Sleep and its role in Memory

Sleep and its role in Memory

There seems to be no doubt that proper sleep is important in memory function.

So, getting sleep matters to build, preserve and maintain some of the things many of us consider most important to us. Our memories!

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Sleep and Weight Loss

Sleep and Weight Loss

Is our Thyroid to blame for Sleep Issues?

Is our Thyroid to blame for Sleep Issues?

When you hear Thyroid issue, what do you think about? We really didn’t know. I had a grandmother who had Hashimoto’s disorder, which , in her case, meant she had to have her thyroid removed. I recall her taking pills to replace what the thyroid used to do, but had no idea what that was.

But what about sleep and our Thyroid?

First, let’s get a basic understanding of the purpose of our Thyroid. Here’s a summary.

How the Thyroid Gland Works

The thyroid is part of the endocrine system, which is made up of glands that produce, store, and release hormones into the bloodstream so the hormones can reach the body’s cells. The thyroid gland uses iodine from the foods you eat to make two main hormones:

• Triiodothyronine (T3)
• Thyroxine (T4)

It is important that T3 and T4 levels are neither too high nor too low. Two glands in the brain—the hypothalamus and the pituitary communicate to maintain T3 and T4 balance….read more

The correct amount Thyroid hormones in our bloodstream are essential for good sleep. Thyroid hormones are responsible for controlling our metabolism. Too much or too, little of the hormones can result in problems, leading to lack of sleep.

When the body produces excess thyroid hormone, it leads to a condition known as hyperthyroidism and when the body produces low levels of the hormone, it is referred to as hypothyroidism.

Both conditions have the effects of leading to sleep problems that may include sleep apnea and insomnia (Thyroid hormone disorder).

The hormones produced by our Thyroid is important to the proper function of our body in general.  Any imbalances can result in complications. These can be serious!  (Disorders associated with thyroid imbalance).

Hypothyroidism

The condition is caused by deficient production of hormones by the thyroid. The lack of hormones reduces the metabolic rate of many processes.

The result can be a feeling of fatigue and sluggishness.  This feeling of fatigue may not go away even after sleeping ( hypothyroidism defined).

Symptoms can include constipation, cold feeling, high cholesterol, slower heart rate, amorphous weight gain and dry skin. If you experience sleep issues and any other symptoms, see a physician who can run the appropriate tests.

Hypothyroidism is usually treated with hormone replacement medication. About 5% of the population are affected by hypothyroidism.

The following are other symptoms that may indicate too little T3 and T4 in your body (hypothyroidism):

• Trouble sleeping
• Tiredness and fatigue
• Difficulty concentrating
• Dry skin and hair
• Depression
• Sensitivity to cold temperature
• Frequent, heavy periods
• Joint and muscle pain

Hyperthyroidism

The opposite of that would be hyperthyroidism. The body produces a high level of the thyroid hormone. This causes our bodies to go into a high level of metabolism, making sleeping challenging.

Other effects include symptoms such as mood swings, anxiety, heavy sweating, being hyperactive and faster heart rate. (Symptoms of hyperthyroidism). The body responds to the high levels of the hormone by increasing the activity rate of the body.

Initially, the body feels charged up. However, over time, we get tired due to the high rate of activity. This in turn, may cause serious problems over time, and hyperthyroidism has been linked to heart failure, kidney failure and sleep disorders.

Treatment for hyperthyroidism includes the use of medication to help rectify the hormone deficiency. Hyperthyroidism is less common, affecting only 1% of the population.

Listed below are other symptoms of too much T3 and T4 in your body (hyperthyroidism):

• Anxiety
• Irritability or moodiness
• Nervousness, hyperactivity
• Sweating or sensitivity to high temperatures
• Hand trembling (shaking)
• Hair loss
• Missed or light menstrual periods

Effect on Sleep

Thyroid hormones do not affect our sleeping pattern directly. However, the hormones released by a well functioning and healthy thyroid, affect the rate of our metabolic processes.

Like most things in life, it’s all about balance. A well functioning thyroid naturally produces hormones which regulate our metabolism. If we have either too much, or too little of the thyroid hormones –  T3 and T4 – then we’re likely to have metabolic issues as described above.

Now, we don’t know about you, but if we’re sweating, depressed, have joint pain – and worse! – then, we’re also not sleeping well. It’s a complicated world out there. If you suspect you may have hypo or hyperthyroidism, see your doctor and they can help!

If your doctor gives you a clean bill of health, and you still have issues? Heck, it couldn’t hurt to try a Fawcett mattress. Have you seen the reviews?

We’ve got some incredibly knowledgeable team members who can help design your mattress, customized, just for you. This will give you the best chance for a great night sleep. That makes us happy.

Sleep Athletic Performance

Sleep and Athletic Performance

So you’re an athlete! Great. Or maybe you’re a wannabe athlete? Aspiring weekend warrior? Used-to-be an athlete?

Does alcohol affect sleep?

A Common Tempting Solution?

And there you have it. Honestly, we’re not super excited about the outcome of this topic we’ve investigated. But, it’s hard to dispute the information.

Our strategy (maybe not right for you – check with your Dr. ) but we like the sound of a drink in the afternoon, followed by water and getting our bodies ready for a good night sleep.

Interested in other articles related to sleep and health? Check them out here;

Our favourite so far is the one on Telemeres & Genetics.

Prevent and Remove Mould from a Mattress

Prevention & Removing Mould

One of our favourite topics. Mould. NOT!

But, it does happen. What do you do if you have mould on your mattress? How can you prevent and remove mould from a mattress. Let’s take a look.

What Does Mould Need to Form?

Can Music Help Sleep?

Can Music Help You Sleep?

Anecdotally, we’ll say definitely! But what does the research say? Or is there any research on this topic?

Before we go further, Please consult a physician for any medical advice!

Contemporary British Music Composer Max Richter has created an 8 hour piece called “Sleep” that is only available on digital download – go figure.

