Buying a weighted blanket for adults has the potential to up your sleep game and more.
At Layla, we love weighted blankets so much that we created our own. If you’re in the market for a heavy blanket with a soft feel, you’re in the right place. If you’re still not convinced, here are ten reasons to buy a weighted blanket (many of them are research-backed!).
- What Is a Weighted Blanket?
- How Do You Choose a Weighted Blanket for Adults?
- How Heavy Should a Weighted Blanket Be for Adults?
- 10 Weighted Blanket Benefits for Adults
- Layla Weighted Blanket for Adults
What Is a Weighted Blanket?
A weighted blanket for adults is exactly as it sounds—a blanket that has weight to it. Weighted blankets get their weight from different types of blanket fillings, such as glass beads, plastic poly pellets, steel beads, and organic materials like sand, pebbles, and grains.
So, how do weighted blankets work? The weight inside a weighted blanket mimics a type of therapy called Deep Touch Pressure therapy, or DTP. When you’re under the weight of a weighted blanket, the pressure activates the parasympathetic nervous system to help calm the mind and ease the body. As you unwind for bed, the pressure helps release hormones, such as endorphins and serotonin, to help you feel calm and relaxed, making it easier for you to fall asleep. Weighted blankets for adults are a great sleeping solution for those living with anxiety, stress, pain, and sleep disorders.
How Do You Choose a Weighted Blanket for Adults?
Knowing how to choose a weighted blanket for adults is essential to getting the quality sleep you deserve. There are several factors to consider when shopping for a weighted blanket, which depend on personal preferences. Here’s how to pick a weighted blanket for adults:
- Weight: One of the top factors to consider in a weighted blanket for adults is the blanket’s weight. It’s recommended to choose a blanket that’s 10% of your body weight.
- Filling: Weighted blankets can be made from a wide range of fillings, such as glass beads and plastic. In general, glass beads are one of the top choices, as they’re machine washable, durable, and affordable.
- Machine washability: In some cases, you might not be able to machine wash your weighted blanket due to the materials. Make sure to review the blanket’s washing instructions before purchase.
- Price: As always, price is an important factor to consider when looking for the best weighted blanket for adults. While you might want to save money and opt for a cheap weighted blanket, you can end up with one that’s poorly constructed. Investing in a quality weighted blanket will reduce the number of times it needs to be replaced, saving you money in the long run.
With these tips on how to pick a weighted blanket for adults, you’ll be able to come home with a weighted blanket that whisks you to sleep night after night.
How Heavy Should a Weighted Blanket Be for Adults?
When choosing a weighted blanket, it’s important to get a blanket that’s the right fit for you. A weighted blanket that’s too light might not deliver the benefits you’re looking for, while a blanket that’s too heavy can result in feelings of claustrophobia and trouble breathing.
So, how heavy should a weighted blanket be for adults? Personal preference will differ, but as a general rule, weighted blankets should weigh around 10% of your body weight. For example, if you weigh 150 pounds, you should purchase a weighted blanket that’s 15 pounds. In most cases, weighted blankets are sold in 5-pound increments, such as 5, 10, 15, 20, and 25 pounds. If you fall in between a weight recommendation, such as 17 pounds because you weigh 170 pounds, you can size up or size down depending on your preferences.
10 Weighted Blanket Benefits for Adults
There are numerous weighted blanket benefits for adults that can help you get the quality sleep you deserve. If you’re on the fence wondering if a weighted blanket is right for you, explore these benefits below:
1. Ground Your Body
You know that peaceful, easy feeling you get from laying on the grass at the park? It turns out it’s not just a #FridayFeeling! A lot of people – including some researchers – believe the practice of grounding has a real calming effect on the body.
Also called earthing, grounding is the practice of connecting your body to the earth. People who support the theory of grounding say that having contact with the earth’s electrons helps you balance your own electromagnetic system. If it sounds a little hippy-dippy, stay with us! Studies have shown that grounding exercises outdoors and sleeping on conductive mattresses can make people calmer and reduce inflammation.
Sleeping under a weighted blanket can have a similar effect to laying on the earth’s surface. While you won’t be able to borrow from the planet’s electromagnetic field in your own bed, your brain still benefits from your body being pushed downward. The type of grounding you get from a weighted blanket for adults also taps into deep-touch therapy, a type of gentle pressure that reduces anxiety and quiets the nervous system.
2. Enjoy Sound Sleep
As you can imagine, when your body and brain feel grounded and you’re not so antsy, you can enjoy a more sound sleep night after night. A weighted blanket for adults could mean you finally wake up feeling rested. Your FitBit will send you an email to ask if you’ve recently fallen into a coma (maybe). At least one study found that weighted blankets left most participants with better, more secure sleep. As one of the top benefits of weighted blankets for adults, it’s no wonder more and more sleepers are finding themselves under the warm embrace of these soothing blankets.
3. Decrease Cortisol
Do you know what we need cortisol for? Fight or flight. Do you know what we don’t need it for? Trying to fall asleep! Stress can lift our cortisol levels, which makes it hard to get good rest. What’s worse, a lack of sleep can also cause cortisol to skyrocket. It’s easy to wind up in an endless loop. Your cortisol level makes it hard to sleep, which only gives you more cortisol.
