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Whether it is trouble falling asleep or staying asleep like me here are some products I use to try to help drift off into the land of nod. I am going to be honest with you, I haven’t found some magic formula to have perfect sleep forevermore unfortunately but I hope you find some of these tips and products as helpful as I do.
1. Stamford Lavender Incense Sticks
I often burn these incense sticks about an hour or so before I go to bed. I love the smell and find it has a comforting and calming effect. For me, some brands have a strong perfume that overpowers the incense and doesn’t have the desired effect but I hit on this one, which is just right. Perhaps it is the hand-rolled masala incense. It scores 4.5/5 in customer reviews and they are normally £2.50 – £4.
2. Pukka Organic Night Time Latte
At a similar time I will make a night time drink to help sleep. This one by Pukka is a blend of ashwagandha, carob. malty oat, nutmeg, chamomile, and lavender. For me, this is a very soothing bedtime drink. It scores 4/5 and it is usually £5-6. If you are looking for lighter tea consistency, a friend recently gave the Chuckling Goat Sing Me to Sleep Tea to me as a gift. This offers a fragrant blend of valerian root, lavender, chamomile and hop flowers. Ashwagandha and valerian root are also available as supplements in tablet form if you prefer. I sometimes take magnesium, which you can get from supermarkets as well as health food shops. I take it for its anti-inflammatory properties, due to sinus problems that can affect my sleep. There is also some suggestion that it can help with sleep generally but it appears there may not have been enough research into this as yet.
3. Tropic Skincare – So Sleepy range
Tropic who make all natural, vegan and cruelty-free products, have created this fabulous Joy Drum – Unwind Me , which includes three So Sleepy products. I really like the way you can maximise the benefit of these lavender infused products by using in layers, starting with the bath foam to luxuriate in before applying the whipped body velvet and the essential oil temple roll-on. They all having a calming effect and help me to unwind for bed. If you are interested in Tropic, check out another post of mine, which includes a review of Tropic’s Clear Collection.
4. Lewis N Clark Black Plush Eye Mask
I am easily woken and one source can be light, so I find wearing a sleep mask really helps. However, many aren’t thick enough or move around a lot during the night. This one is really comfortable with a thick material and it stays in place so much better. Customer reviews rate it 4/5 and it usually retails around £10.
5. Sound+Sleep Mini
If you are a light sleeper like me then this could be a god-send because it can drown out sudden or regular sounds. There are lots of settings for different sounds so you can find the one that works for you. I like the fan sound as I can pretend it is just the sound of a fan and although it took a few nights to get used to it, it is now a normal for my brain to be at ease with . It can be operated by batteries, a USB or using an AC plug. As a bonus, the AC plug comes with adaptor fittings for the UK, US and Europe. This is currently unavailable via Amazon but customer reviews there have rated it 4/5. However, you can still purchase the machine direct from the company website and it retails at £67.95.
6. The Magic of Sleep
The Calm app has lots of meditations to choose from , including sleep meditations, sleep stories and music to help sleep. I use this app every day. If I am awake for hours I often use the ‘Gently back to sleep’ meditation or play music for sleep. I also recommend this book by Calm – ‘The Magic of Sleep’, which is beautifully illustrated and filled with sleep facts and tips to get better sleep, based on sleep cycles and your preferences. Customer reviews rate this book 4.5/5 and it retails between £7.99 and £9.99.
I really hope some of these products and ideas help you to achieve better sleep.
Sweet dreams.
Let me know in the comments if you already use any of these products and any other things that you find help you drift off or remain in slumber.
Check out my post ’10 tips for getting through a COVID winter’
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