Richter uses repeated patterns designed to mimic a sleeper’s brainwaves. They say his music is at the “intersection of classical, experimental, and ambient music styles”.

Will it help you sleep better? Quite possibly. Give it a try.  We took a listen and liked it.

Can Music Keep You Awake?

Certainly. Some music just makes us feel good! We all know those special songs that may give us goosebumps or get our feet shuffling into a full blown dance.

Researchers actually injected patients with radioactive tracer after listening to a song that gave the subjects the shivers, and sure enough, their brains were flooded with dopamine. So, when we’re stimulated, it’s tough to sleep.

Is it Bad to Fall Asleep to Music?

What about falling asleep to music? How does that affect our brain and quality of sleep? One thing’s for sure, a lot of people listen to music to fall asleep.

Our brains respond to music. Our heartbeat and breath levels respond and mimic the music. If you’re playing upbeat, energetic music and trying to sleep…we’re going out on a limb here…but it could be disruptful to your sleep!

So, common sense prevailing, listening to music generally has positive effects on how we sleep.

So…What Happens to Your Brain When We Listen To Music

A lot! Wow. Who knew?

1. Happy/sad music affects how we see neutral faces:

2. Ambient noise can improve creativity

3. Our music choices can predict our personality

4. Music can significantly distract us while driving (contrary to common belief)

5. Music training can significantly improve our motor and reasoning skills

6. Classical music can improve visual attention

7. One-sided phone calls are more distracting than normal conversations

8. Music helps us exercise

If you do one thing with this post, read this article which gives details about the above points – featured on the Buffer App Blog!

Are Earbuds OK to Wear While You Sleep?

We found an article from thesleepjudge.com which did outline some of the dangers of falling asleep with earbuds in our ears.

• Necrosis of the skin-Necrosis is the death of body tissue. This can happen if the buds don’t fit well and cause pressure on the skin in the ear canal.

• Wax Build up– When wax can’t escape from the ears, it builds up and may need to be suctioned out. Along with being really gross, it is also quite unhealthy.

• Safety-When I say safety, I mean that if a smoke alarm goes off in the middle of the night and you have your earbuds in, you may not hear it, especially if they are noise cancelling earbuds.

• Death– Not likely, but if you are wearing headphones with a cord, you could end up with them wrapped around your neck which could cut off your air supply.

So yes, without a doubt, don’t use your earbuds. The little speakers on modern devices actually provide pretty good relative clarity for quiet music listening. Or use your radio, stereo, you get the idea.

What Music / Top Songs Do People Fall Asleep To?

Spotify’s Top 20 Listened to Song from Sleep Playlists

Most-Streamed Sleep Songs Globally
1. Thinking Out Loud – Ed Sheeran
2. Stay With Me – Sam Smith
3. Love Me Like You Do (from Fifty Shades of Grey) – Ellie Goulding
4. I See Fire – Ed Sheeran
5. I’m Not the Only One – Sam Smith
6. Rain for Sleep – Rain Sounds
7. All of Me – John Legend
8. Earned It (from Fifty Shades of Grey) – The Weeknd
9. Let Her Go – Passenger
10. Skinny Love – Birdy
11. Say Something – A Great Big World, Christina Aguilera
12. FourFiveSeconds – Rihanna, Paul McCartney, Kanye West
13. The A Team – Ed Sheeran
14. Tenerife Sea – Ed Sheeran
15. Give Me Love – Ed Sheeran
16. Lay Me Down – Sam Smith
17. Fix You – Coldplay
18. Photograph – Ed Sheeran
19. Kiss Me – Ed Sheeran
20. Latch (Acoustic) – Sam Smith

Musical Beds or Mattresses?

Can music help sleep? It seems clear from the research that yes, the right music, can help you sleep. However be aware that music which is stimulating, can actually keep you awake.

Do we make special musical mattresses or beds? No. However, our Float Bed is perfect for avid music listeners. It’s got built in side tables, which make keeping your favourite music player nearby, easy.

What kind of mattress can you pair with our Float Bed? Any mattress will work. We will create the sleep height to your specifications.

If you’d like a lower bed, we can do that. If you prefer the sleep surface to be higher off the floor, no problem. Model 1 and Model 9 mattresses are often paired with our Float Beds.

Sleep Disruption and Screen Time

Sleep Disruption – The Science of Light

Do you use a phone, tablet, computer or watch TV right before bed? Recent research helps explain exactly what is happening in our eyes and brains, and why ‘screen time’ can disrupt our sleep.

Scientists have recently linked specific cells in our eyes, and how they process light and how that, affects our circadian rhythms. When our bodies biological clocks are thrown off, it can result in sleep deprivation.

We’ve all read about the scary things that can come from sleep disruption. Increased risk of obesity, cognitive decline, increased risk of cancer and many more undesirable things.

A couple of scientists at the Salk Institute – Ludovic Mure and Satchin Panda – have studied exactly what happens when artificial light hits our retinas.

A protein called Melanopsin regulates our biological clock after about 10 minutes of exposure to bright light. It tells our bodies to suppress the production of Melatonin.

Most people know about Melatonin, and its important role in regulating sleep.

When our eyes are exposed to artificial light, our internal clocks get confused.

The Technical Stuff

“Conventional wisdom has held that proteins called arrestins, which stop the activity of certain receptors, should halt cells’ photosensitive response within seconds of lights coming on.

The researchers were surprised to find that arrestins are in fact necessary for melanopsin to continue responding to prolonged illumination.

In mice lacking either version of the arrestin protein (beta arrestin 1 and beta arrestin 2), the melanopsin-producing retinal cells failed to sustain their sensitivity to light under prolonged illumination.

The reason, it turns out, is that arrestin helps melanopsin regenerate in the retinal cells.” (read the article in full here)

That’s a mouthful. Honestly, we’re not even sure exactly what it means. So, caveat emptor.

Other Causes of Sleep Disruption

There are many other causes of sleep disruption. In no particular order, perhaps you recognize a few of these?

