Anxiety and the Science Behind Weighted Blankets

Anxiety is the number one mental health diagnosis and the COVID pandemic has had an alarming increase on mental health diseases among today’s youth, adults and seniors. With the rise in anxiety, weighted blankets have now become even more popularized to combat the symptoms.

Weighted blankets can help children and adults cope with anxiety, and they're usually safe to use. They help people relax and sleep more deeply. HUGME weighted throws are designed to feel like a warm and comforting hug to help relieve people of their stress. Our throws are designed with a soft furry material and the added coziness works to create more comfort.

Weighted blankets press your body lower during sleep, which helps to ground you. This technique, known as "earthing" or "grounding," can be quite relaxing. Deep pressure touch (DPT), a type of therapy that involves hard, hands-on contact to decrease chronic stress and high levels of anxiety, is likewise simulated by the blankets. HUGME weighted throws are different than other competitors' as they are filled with hypoallergenic glass beads that are build into tiny square pockets ensuring that over time the beads stay in place. This allows for multiple washes and fumbling with the blanket in order to ensure it remains in its original shape and will continue to “ground” the individual. 

Grounding has been shown in studies to help reduce cortisol, a stress hormone, levels at night. When your brain believes you're being attacked, it releases cortisol, which triggers the fight, flight, or freeze response. Often times we have noticed that a high number of anxiety patients tend to be alone when they panic. Although isolation can help them find their own strategies to relieve their stress it often limits the amount of cortisol produced. Especially for the single fellas out there, this weighted throw will replace the feeling of being cuddled and held all night long. 

Cortisol levels rise as a result of stress which causes the immune system to suffer. It can also raise blood sugar levels and have a negative impact on the digestive system. This supports a number of reasons on how the HUGME weighted throw can help with other issues not only anxiety. Weighted blankets have been known to help with the following issues:

Weighted blankets encourage relaxation and offer deep pressure contact. This causes the release of the feel-good hormones that are dopamine and serotonin, which are produced in the brain. Stress, anxiety, and sadness can all be treated by these chemicals. Investing in this product will help treat anxiety and a number of other mental health issues at a low and affective cost!