Weighted blankets for adults could disrupt this undesirable (not-so-) merry-go-round. When you are more grounded and calmer at night, you could see a spike in serotonin and a decrease in cortisol. If that’s not enough, serotonin can also boost your natural melatonin (the chemical that tells your brain to go into rest mode). Win-win.
4. Reduce Stress and Anxiety
If the reason you can’t get to sleep is spinning thoughts and ongoing anxiety, you are a great candidate for a weighted blanket for adults. In fact, having anxiety might just be the top reason people start looking into the best weighted blankets. All of the other factors, like grounding and lowering cortisol, will ultimately work in service of alleviating your anxiety.
While research is fairly limited, at least one study found that 63% of participants with anxiety said that sleeping under a weighted blanket helped their symptoms. Insomnia can also be a trigger for anxiety and depression. Just by getting better sleep, you could help keep some symptoms at bay (you should also talk to your doctor about other ways to treat chronic anxiety).
While a weighted blanket for anxiety won’t replace all other treatments, it could be an integral part of your recipe for increased calm and a boost to your mental health.
5. Get Comfortable
Sure, a weighted blanket for adults has a grounding effect and could reduce anxiety. But, they’re also just… really comfortable. And if that’s not a good reason to buy one, it must be opposite day. Having options like you do with the Layla Weighted Blanket’s two different sides with two different feels is a great thing. One side of the blanket is covered in furry fleece, and the other side is 300 TC cotton. You can use the smooth cotton surface when you want to chill out, or snuggle in the minky fur side when you’re feeling more snuggly. A weighted blanket with a washable cover can be used over and over, always fresh as a daisy when it’s right out of the dryer.
6. Upgrade Your Bedding
That discount duvet won’t last forever. And now that you’ve got yourself a sweet memory foam mattress, do you really want your covers to be lacking? You deserve bedding befitting your upgraded mattress set. At least, we think so. It’s time to scout out the best weighted blanket for adults.
A weighted blanket is a long-term investment in your sleep, health, and ongoing comfort. In addition, the Layla Weighted Blanket has hexagon pocket stitching that looks luxurious. Even better – the glass beads inside are quiet. It won’t sound like you’re rolling around on a bean bag every time you read or adjust yourself beneath the blanket.
7. Wake Up Relaxed
Sleeping under a weighted blanket helps you at night by promoting sound sleep. But what about the next day? It’s no surprise that sleeping well means you wake up feeling better, brighter, and ready to tackle the day. Snoozing under a weighted blanket for adults often means having a better morning.
When you’re not sleeping well, your body goes into a high alert state. This can mean a lot of things for your health, including changes to your blood pressure and hormones. When you get a good night’s sleep, on the other hand, you give yourself a better chance of waking up in a better mood – and that includes your happiness hormones.
8. Rely on a Natural Sleep Aid
Can’t sleep? Don’t want to pop a sleeping pill? You’re not alone! A lot of people prefer to stick to more natural sleep aids, like meditation and melatonin.
A weighted blanket for adults falls right into this category. When insomnia is nagging you, you can throw that monkey off your back using a fleece-covered blanket that doesn’t require a prescription! The general recommendation is about 10% of your body weight, or whatever is most comfortable for you. A 15 lb., 20 lb., or 25lb. weighted blanket for adults could change the way you rest overnight.
9. Stop Tossing and Turning
You may not have insomnia, but are you doing more rotations than a set of tires at night? If your sleeping partner has ever asked you if you were dreaming about competing in the Olympic floor routine, you might be doing your fair share of tossing and turning.
For adults, a weighted blanket can help with back pain and makes sleeping more comfortable for everyone in the bed. Between the grounding and the release of serotonin, you may be able to stay more stationary all night long.
10. Relieve Symptoms of ADHD
For adults and kids with ADHD, it can be challenging to regain concentration when a trigger makes it hard to calm down. For this reason, weighted blankets are often used as part of a comprehensive strategy to change behaviors and create better behavior patterns.
Many parents have found a weighted blanket to be a helpful tool in the middle of a child’s meltdown. And grown-ups with symptoms of attention deficit disorder can also benefit from the calming effects of a weighted blanket for adults. The heft of the blanket grounds your nerves and may stop over-stimulation. When you’re buzzing and unable to concentrate, a weighted blanket feels like a firm hug.
Layla Weighted Blanket for Adults
At Layla, we know sleep can change your life. When you’re sleeping better, you’re more alert in the morning and have more energy all day. You can work better, play better, and stop darting for the coffee machine at 3 PM. Paired with our copper-infused memory foam mattress, upgraded bedding is a recipe for a full night’s sleep. Check out our weighted blanket and soft bamboo sheets to upgrade your bed today.
Are you ready for a weighted blanket? If you’re in the mood for REM-filled slumber and less stress, then there is only one answer: Yes! Between lowering your cortisol and stopping restless leg syndrome in its tracks, your weighted blanket could change the way you sleep.