• Peeing in the middle of the night. Could be you’re over 50. Or maybe you’re drinking too much liquid prior to bedtime? Sometimes this can be linked to a bladder infection or other health issue. Talk to your Doctor to be safe!
• Drinking Alcohol  – Contrary to popular belief, it doesn’t help you sleep. Even smaller quantities can have a stimulating effect.
• Heartburn. Also known as acid reflux, or  GERD – Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease.
• Caffeine. Don’t drink caffeinated beverages 8 hours or less before going to bed.
• Sleep Apnea – Sleep apnea is a potentially serious sleep disorder in which breathing repeatedly stops and starts.
• Restless Leg Syndrome –  it’s a disorder that causes a strong urge to move one’s legs.
• Kids. Yeah, if you’ve got them, you love them, but man can they sleep deprive you. Sorry no advice here. Well, actually this could help with younger ones! 

Of course, it would be ridiculous of us to post, without a somewhat shameless plug for our fantastic Fawcett Mattresses. Sleep deprived? Sleep disturbed? Often it can be related to the comfort of your Mattress! Or Discomfort, as the case may be….

For the the most plush mattress, check out our Model 9. Are you more of a minimalist and like a med-firm model? The value priced Model 6 could work for you.

Better Quality Sleep – A Low Tech Way

Gadgets?

Many people try and solve life’s challenges with gadgets. There are diet calculators. There are fitbits to help us understand how much sleep and exercise we’re getting. What about a low tech method to help us get more and better quality sleep?

We’re sure there’s an “app for that”….but we’re not going there. (at least not in this post!)

A recent National Sleep Foundation poll found that 59% of sixth- through eighth-graders and 87% of high school students in the United States were getting less than the recommended 8.5 to 9.5 hours of sleep on school nights. Worse, more than 70% of parents believed their children were getting sufficient sleep.

Sleep Deprivation & Effect on Adolescents

Dr Adriana Galván of the University of California, Los Angeles conducts research in her developmental neuroscience lab about sleep deprivation and the effects it has on people.

During Dr Galván’s research, she came across an interesting and unexpected finding. Most of us probably think that the total number of hours that adolescents get was important for proper brain development.

However, the results surprised even Dr Galván and her colleagues.

Consistency was the key. For those kids whose sleep varied by as much as 2.5 hours from one night to another, they showed less development of white matter connections. White matter connections are important to help connect the various regions of the brain, and to process information efficiently.

Low Tech

Next, the Dr and her team conducted sleep related experiments on a sample of 55 adolescents aged 14 – 18 years old. It turns out, that “pillow comfort” and to a lesser degree – “satisfaction with their bedding”,  was uniquely related to better quality sleep – more than age, sex or income levels. 

It turns out, these environmental factors seem to be an important influencer to ensure proper sleep for adolescents.

So, turn the devices off. Get them to read book. Yes, really, a book.

Invest in some quality sheets & bedding, and perhaps a high quality natural latex pillow. (we LOVE ours and take them travelling with us – on car trips at least).

It’s probably less important for a child or youth to have the luxurious Fawcett Model 9 mattress to achieve high quality sleep.

As we age, our shoulders and bodies seem to be a little more “needy”. A good option? Our 4 year old boy sleeps on a Fawcett Model 6 mattress and is a great sleeper. Now we’re going to add a latex pillow.

How Much Sleep Do You Need?

How Much Sleep do You Need?

There’s a lot of scientific data that suggests most people need between 6.5 and 8 hours of sleep a night. The average American (Canadians are probably very close to the same) receive about 6.8 hours per night.

Professor Adrian Owen, at Western University in Canada (yeah!) recently completed the world’s largest sleep study, with more than 44,000 participants.

With that, how much sleep do you need? It turns out that between 7 and 8 hours is optimal for adults aged 18+ (see chart below for more detail)

Less than that, and things basically go off the rails. Health, work performance and basic well being suffers.

Can you Get too Much Sleep?

In fact, yes. We didn’t really see that coming. But seriously, people that exceeded the maximum recommended sleep time for their age, were equally as impaired as those who didn’t get enough sleep.

What’s the Minimum?

What’s the Optimal Sleep, for your Age?

Can Genetics Play a Role?

We discovered an interesting story featured on the BBC online. It refers to the fact that people with a specific mutation in a gene known as DEC2.

These people only needed about 4 hours of sleep, and seemed to be as rested and healthy as those of us that need 7-9 hours a night.

In 2009, a woman came into Ying-Hui Fu’s lab at the University of California, San Francisco, complaining that she always woke up too early. At first, Fu thought the woman was an extreme morning lark – a person who goes to bed early and wakes early.

However, the woman explained that she actually went to bed around midnight and woke at 4am feeling completely alert. It was the same for several members of her family, she said. 

We’re pretty sure we don’t have the only-need-4-hours-per-night gene…

Another theory theory that researchers at the University of Utah have been exploring, features the concept that some people have “enhanced connectivity” in their brains.

Specifically, between where they process sensory information, the hippocampus, and memory.

Your Brain Cleaning & Sweeping

To help us understand exactly what’s going on when we sleep, and why it’s important, we reviewed some articles on the ‘function of sleep’. Without sleep we are tired – we all know that. But what actually is happening on a physiological basis?

It turns out that sleep’s role is to clean out toxins from the brain. Dr. Maiken Nedergaard, a professor of neurosurgery at the University of Rochester authored a study about how the brain cleans itself by sleeping.

“During sleep, the flow of cerebrospinal fluid in the brain increases dramatically, washing away harmful waste proteins that build up between brain cells during waking hours, a study of mice found.”

Some have described this process to a dishwasher. There are proteins left that accumulate through the day – one such residue is called beta amyloid. This substance is a sticky plaque like material, associated with brain diseases such as Alzheimer’s.

