meant that while the blanket would be benefitting me, it would help towards benefitting others too.

After my first workout in 12 months, which was putting the cover on this 5.5kg beauty, I lay down, covered myself in its heavy wholesomeness, and suddenly felt all the tension and twitches in my muscles begin to dissipate. It was heavenly. My sceptical side quickly and firmly took a backseat as an overwhelming sense of calm spread over my body, and all I could do was lay there and smile. If I had liked cocooning myself before, this was about to majorly up my chrysalis game.

When I managed to string together some thoughts that weren't just my brain drooling incoherently, high on oxytocin, I began to think about just why these blankets have exploded across our screens. In a year of uncertainty, isolation, and fear, the need for human contact and connection has never been more intense. Moreover, neither has our need to tend to our mental health, and calm our minds. Combine these two elements, and weighted blankets tap into our primal need for affection and touch, for reassurance and safety.

Lying beneath these blankets replicates the pressure sensations we experience during physical contact such as hugs, which have been scientifically proven to increase the amount of happy hormones in our brains. The enveloping weight that surrounds us invokes a sense of security and safety, helping our minds to relax, and for sleep to come more easily to us. In short, in the year of a pandemic, it's the tonic we all need to take the edge off the 'new normal'.

I'm never normally one to advocate the purchase of social media 'star buys', or products placed under our noses that target our issues and insecurities, but this blanket has truly been gift from the Marketing Gods up on high. Mental health and wellbeing is so important, so if you're going to splurge on anything, make sure it's something that will make that dopamine dance like mad.

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About the Creator

Nati Saednejad

Linguist. Loon. Life-lover.

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