I'm About That Weighted Blanket Life

It started with a visit to the doctor; I hadn’t been to one for several years so of course I was shitting my pants the night before. I slept fitfully, and I highly doubt that I got more than five hours of sleep. The next night, I thought I was just nervous about the pending results of my lab tests when I woke up during the night and stayed awake for an hour. But then, it happened again. And again. Until, I reached the point where it had been two weeks since I slept through the night without waking up. Houston, we had a fucking problem; I had insomnia. 

I had never been more cranky, irritated, frustrated, and depressed in my entire life. I fucking loved sleeping. I am an Ace at naps! Sleeping is a natural basic body function, how was I unable to do it?! Now, I had developed anxiety about not being able to sleep at night. I dread going to work AND going home. I went looking for a solution. I tried everything. Melatonin, Zzquil, yoga, meditation, aromatherapy, writing in a journal. Hell, one night, I tried a combination of all of the above, to which one of my girlfriends said “bitch, were you looking for the long nap?!?”

BITCH, HELP ME!!!!!

I had given up hope and resigned myself to checking in to a hospital for just one night of good ass sleep when a friend suggested that I try a weighted blanket. A weighted blanket is exactly what it sounds like. It’s a blanket that has been filled with plastic pellets or some other similar material and designed to be weigh approximately 10% of your body weight. Originally designed for those with Autism or ADHD, weighted blankets use deep pressure therapy to essentially ground you and provide a sense of calm.

Weighted blankets are expensive. However, thanks to Fat Kid Deals, who is clearly doing the Lord’s work every damn day, I was able to find one well within my price range. And ya’ll…I’m about that weighted blanket life now. No, I’m not sleeping through the night uninterrupted, but I’m not as anxious about waking up at 3 am as I have been in the past. This blanket is now my most treasured possession. Wearing it feels like one long hug, and it forces me to stay in place whereas I would normally toss and turn throughout the night. Even coming home after a long day of work and wrapping myself in the blanket as I decompress from the stress of the day feels like the greatest shit since sliced bread. My body pillow has some serious competition for its position as the fake ass human in my bed every night. 

Since my purchase, several of my friends have purchased ones for themselves, and they have all loved it. I’ve also noticed an increased amount of Black social media influencers/celebrities, including April Reign, Crissle, and Desus, who have noted an increase in their sleep quality thanks to their recent acquisitions of a weighted blanket. Truly, I think the weighted blanket community needs to cut Black Twitter some kind of communal check for their recent increase in sales. I also think that this is an indication of the current mental health status of the Black community as a whole that is certainly worthy of exploration in a psychological academic journal. Black people are having trouble sleeping at night, and if you’ve looked at news recently, it’s not hard to see why. 

If you’re on the fence about buying one, I would highly encourage you to do so. I’m still working with my doctor to determine the exact cause of my insomnia, but the weighted blanket has made a vast improvement in my mental health. Check out Fat Kid Deals for specials on blankets, and you got some real money in your pockets, you can purchase one of the OG weighted blankets from Gravity. If you’ve bought one recently, let me know how you like it!