Randall Bateman, a neurologist who studies the diagnosis and treatments of Alzheimer’s disease says:

“Beta amyloid concentrations continue to increase while a person is awake.”  “And then after people go to sleep that concentration of beta amyloid decreases. This report provides a beautiful mechanism by which this may be happening.”

Ok, we think we understand. Sleep and it cleans your brain and may prevent harmful build up of…toxic sludge!  That’s simple.

Like we needed one more reason to sleep. Ah yes.

Brain scientists we are not. But, darn good mattress makers? Yes. Imagine getting an amazing long-lasting mattress, with healthy non-off gassing materials. For about the same prices as an inferior poly-foam, chemical laden mattress?

Imagine no longer! Buy manufacturer direct from Fawcett, and quite simply, you get a better mattress for about the same price as the big box stores sell.

Tiny Houses – Are they Right for You?

Why Tiny Houses?

We’re going a bit off topic in this post. Tiny Houses.

What do Tiny Houses have to do with Sleep, Health and Wellness?

Probably nothing. At least we haven’t made a link yet.

But, what we do know, is that many of our readers are interested in the topic! So, why not do an post about Tiny Houses?

Why do some people like Tiny Houses?

1. Affordable payments & low initial investment
2. Don’t need much land
3. They are minimalists
4. Portability. You can take many of them with you!
5. They care about the environment & desire a smaller footprint.

Does that sound like you? We love the idea…BUT, if you have a few kids, a dog, cat, goldfish, piglet – you get the idea. It could be a bit cramped.

Anyways, we’re going to pretend that we’re either single, or have a partner + at the most, one child.

What’s in a Tiny House? How small/big is it?

Generally, Tiny Houses are less than 400 square feet of floor space. This equates to roughly 40 x 10 or 33.3 x 12.

However, many are much smaller – as small as 100 square feet! 10 x 10 …whoa. That’s tight. Of course, we recall university dorm rooms being about that size. Hmmm

How’d the trend start? Author Sara Susanka  wrote a book in 1997 called “The Not So Big House” – which many credit for starting the trend.

Tiny houses typically have the same style of amenities that you may find in a RV or Trailer.They generally have a more upscale finish, and many feature sleeping lofts, giving the downstairs more living area.

Tiny Houses for the Homeless?

A number of cities and towns are utilizing tiny houses as a solution to house the homeless.

In fact, the Mayor of Los Angeles, Eric Garcetti’s administration,  has offered homeowners 75,000 loans to build a tiny house in their backyard to those who will rent them to the city’s homeless.

After 10 years, the city forgives the loan, and the homeowner can turn it into a regular rental or airbnb it!

Even local BC communities are getting into the trend.

One man has designed a 12 square foot home. No, that’s not a typo. While this doesn’t appeal to anyone we know, if you’re homeless, it could be a dry place to sleep.

The Verdict

We love the idea, the concept. But for us? It’s just too darn small. Kudos to those who can reduce their footprint, and live simply.

Need a mattress for a tiny house? You know where to find it. We’ll make a custom mattress for any tiny house or RV or Boat for that matter.

Anti Aging and Telomeres

Anti Aging and Your Mattress

Will a Fawcett Mattress work as a magical anti aging device?

Yeah no. But, proper sleep may be scientifically linked to anti aging.

We were interested in the relationship between sleep and anti aging. So we explored.

What we found was interesting…at least to us.

Disclaimer. We’re not physicians or nutrition experts. We’re mattress makers. (Darn good ones mind you). But we are not qualified to give specific advice about any changes to your diet or exercise habits. Speak to your doctor for before changing any of your routines!

A Crash Course on Genetics

First, we need to understand a little bit about genetics in order to really understand how sleep may affect the way we age.

Here’s the “Coles Notes” version from Utah University; interested really getting into the topic?

“Inside the nucleus of a cell, our genes are arranged along twisted, double-stranded molecules of DNA called chromosomes. At the ends of the chromosomes are stretches of DNA called telomeres, which protect our genetic data, make it possible for cells to divide, and hold some secrets to how we age and get cancer.

Telomeres have been compared with the plastic tips on shoelaces, because they keep chromosome ends from fraying and sticking to each other, which would destroy or scramble an organism’s genetic information.

Yet, each time a cell divides, the telomeres get shorter. When they get too short, the cell can no longer divide; it becomes inactive or “senescent” or it dies. This shortening process is associated with aging, cancer, and a higher risk of death. So telomeres also have been compared with a bomb fuse.”

Five Foods that Protect your Telomeres

It’s in the Length of the Telomeres. Remember, cells last longer with longer telomeres = Anti aging. 

So, now that we’re virtual genetic experts…ahem…it seems that the research says the “length of your telomeres” is what really is important. So how do we keep our telomeres long?

One way is through a good diet. A diet oriented towards low fat foods and plant based diet is important.

1. Flax. Specifically the Omega 3 fats found in Flax.
2. Berries. For their natural anti oxidant qualities.
3. Mushrooms. Because of the good quality source of Vitamin D.
4. Oats. Prevents insulin resistance which can shorten and damage telomeres.
5. Spinach. Rich in fiber, antioxidants & folate.

Exercise and Telomeres

Research out of Brigham Young University says that we may be able to slow down the aging process as long as we’re willing to do some high levels of exercise. What’s a high level? 30 – 40 minutes of jogging, 5 days a week.

Individuals who engaged in high levels of exercise, had telomeres that were significantly longer (good 😉 than those who exercised moderately, or those who were sedentary.”

On a cellular level, this gave the avid exercise group, an age advantage of on average, 9 years.  Just because you’re 40, doesn’t mean you’re 40 biologically.

Good Quality Sleep and Length of Telomeres

So we now understand that our diet and proper exercise are important to maximizing the length of our telomeres. Which, in turn, research indicates – is important to anti aging benefits on a cellular level.

So what about sleep? Does it actually have an effect on telomere length? Research seems to say yes. Both the quality and length of sleep.

People who get 7 hours or more of sleep have significantly longer telomeres than those who receive 5 hours a night.

