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‘Gravity’ Deep Sleep Blanket: $169 Heavy Comforters Weighing Up To 25 Pounds Raise $1.8 Million On Kickstarter

By Paula Mooney
Published on: 04:27 PST, May 5, 2017

The Kickstarter campaign named Gravity: The Weighted Blanket for Sleep, Stress and Anxiety is gaining not only plenty of attention online, but plenty of money from interested buyers. As of this writing, the campaign has gained $1,846,051, which was pledged from consumers who helped the Gravity blanket blow way past its $21,500 goal. With 9,383 backers and 25 days to go on the campaign, the weighted blanket is getting support from those who believe that the heavy blankets can lower stress and help them get a better night’s sleep.

According to the description of the weighted blanket on the Kickstarter website, the blanket uses proven technology to help lessen anxiety. It is one of the most popular campaigns on Kickstarter, and has caused plenty of commentary over whether or not the weighted blankets will work as well as folks apparently hope they will.

“Gravity is a premium-grade, therapeutic weighted blanket that harnesses the power of deep touch stimulation – a proven anxiety treatment – to gently distribute deep pressure across your body. Engineered to be around 10% of your body weight, Gravity helps relax the nervous system by simulating the feeling of being held or hugged.

“This increases serotonin and melatonin levels and decreases cortisol levels—improving your mood and promoting restful sleep at the same time. All without ever filling a prescription. Weighted blankets are well known within the medical community, where they’ve been used as a natural stress reliever for decades. However, society at large hasn’t had access to them. To that end, we are working to put it in a form that is accessible to everyone.

“Though weighted blankets have been used in the medical community for many years now, the measurable health benefits have only recently begun to emerge in scientific studies. So far, the findings have been incredible.”

The Gravity blankets are being compared to getting a hug from a blanket that promotes deep sleep, with a melatonin-increasing effect upon deep rest that should help to improve a person’s mood. The makers of the blankets also note that Gravity doesn’t just have to be used during sleep, but can be used while relaxing as well.

The goal of the weighted blankets, as reported by Futurism, include helping folks with autism, ADHD and PTSD be able to calm themselves from any stressful surroundings in the world. Since plenty of Americans spend their down time in a supine state, browsing the web or checking status updates on their phones, the Gravity blanket makers note just how much time is spent reclined in beds or on couches.

“Over the past 12 months, we pored over medical research and studies about the effects of weighted blankets on serious conditions like autism, PTSD, and insomnia.”

They also point out that not getting enough restful and deep sleep can lead to problems in the waking life, and examine how important a good night’s rest can be on a person’s state of mind. That’s why they say the Gravity blankets were made, with options in 15-pound, 20-pound and 25-pound weights available to buyers, based on how heavy a person wants their blanket to feel atop their bodies.

The Gravity blankets aren’t cheap, but are comparable in price to some of the duvets and fancy comforters that weigh a lot less than 15 pounds that shoppers might find in upscale stores. The “Early Riser” Gravity Weighted Blanket package starts at $169 as of this writing, with other versions of Gravity blankets going for $189 and $209 and up for multiple amounts of the blankets.

As folks who’ve already pre-ordered their Gravity blankets wait with bated breath, they are writing on social media of their high hopes of the Gravity blankets helping them relax and get great sleep.

[Featured Image by Dima Sidelnikov/Shutterstock]

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