This Works. Does it though?

Hello there lovelies

I’ve mentioned before that I don’t really have any kind of problem sleeping but sometimes it can take a while for me to drift off if I haven’t had time to unwind properly. When I saw this duo from This Works I was curious to see if it actually lived up to the brand name, to call something this works is a bold statement so I wanted to find out if this actually does work.

When making my purchase I decided to go for the Deep Sleep Pillow Talk duo that contains a 75ml bottle of Deep Sleep Pillow Spray and a 5ml roller ball bottle of Deep Sleep Stress Less. I wanted to try both these products but didn’t feel I needed the full size 10ml bottle of the Deep Sleep Stress Less so opted for the set of both with the smaller size. I’ve used the Stress Less a couple of times and it certainly clears the airways, it’s a bit like Vicks (but not so over powering in smell) and I imagine it will be great when you have a cold. It contains eucalyptus (which I think is the dominant smell) frankincense and lavender to aide breathing and promote a better nights sleep. Deep Sleep Pillow Spray contains lavender, vetivert and chamomile to create a relaxing atmosphere and induce sleep. I spritz this a couple of times on my pillow an hour or so before I go to bed and then the room smells of a lovely subtle lavender scent when you walk in. I don’t spray it immediately before I get into bed as I find it too strong and prefer it when it’s diffused a bit. It makes me feel more relaxed therefore able to drift off easier. For someone that doesn’t really like the smell of lavender this one is quite nice as it smells natural and isn’t strong like the artificial scent of lavender, it’s more like if you walk past a lavender bush than the horrible smell of a lavender scented air freshener. If I get home from work late and know I won’t have much time to unwind the first thing I do after changing into my pyjamas is spray this so it makes the room smell nice ready for bedtime. As I don’t suffer with any sleep problems it’s hard to tell if this works, it’s a nice product to have though and the Stress Less will certainly come in handy if I’m bunged up with a cold.

Have you ever tried any products from This Works? What do you do to unwind and help you sleep?

Until next time

POTW 7 Wakey Wakey

Hello there lovelies

This weeks POTW is the Sleep Cycle app. I wouldn’t consider myself to have any kind of problem when it comes to sleep. I very rarely have a bad nights sleep, sometimes it will take me a bit longer to drift off if I’ve not wound down for long enough but generally I’m ok and once I’m asleep I don’t wake again until my alarm goes off. I really struggle with getting up in the morning though, I need like 10 alarms and I’m a pro at putting it on snooze with my eyes closed, it takes me a good half hour before I feel properly awake too. I got this app as I wanted to see if my sleep was as good as I considered it to be, I got some surprising results. The sleep cycle app is effectively an alarm clock but what it does is monitor your sleep pattern so it wakes you up when your in the lightest phase of sleep instead of trying to wake out of deep sleep leaving you feeling tired. Instead of setting an alarm for a specific time you set for a period of time that you want to wake up, for example, you want to wake up at 7am you set the alarm for 6.30-7am and in that 30 minute period the app alarm will sound when you are in the lightest phase of sleep causing you to wake up feeling more refreshed instead of trying to pull you out of deep sleep. You place your phone at the top corner of your mattress and your supposed to keep it plugged in to the charger- I don’t do this as I don’t like keeping my phone plugged in overnight, I just make sure it’s fully charged before I go to bed, and it monitors your movements throughout the night. 

It also gives you the option of documenting any activities you’ve done before bedtime to see if they affect sleep quality. I think the theory of this is really clever and I can see why it works. It doesn’t improve your sleep but it gives you an insight into the sort of sleep you have and aims to wake you at the best time so you don’t continue to feel tired. When my alarm sounds I don’t get that sleepy groggy feeling and the feeling of needing just 5 more minutes in bed. Although it doesn’t seem to correlate with how I’ve perceived the nights sleep.

Worst night

Best night

Friday was apparently my worst night sleep so far and I remember waking up thinking that I thought I had a good nights sleep, if you look at the graph it shows I was in deep sleep for several hours, whereas the night of the 8/9^th March showed my sleep quality as higher but it looked as though I had a pretty restless night so I’m not sure how that works.

I’ve really enjoyed using this app over the last 10 nights and will continue to use it as I find it interesting. Anything that makes its easier for me to get up in the morning is a real plus in my world. The app cost 69p, which is really good and well worth the money, I don’t know if it’s available on devices other than iPhones though.

What do you think of this app? Are you a morning person? Do you have any problems with sleeping or waking up?

Until next time