Do weighted blankets/aromatherapy help sleep?

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I already posted this on the general discussion board.

Has anyone had positive results using either aromatherapy or weighted blankets getting AS kid to sleep?

I've been reading about these, mostly on-line, but haven't heard anything from real life.

my husband sleeps with a weighted blanket.......i think, though that it is not reccomended for children to sleep with them due to too lengthy a time wearing it...........they do work very well to calm some people down.......haven't tried aromatherapy

Try Hemi-Sync CDs for music to sleep. It is wonderful. We bought some CDs and they put us ALL to sleep, and a good night's sleep for a change...I highly recommend them. (No, I don't sell them or anything like that)

My kiddo also seems to do better after an epsom salt bath at night...Also, I took a little "massage" class on a cruise I took recently and used some of the lavender oil and gave my kiddo a massage...he loved it and it knocked him out later.

I think you have to try it out to see whether it helps - it's very individual.
We tried a weighted blanket with my son, physio was sure he'd love it and it would calm him, but he couldn't stand it . On the other hand, his best friend has one, and loves it.
Would it be possible for you to somehow try one out before investing, to find out whether he actually likes it or not?

Probably the same goes for aromatherapy. Some kids might love it - but my own would loath it, as he is very oversensitive to smells.

My son hates weighted blankets. He puts full-length body pillows on either side of himself and sleeps with a stuffed animal. He's a very good sleeper, but I attribute that to sleep training when he was a toddler (Dr. Ferber method).

I have never tried the weight blanket, but I do know my son lovesssss deep pressure.

He hated the feel of his sheets (even the softest ones around) and the noise of his body moving against the sheets hurt his ears so I grabbed a heavy duty sleeping bag made of a flannel like type material and he sleeps in that.

He loves the fact that he is very snug and the material feels good and doesn't hurt his ears. He has a flannel pillow case too.

It works (plus I don't have to make a bed heeeeeeeeeeee). I would try that first to see if it helps rather then spending alot of money on a weighted blanket. But if you do I think there are directions on the internet for making your own.

Lainie

One more thought, my son likes white noise when he sleeps. When he was very little, I had a sound machine that played white noise and he was very particular about the volume setting. Now, he runs a fan in his room at night. If there is no fan running, he complains.

One thing I forgot, try this first...

At Wal-Mart and many other stores they sell blankets that are "woven cotton"...they are much heavier than most blankets you find...I remember I used to love that blanket my grandma had because it was heavy...we have used them for years...They are cheap (for a twin about 12USD or so) and it's just a normal blanket...the more you fold it, the more it weighs...that might be enough for your kiddo.

Also, it's good that he doesn't feel different because this is just a regular blanket...

Go to Wal-Mart and check out their blankets...not the velour, or any of those "soft" ones...it's just a woven cotton blanket...

I'll see if I can find a brand name or something when I go to wal-mart..email me if you need to.

similar to these...check these at JC Penney...or do a search for "cotton blankets"

http://www.jcpenney.com/jcp/categoryall ... %20blanket

http://www2.jcpenney.com/jcp/ProductLis ... RNAL|28951


We've never had the need to use weighted, because these are great and maybe heavy enough but not too heavy...

My drug-free sleep miracle:

*Spray pillow with sandalwood/lavender spray.
*Put on Celtic music.
*Take one of those rice-filled pillows that you warm in the microwave and snuggle it.
*Sleep with pillows in a U-shape; one for my head, one against my chest, one against my back.
With two or three blankets, it's like sleeping in a nest. Especially if part of a blanket is over the top of my head.

I sleep SO much better with some heavy blankets piled on my legs. I want to purchase an actual therapeutic weighted blanket, and I'm saving up for it now. It calms me just *thinking* about the comfort it provides to have the pressure on my legs.

As for aromatherapy, I really like the "input" that certain scents provide. I put a scented lotion on my hands before bed and I always wear my perfume during the day (both very light scents). It's worth a try.

I dunno about when I was a kid, but now certain aromas of candles and soaps, perfumes, shampoos, whatever that I sniffed in the store make me feel so peaceful and make me want to go to sleep right there and then. Weighted blankets might make me feel like a prisoner or crushed, but when I was a kid I remember how I liked having a little cave in the blankets with all my stuffed animals and quite a few blankets, so maybe...