So, that in a layman’s nutshell is it. Eat right, get plenty of exercise, and consistent good quality sleep. Hey, wait a minute …this isn’t all new information. I think we’ve heard that before.

“Telomere changing”  – a Fawcett Mattress?

We can’t guarantee that a Fawcett Mattress will help keep your telomeres long and healthy. But, if we can help you sleep better, then maybe? It sounds like a quality Mattress could help. We can say that our clients tell the world they love our Fawcett Mattresses.

Our Model 1 is the ticket for a low profile natural latex core mattress. The Model 6 an exceptionally well priced inner spring mattress with 2 inches of plush natural latex on the top. Nothing but the best and most luxurious? Check out our Model 9.

Breathing Exercises for Sleep

Breathing Exercises for Sleep

It’s not hard to find a number of Breathing Exercises for Sleep on the internet. But do they really work? What are they? Is there any science to back the claims up that they work?

We’ll examine a few techniques, and you be the judge of if they work or not.

The 4-7-8 breathing exercise.

This breathing exercise claims to put people to sleep in 60 seconds once mastered! They say not to expect to be able to go to sleep in 60 seconds right away but instead it may take about 2 months to get to where you are able to fall asleep in 60 seconds.

Of course, not too many people will follow through with working on their breathing technique for two months. Hmm….

Basically, the 4-7-8 technique involves;

• Exhale completely through your mouth, making a whoosh sound.
• Close your mouth and inhale quietly through your nose to a mental count of four.
• Hold your breath for a count of seven.
• Exhale completely through your mouth, making a whoosh sound to a count of eight.
• This is one breath. Now inhale again and repeat the cycle three more times for a total of four breaths.

If you have a tough time holding the breath, you can shorten things up, just keep the ratios of time equal.

Bellows Breath

Bellows breath is another breathing exercise for sleep and general relaxation. It’s widely used as a part of Yoga and Pranayama. Keep in mind, this isn’t an exercise you’ll probably want to do right before bed, as it’s designed to heighten alertness.

However it can make you more relaxed and focused during the day, which could help you sleep at night.

• Inhale and exhale rapidly through your nose, keeping your mouth closed but relaxed. Your breaths in and out should be equal in duration, but as short as possible. This is a noisy breathing exercise.
• Try for three in-and-out breath cycles per second. This produces a quick movement of the diaphragm, suggesting a bellows. Breathe normally after each cycle.
• Do not do for more than 15 seconds on your first try. Each time you practice the Stimulating Breath, you can increase your time by five seconds or so, until you reach a full minute.

Diaphragmatic Breathing

Also known as ‘belly breathing’, diaphragmatic breathing can help strengthen the diaphragm which can;

• Decrease the work of breathing by slowing your breathing rate.
• Decrease oxygen demand.
• Use less effort and energy to breathe.

It’s something you can perform while sitting in a chair:

1. Sit comfortably, with your knees bent and your shoulders, head and neck relaxed.
2. Breathe in slowly through your nose so that your stomach moves out against your hand. The hand on your chest should remain as still as possible.
3. Place one hand on your upper chest and the other just below your rib cage. This will allow you to feel your diaphragm move as you breathe.
4. Tighten your stomach muscles, letting them fall inward as you exhale through pursed lips (see “Pursed Lip Breathing Technique”). The hand on your upper chest must remain as still as possible.

Whatever technique you choose, consciously working on your breathing has long been proven to help people relax. When we’re more relaxed, we sleep better.

The Science Behind Breathing Exercises

Do breathing exercises for sleep really work?

Yes – there is overwhelming evidence and many studies that support the numerous positive effects of practicing purposeful breathing exercises.

What is going on in your body during each phase of the exercise?

“Your body contains two opposing peripheral nervous systems that act as a sort of gas and brake, speeding up and slowing down various functions of the body (heart rate, digestion, etc.). The parasympathetic nervous system (PSNS) is the brake in this analogy while the sympathetic nervous system (SNS) is the gas.

For reasons beyond the scope of this article, your heart rate is primarily modified by the PSNS/”Brake” through the vagus nerve. This fact will become important in a little bit, for the time being, let’s proceed.

Your body is constantly trying to maintain equilibrium. When you inhale, blood is drawn from your heart into the vasculature of your lungs. This creates a relative deficit of blood for the rest of your body. Your heart compensates by increasing the heart rate and pushing more blood to your body. The increase in heart rate is made possible by decreased PSNS/”Brake” drive.” – Psychology Today

So, you’ve got your breathing ‘down’. It’s also important to consider other factors that could be important for sleep. Like, you know – a great mattress? Check out our various models of fantastic mattresses!

Foods to Help You Sleep

Foods to Help You Sleep

Here are our 5 best foods to help you sleep. Remember to consult with your Physician before changing your diet or health practices!

1. Chamomile Tea

We like Chamomile tea because it’s a natural product and has been proven to be a safe and effective way to help get more sleep. And bonus, it’s zero calories! Just the fact that it’s a warm beverage is often soothing and calming for people. Maybe this brings us waaay back to our childhood feeding habits…?

Whatever it is, it’s simply comforting for many of us. Some studies Chamomile tea also has anti depressant qualities as well as may helo with mild to moderate anxiety.

2. Tryptophan Rich Foods

Many people know Tryptophan is found in Turkey – and is a food to help you sleep – leading to a sleepy post-thanksgiving Turkey dinner. But did you know it’s also found in foods such as Beans, Nuts Eggs, Milk, Fish and Cheese?

