Over the past few weeks I have been reviewing a couple of products that are designed to help aid sleep. I don't really consider myself to be a sleep-deprived Mum but I think I do suffer a little from stress - mostly work-related! Settling down to sleep at night can be a long process for me; it starts with a bit of chill-out time after putting the girls to bed (usually my blogging time!), a little TV and then up to bed for a bit of browsing on Facebook and email before trying to settle down.
These sleep ideas were inspired by the tips for a good nights sleep from the Silentnight Sleep Clinic. The first product I tried out to try and make the process a little easier is the Tempur Pedic Sleep Mask which is a luxury sleep mask. It is incredibly soft and has Tempur memory fabric which applies a gentle pressure on the face below the eyes and adapts to the shape of your face. For me, the most amazing thing was the black-out effect of the sleep mask - it was properly, seriously blacked out!
I tried the sleep mask for a few nights but didn't really get on with it; I felt self-conscious in the total darkness and was unused to having the feeling of something resting against my eyes so instead of helping me to zone out at bedtime, it actually made me restless. However, I do intend to take the sleep mask with me later this month when I have to fly long-haul overnight to the USA and stay in a hotel as I think it will help to filter out light and distractions when travelling.
Now the next sleep remedy I tried is a very interesting one - a bottle of Magnesium oil! This is a special magnesium oil which has added essential oils designed to help you calm down before bed. You spray it on all over your body about half an hour before going to bed and the magnesium is intended to absorb in through your skin which can help reduce restlessness and muscle cramps (something I do suffer from a lot during the night).
I was a bit worried about trying the magnesium oil because I have a skin allergy to mineral oils... but I gave it a try anyway. On the first use the oil made my skin itch and tingle like NOTHING ON EARTH. I figured it was the skin allergy so I did a little bit of internet searching to find out why I might have experienced a reaction and discovered something very interesting... magnesium oil can cause tingling in the case where you have a deficiency. Lots of the other symptoms that I read about also suggested I might be experiencing magnesium deficiency. So, I persevered with the oil, trying it each night and within three nights the tingling had gone altogether. Woop!
So, did it help me sleep? Well.. no, not really! The feeling of the magnesium oil, even when it wasn't itchy, felt a bit funny if I went to sleep with the oil still on my skin (I felt a bit sticky and salty!) and if I chose to wash it off before going to bed then I found that I woke myself up and felt wide awake an invigorated! It was a lose, lose situation.
So, I haven't really yet found a solution to help me chill out more quickly in the evenings. I think I may resort to my trusty cup of tea!
These sleep ideas were inspired by the tips for a good nights sleep from the Silentnight Sleep Clinic. The first product I tried out to try and make the process a little easier is the Tempur Pedic Sleep Mask which is a luxury sleep mask. It is incredibly soft and has Tempur memory fabric which applies a gentle pressure on the face below the eyes and adapts to the shape of your face. For me, the most amazing thing was the black-out effect of the sleep mask - it was properly, seriously blacked out!
I tried the sleep mask for a few nights but didn't really get on with it; I felt self-conscious in the total darkness and was unused to having the feeling of something resting against my eyes so instead of helping me to zone out at bedtime, it actually made me restless. However, I do intend to take the sleep mask with me later this month when I have to fly long-haul overnight to the USA and stay in a hotel as I think it will help to filter out light and distractions when travelling.
Now the next sleep remedy I tried is a very interesting one - a bottle of Magnesium oil! This is a special magnesium oil which has added essential oils designed to help you calm down before bed. You spray it on all over your body about half an hour before going to bed and the magnesium is intended to absorb in through your skin which can help reduce restlessness and muscle cramps (something I do suffer from a lot during the night).
I was a bit worried about trying the magnesium oil because I have a skin allergy to mineral oils... but I gave it a try anyway. On the first use the oil made my skin itch and tingle like NOTHING ON EARTH. I figured it was the skin allergy so I did a little bit of internet searching to find out why I might have experienced a reaction and discovered something very interesting... magnesium oil can cause tingling in the case where you have a deficiency. Lots of the other symptoms that I read about also suggested I might be experiencing magnesium deficiency. So, I persevered with the oil, trying it each night and within three nights the tingling had gone altogether. Woop!
So, did it help me sleep? Well.. no, not really! The feeling of the magnesium oil, even when it wasn't itchy, felt a bit funny if I went to sleep with the oil still on my skin (I felt a bit sticky and salty!) and if I chose to wash it off before going to bed then I found that I woke myself up and felt wide awake an invigorated! It was a lose, lose situation.
So, I haven't really yet found a solution to help me chill out more quickly in the evenings. I think I may resort to my trusty cup of tea!
