Many of us have experienced the euphoric feeling of waking up snuggled under a heavy blanket or pile of blankets. The warmth, the gentle pressure, and the feeling of calm and contentment. Well, that right there is Deep Pressure Stimulation, or DPS.
What is Deep Pressure Stimulation and How Does it Help You Sleep?
Feb 01, 21
Or, if you haven’t experienced such a fantastic feeling, think of someone holding you in a firm, yet gentle, bear hug. Close your eyes and imagine what that would feel like. (Of course, you have to enjoy hugging and you have to picture someone you want a big bear hug from.) That, too, is deep pressure stimulation.
And if you’re not a hugger, think about how swaddling a baby calms and soothes them. Or how a tight-fighting vest on an anxiety-ridden dog in a thunderstorm does the same.
How Deep Pressure Stimulation Works
The above examples are the less science-y way of explaining DPS, also referred to as Deep Pressure Therapy (DPT) and for even more of a mouthful, Deep Pressure Touch Therapy. For a more in-depth look at deep pressure therapy, we’ve got to put on our ready-to-learn-some-science thinking caps.
Deep pressure stimulation, or deep pressure therapy, refers to your body’s touch sensory system response to firm, yet gentle, pressure. With DPS, your body automatically goes to work by increasing melatonin and serotonin, while simultaneously decreasing cortisol levels.
This is important to note, because it’s exactly what your body does when you go to sleep. That means deep pressure therapy promotes a natural sleep process.
To get even a little more in-depth, your body is equipped with two subdivisions within your automatic nervous system: the sympathetic and parasympathetic. In lamanes terms, your “fight or flight” response. Again, these are automatic responses to external stimuli, just like how your body automatically responds to deep pressure stimulation.
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When your body kicks into the sympathetic response, you feel increased heart rate, blood pressure, and respiration as your body increases the production of adrenaline and cortisol. But when you combat that with deep pressure therapy, you lower all of those and increase your body’s production of serotonin and dopamine, two feel-good hormones.
How to Get Deep Pressure Stimulation
There are several ways you can get deep pressure therapy without having to beg your loved ones to lie around all day hugging you. (Although some people may like that.) In fact, there are plenty of deep pressure therapy products on the market that are typically used to treat children with autism, ADHD, and other sensory processing disorders.
But you don’t have empty your savings account to invest in every deep pressure therapy tool on the market. Take a look at our list of deep pressure therapy products. You most likely have some lying around the house, others can be easily purchased without breaking the bank, and some you might have to enlist a loved one to help.
- Weighted vests
- Compression garments
- Big bear hugs
- Deep massage
- Having someone gently squeeze you between pillows
- Weighted lap pads
- Weighted blankets
Deep Pressure Stimulation’s Connection to Quality Sleep
Your body’s natural internal clock regulates itself throughout each 24-hour period by producing hormones to help you feel more awake and sleepy at certain times. During the day, you produce more cortisol, which is your get-up-and-go and your stress hormone. In the evening into the night, you produce more melatonin.
These two naturally-occurring hormones work in opposition of each other, so when your cortisol levels are high, your melatonin levels are low, and vice versa. But when you’re stressed out and anxiety-ridden, your cortisol levels remain high, making your body less likely to get sleepy. (You know, when you’re stressed, it’s difficult to sleep.)
That’s where deep pressure stimulation comes in. Because it helps your body produce more serotonin (good-feeling hormone) and melatonin (sleepy hormone), and reduce cortisol (stress hormone), it guides your body toward quality sleep.
Weighted Blankets: The Most Logical Deep Pressure Therapy Tool
Take a look at the list of deep pressure therapy products above. Which one would be suitable for sleeping?
Well duh, a weighted blanket!
While you could wear a weighted vest and compression clothes to bed while having your spouse squish you between two pillows, that’s not practical.
Using weighted blankets to reduce anxiety and stress while promoting quality sleep is actually backed by science.
But don’t be fooled by those cheaply-made mass-produced weighted blankets you find in the big discount stores. You won’t get the optimal quality sleep benefits from those. Nope, you need a weighed blanket made of the finest, non-toxic materials, meticulously-constructed to deliver the most benefits without sweating you out of your bed.
And it just so happens, we know where to find such a blanket: at Weighted Evolution.
Our weighted blankets are constructed of soft, breathable bamboo and microfiber, and are filled with our proprietary Sensory Sand. Rather than feeling like a super-heavy, lumpy blanket, our blankets comfortably conform to your body better than any other blanket on the market, delivering optimal deep pressure stimulation.
We’re not the only ones to notice how awesome our blankets are either. In 2020, we were awarded the “Best Cooling Weighted Blanket” by Tuck Sleep.
Our blankets are also featured in the article, “Get Quality Sleep Using The Best Weighted Blankets” by Relax Woman.
And what about what some of our customers are saying about our weighted blankets?
“I sleep so well now. I absolutely love my blanket.” - Amazon Customer
“I haven't slept for more than 2 to 4 hours straight for over 30 years, until now. I slept 6 hrs straight, no waking up, the first night I used this blanket!” - K.P.
“Soo soft, and a dream to sleep with. I have been struggling with anxiousness and insomnia and this has done wonders in just a few days of owning it.” - A
“The weight distribution is perfect...I am getting more and better sleep since I started using it; I fall asleep so much faster,” -DF
If that isn’t enough to convince you, how about our 100-night, risk-free trial? Try any of our blankets for 100 nights and if you aren’t satisfied, return it hassle-free and get your money back. No questions asked.
What are you waiting for? A good night’s sleep with the help of some relaxing, melatonin-producing deep pressure stimulation is just a click away. (With FREE shipping!)
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