Here’s a rundown of foods rich in Tryptophan:

1. Seeds and Nuts – Pumpkin and Squash Seeds – 161 mg / 28 grams (1 ounce)
2. Soya Foods  – Soybeans, Roasted – 161 mg / 28 grams (1 ounce)
3. Cheese – Reduced Fat Mozzarella – 160 mg / 28 grams (1 ounce)
4. Lamb, Beef, Pork & Game – 228 mg / 55 grams (2 ounces)
5. Chicken & Turkey – 343 / 85 grams (3 ounces)
6. Fish – Tuna Cooked – 95 mg / 28 grams (1 ounce)
7. Shellfish – Crab – 95 mg / 28 grams (1 ounce)
8. Beans and Lentils – 13 mg  / 11g / tablespoon
9. Uncooked Oat Bran & Oats – 94 mg  / 28 grams (1 ounce)
10. Eggs – Whole – 84 mg / 50 grams (2 ounces)

Tryptophan helps our brain create serotonin, and in turn, serotonin production leads to the production of melatonin. And Melatonin, is the hormone that helps us regulate our sleep/wake cycles. Which are necessary for good sleep!

3. Almonds

Almonds are tree nuts that have a number of proven health benefits. They also help in the regulation of melatonin. Almonds also are nutrient rich in manganese, riboflavin and phosphorous.

There’s not a ton of research, but one study indicated rats that ingested 400mg of almond extract sleep longer and more deeply than the control group.

4. Bananas

Some suggest eating a banana before bed to help with sleep. Bananas are packed with a number of the key sleep nutrients.

One average banana (225g) has these percentages of the RDV (recommended daily value) for these minerals and vitamins:

• Magnesium 15%
• Potassium 23%
• Vitamin B6 41%
• Manganese 30%
• Folate 11%
• Vitamin C 33%

5. Calcium Rich Foods

We didn’t know that Calcium rich foods could be foods to help us sleep. However, The European Neurology Journal indicated that if you are calcium deficient, then you may be prone to disturbed REM sleep.

Apparently Calcium assists the brain utilize the amino acid, Tryptophan, to manufacture melatonin.

So, there you have it. One step in Getting more quality sleep is eating foods to help you sleep. Simple, natural and won’t leave you with a sleeping pill hangover.

With your nutrition under control, another important step in quality sleep, is well, your mattress. Look no further. Check out our mattress reviews, and download our mattress buyers guide!

Insomnia ?

Do you suffer from Insomnia ?

You’re not alone. A University of Laval report in 2011 suggests that Sleep disorders affect 40% of Canadians.

Their data revealed that 40% of respondents had experienced one or more symptoms of insomnia at least three times a week in the preceding month, i.e., taking more than 30 minutes to fall asleep, being awake for periods longer than 30 minutes during the night, or waking up at least 30 minutes before they had planned. Moreover, 20% of the participants said they were unsatisfied with the quality of their sleep, and 13.4% of respondents displayed all the symptoms required to diagnose insomnia.

Are you female? Chances are you have a harder time falling asleep than a male.

A 2017 Statistics Canada Sleep study, conducted among Canadians aged 18 – 64 demonstrated that 55% women and 43% of men reported trouble falling asleep sometimes or most/all of the time.

Lack of sleep, both duration and quality, is associated with obesity, Type 2 diabetes, cardiovascular disease, injuries, death from all causes, depression, irritability and reduced well-being, the researchers said.

So, the question is, if you’re not getting enough sleep? What’s the big deal?

Most people realize that insomnia can negatively impact your health – in a serious way. There’s mountains of research about the impact of insomnia on our physical and mental health.

What can you do about Insomnia?

We found a very thoughtful article about sleep by James Clear that provides some simple, practical strategies on how to sleep better, as well as covering the the following;

I. The Science of Sleep

• The Purpose of Sleep
• How Much Sleep Do You Need?
• The Cost of Sleep Deprivation
• The Theory of Cumulative Stress
• Ok, But Can You Catch Up on Sleep?

II. How Sleep Works

• The Sleep-Wake Cycle
• Age-Related Sleep Changes
• The Circadian Rhythm
• The 2-Process Model of Sleep Regulation

III. How to Sleep Better

• How to Fall Asleep Fast
• How to Improve Sleep Quality and Duration
• Daily Habits for Better Sleep
• Natural Sleep Aids

Uncomfortable in Bed? Well, hey, that’s something we may be able to help with. We’ve offer natural latex mattresses, spring units, and adjustable beds paired with a latex mattress.

Our clients consistently tell us just how darn comfortable our mattresses are.

What are you sleeping on?

We’re not sure we can cure your insomnia. But a fantastic mattress is a step in the right direction.

Can cannabis be a sleep aid?

Can cannabis be a sleep aid?

Cannabis is already legal in many places for approved medical use. It’s also slated to become widely legal for recreational use in Canada on October 17th 2018. The question we explore is; Can Cannabis be a sleep aid?

For some people they don’t and won’t use Cannabis – so it’s not really an issue. Others, already are using Cannabis – and so there isn’t much change for them too.

Still others, we’ll call “the 3rd group” – whom may be curious and thinking of trying Cannabis  – perhaps for the first time ever.

Before we get too far into this blog post…let’s make sure that we call this article what it is. Written by non-physicians – we are not recommending you try anything! We’ve just looked at a few articles which may be of interest to our subscribers. But please consult your physician before trying Cannabis or any other substance like it.

So with that out of the way, we did find some interesting stuff about sleep and Cannabis.

A recent article in MedicalNewsToday set out to uncover the benefits and caveats of Cannabis and sleep.

“There are many different components found in cannabis. The two most commonly studied elements are:

• Cannabidiol (CBD): This is a non-psychoactive compound, meaning that it does not induce the highs associated with cannabis.
• Tetrahydrocannabinol (THC): This is a psychoactive component that causes many of the feelings of being high.

Most medical research has focused on CBD, which has several proven health benefits.”

Cannabis & Insomnia – What the Science Says

A study specifically on the effect of Cannabis and Insomnia  – it seems there is strong evidence of “reduced latency in falling asleep” with the use of Cannabis – even for those without sleep disorders.

PTSD? Have Trouble Sleeping?

For those that do have PTSD and issues with falling asleep – there was an improvement in falling asleep. In particular the results were;

“Those with high PTSD scores were more likely to use cannabis to improve sleep, and for coping reasons more generally, compared with those with low PTSD scores. Cannabis use frequency was greater among those with high PTSD scores who used for sleep promoting purposes compared with those with low PTSD scores or those who did not use for sleep promoting purposes.”

