Busy parent and Tots To Teens’ editor Pamela McIntosh sleeps on the job, in the name of research.
We all know that sleep deprivation comes with the territory if you’re a new parent, but did you know that it may take up to six years to have a great night’s sleep again?
A survey published in the journal, Sleep, found that “following the sharp decline in sleep satisfaction and duration in the first months postpartum, parents’ sleep fully recovers to pre-pregnancy levels up to six years after the birth of their first child.”
My youngest just turned three, so I can totally relate. While he does sleep through the night, there’s things like nightmares, growing pains, bet-wetting and night terrors that inhibits his sleep – and ours – up to a couple of times a week.
On top of that, our family leads a busy life – both parents work full-time, Miss Seven has a populated extra-curricular and social calendar, the aforementioned busy toddler, a household to run, the list goes on. When we do get the chance for some shut-eye, it’s got to be quality rest (because we can never guarantee the quantity). Health experts say that quality sleep is not only critical for rest and recovery, but also to build a strong immune system and to help us process and handle emotional situations.
When German-made mattress company, Emma, asked Tots To Teens to review one of their mattresses, my first thought was, ‘That’d be great for one of the kids!’. Before a swift pivot to, ‘Who am I kidding? I’m the one who needs a better night’s sleep!’
Emma mattresses are developed by award-winning designers and engineers, and their foam technology provides optimal spinal alignment, no matter your sleep position. They have their own Sleep Lab and in the space of just seven short years, Emma mattresses are so coveted they are now in 22 countries!
The mattress arrived at our place, vacuum-packed in a relatively small box for its king-size proportions. We popped her out of the box and packaging to expand, and in just a few hours ‘Emma’ was ready to sleep on.
My husband and I are used to a soft, pillow-top mattress, and the Emma firm-to-medium mattress was very different to what we were used to. While initially comfort wasn’t a word we threw about when chatting about our first night’s sleep, we definitely both woke up refreshed. What we did notice was that we didn’t disrupt one another when shuffled around or turned over throughout the night, thanks to the motion isolation specifically developed for this mattress.
A few nights on, another point of realisation was that we both felt less back pain. Now, we’re not exactly sufferers of constant back pain (although everything hurts more post-40), but those little niggles felt in our shoulder or lower back as we stretched into our day seemed to be gone. The mattress adapted to different body parts, giving great support, weight distribution, and seemingly relieved any pressure points.
“I’m getting used to this mattress,” we both found ourselves saying after a few weeks. The firmness is definitely something we’re adapting to as we hop into bed each night, but it’s only a momentary thought, because in seconds the foam wraps around us like a supportive hug and we enjoy a sound night’s sleep.
You can try the Emma Mattress for 120 nights, risk-free
Go in the draw to WIN a single Emma Mattress for your child here!