However, there are other studies that indicated ‘quitting’ Cannabis can lead to disturbed sleep and also cause sleep problems in those who had none previously.

What Strain Do People Try? Indica vs. sativa vs. hybrid

A Healthline article, delves into what strains one could try and the various general effects of them.

If you have spoken to your doctor, and they’ve approved the use of marijuana to treat your insomnia, it’s time to choose a strain.

Think of choosing a strain like choosing a tea blend. You could go for straight white or black tea, or a hybrid. Here are the three most common kinds of strains you’ll encounter:

• Indica. This type of strain is considered soothing and relaxing.
• Sativa. Generally, sativa strains make people feel excited, happy, and energized.
• Hybrids. A combination of both indica and sativa, hybrids are blends that are often left up to the manufacturer or dispensary.

You can always talk to people at a dispensary to recommend a strain for you or help you find what you’re looking for. Dr. Jordan Tishler, a Harvard-trained physician and cannabis therapeutics specialist, recommends a strain with less than 20 percent THC. Anything more than that, he says, will make dosing difficult. Too much THC might make you feel groggy and sleepy the next morning.

Different strains will also have different amounts of cannabinoids in them, but when it comes to getting sleep, both Roman and Tishler recommend an indica strain to induce sleep.

The Jury’s Still Out

It seems the ‘jury’ is still out regarding Cannabis as a sleep aid. There’s research that says it does assist, and there’s research that says it actually causes sleep problems!

So, be careful out there. Consult with your Doctor before trying anything new like Cannabis. 

We think a new mattress is also a great place to start for those with sleep challenges. Many of our clients agree! Check out our Model 6 or Model 1.

Want our most luxurious mattress? The Model 9 is for you. Or perhaps our NEW Model 8 if you prefer a tufted mattress.

The Secret To Better Mornings

The Secret to Better Mornings?

If you want to feel refreshed and sharp, there’s one simple thing you can do to improve your chances. Go to sleep at the same time each day. Yahoo Finance recently published an article relating to a Fitbit study.

Fitbit, of course, are the small sleep bands that people wear to monitor sleep, heart rate, steps and other activities.

6 Billion Nights of Sleep Data

So, Fitbit completed a study based on the 6 billion nights of sleep it’s Fitbit users have recorded since they began tracking sleep. The data has been compiled anonymously and is a virtual treasure trove of sleep data. Who sleeps more? Men or Women? In what region do people get more sleep?

It turns out that women sleep on average 25 minutes longer than men. It’s not really known if this is due to cultural or physiological influences.

Fitbit also records what kind of sleep you’re getting; Awake, REM, Deep Sleep and Light Sleep are all recorded. Interestingly, there was virtually no difference between men and women on the percentage of various sleep phases.

Women tend to get about 10 minutes more REM sleep than men do…and this gap increases once past the age of 50.

Image credit Yahoo Finance https://finance.yahoo.com/news/exclusive-fitbits-6-billion-nights-sleep-data-reveals-us-110058417.html

What about the Better Mornings?

Part of the study involved analyzing the variance in bed time for people. So the idea is, if you go to bed at exactly 10pm each night, you have ‘no variance’ in bedtime.

However, if you’re going to bed at 10pm weeknights, but weekends stay out late – say until midnight – then you would have 2 hours of variance in bedtime.

What’s the big deal?

It turns out that the wider the variance in bedtime, it’s a bit like jet-lagging yourself.

The implications? The data shows, that if your bedtime varies by 2 hours a week, you’ll get 30 minutes less sleep, per night, than another person who has only 30 minutes of variance in their bedtime.

Over time, this can lead to real consequences. Sleep deprivation leads to Decreased  Cognitive function.

So, if we understand correctly…less sleep makes us not as intelligent! Or at least temporarily less capable for problem solving and similar cognitive tasks.

Image Credit Yahoo Finance https://finance.yahoo.com/news/exclusive-fitbits-6-billion-nights-sleep-data-reveals-us-110058417.html

Some other interesting stats that came out of the study were;

• Men: Ave hours of sleep / night 6:26
• Women: Ave hours of sleep / night 6:50
• Women suffer from insomnia 40% more often than men
• 20 year olds get 30 mins more deep sleep than 70 year olds
• East Coast sleepers go to bed an ave of 7 mins later than West Coasters

There’s a ton of other insights that can be pulled from the Fitbit sleep data. Fitbit plans on keeping this data widely available to sleep scientists.

At Fawcett, we’re not scientists. But we do like our sleep. Our amazing Fawcett clients tell us they love our Mattresses.

Many also note how good their sleep is on a Fawcett Mattress.

Where to start? If you’re near Victoria, come on down to our showroom.

If not take a look at our Mattresses and we can always do a telephone consult, make sure you’re getting the right one, and then ship to you anywhere in Canada!

Questions? Simply drop us a line @ 250.384.2558 or Email Us and we’ll be happy to help.

The Model 8 Mattress

Introducing the Fawcett Model 8 Mattress

We’re always trying to innovate and create new & improved products for our clients. With that, we’ve recently created a new mattress. The Fawcett Model 8!

The Model Eight consists of an 6″ individual pocket coil spring encapsulated in a layer of cotton felt. This offers tremendous support to 2 inches of Talalay Latex foam.

As always, the sleep surface consists of organic Joma® wool quilted through a high thread count organic cotton cover.

The Model Eight goes into our tufting machine for perfectly even finish and consistency, to keep all of the components together in perfect harmony.

Specifications

• 10” Finished height
• 2” all natural Talalay latex on top and bottom
• 6” High count individual pocket-coil spring unit
• High thread count organic cotton ticking quilted with natural Joma® wool
• Available as a “No Compromise Mattress” offering side specific support within a single mattress, for sleepers of varying heights, weights and comfort preferences
• 12 Lbs per side of 100% cotton felt
• Tufted with felt and linen rosettes
• Fully reversible or ‘flippable’.

Model 8 Pricing

$1749 for Twin
$2649 for a Queen
$3389 for a King

We don’t have the Model 8 Mattress listed on our website yet, so just drop us a line @ 250.384.2558 or Email Us and we’ll be happy to help.

Sleep Acid Reflux GERD

Sleep Acid Reflux GERD

Many people suffer from lack of Sleep due to Acid Reflux known as GERD ( Gastroesophageal Reflux Disease)

What exactly is GERD? The national sleep foundation describes GERD as;

” GERD describes a backflow of acid from the stomach into the esophagus. Most patients with GERD experience an increase in the severity of symptoms (usually heartburn or coughing and choking) while sleeping or attempting to sleep. If the acid backs up as far as the throat and larynx, the sleeper will wake up coughing and choking. If the acid only backs up as far as the esophagus the symptom is usually experienced as heartburn.”

At least 20% of Americans (likely similar for Canadians) experience heartburn once a week or more.

What Causes GERD?

No one knows exactly why people get GERD but factors that may contribute to it include:

• age
• diet
• alcohol use
• obesity
• pregnancy
• smoking

Also, certain foods can be associated with reflux events, including:

• citrus fruits
• chocolate
• drinks with caffeine
• fatty and fried foods
• garlic and onions
• mint flavorings
• spicy foods
• tomato-based foods, like spaghetti sauce, chili, and pizza

Acid Reflux (GERD) and Sleep Apnea

At least one report claims 60% of people with Sleep Apnea also experience GERD.

For more information check out this article on the associations of GERD, Sleep Apnea and other sleep disorders.

Certainly, in every case, consult with your Physician when ever you have health issues! 

If you’re having a hard time sleeping and desire to be more upright, check out our adjustable beds. They can do the trick.

What kind of mattress would you use on an adjustable bed?

We recommend a Fawcett Model 1. It’s an all natural talalay latex mattress which doesn’t have any springs in it. So that makes it perfect for an adjustable bed.

We’re hiring!

Where? 408 John St @ Turner, near Bay St Bridge

Fawcett Mattress manufactures mattresses that are hand made with the most sustainable, natural materials available. We also create sofas, chairs, sectionals, beds and our manufacturing facility is uniquely joined to an open concept showroom where clients can see their mattresses being created while they shop.

If you’re tired of just looking for a “JOB” and are looking for a position that could grow into something much more, Fawcett could be the perfect fit for you. Here’s what we are looking for:

• You are an all-rounder – main initial entry level tasks include;
• Delivery of Mattresses to our amazing clients!
• Generally laying out and helping produce the mattresses, including;

Must be willing and able, to carry 160 lbs with another person up stairs, on deliveries.

• Cutting latex foam.
• Cutting fabric.
• Sweeping & Cleaning the workspace as needed.
• Organizing mattress components for binding & tufting.
• Daily work involves some heavy lifting of mattresses.
• Learning how to make mattresses and other general duties to make things work in a busy shop.

Woodworking and/or Upholstery or Mattress production experience a significant asset. Have a forklift ticket? bonus!

If this sounds interesting to you, please reply to this ad your work history or resume / CV.

***Extended Medical/Dental and Health Benefits program***

***Job is offered at $18 / Hr + up to $6/hour incentive program. Currently paying out $2 / hour bonus***

Job Type: Full-time

Salary: $18.00 to $24.00 /hour

Natural Latex Mattress in Vancouver?

Natural Latex Mattress in Vancouver?

We’re based in Victoria BC. But a number of our clients have found us online and were looking for a quality, custom natural latex mattress in Vancouver. And so it begins…

Some clients have made the trip to Victoria from Vancouver just to check out Fawcett. Other have been over visiting family and friends and come in for a look. We don’t generally offer sales on natural or organic mattresses.

Occasionally, we’ll refresh our showroom stock for new models, and offer our floor models to our existing clients for 15-20% off. But that’s it.

Why no regular sales like the other guys?

We simply have priced our mattresses at the best price we can. Period. We’re putting in high quality natural talalay latex into our mattresses and it’s not inexpensive.

We think not having sales is a good thing. You know you’re getting the best price you can obtain, year round. And it’s a fair price. At some mattress shops, a “$2,000 mattress” will “go on sale” for $1,000 – regularly. A few times a year. In our minds, this is ‘smoke and mirrors’ and the mattress was probably only worth $1,000 to begin with.

Our model 1 is an all latex natural mattress, and in a Queen size model is priced at $1889.

One of our goals is to offer fair and transparent pricing. We think we achieve that.

Back to Vancouver

So if you’re reading this, and you live in Vancouver or the lower mainland, how do you purchase a incredible Fawcett natural latex mattress while residing in Vancouver? There’s a couple logical ways to go about this.

• Our model 6 mattress is our best priced, and also a mattress that ‘fits’ a wide variety of sleep styles and body sizes. We call it our “goldilocks mattress.” You can reliably purchase this mattress online from our eStore and most people are going to love the mattress. It’s also a great choice for any second bedroom or vacation home.

• Telephone consultation. This is a good idea when considering a natural latex mattress? There’s a choice of our natural latex core Model 1, as mentioned above. Or our natural latex core Model 9 is our most luxurious mattress.

We’ve had a number of clients purchase our mattresses via a 15 minute telephone consultation, and so far all has been good! The consultation involves determining firmness, and sleep style. Are you a side, back or stomach sleeper? Are you a large or small person? Do you prefer a soft or firmer mattress?

From there, we can customize the mattress side-to-side as well. If one partner prefers firm, and the other soft? No problem. If there are significant size differences – IE one partner is 100lbs and the other is 250 lbs, they need different support and firmness levels.

These topics usually don’t come up when you head to the local mattress shop, because they have a one-size-fits both couples point of view – generally speaking.

So, sure there are some risks of buying online. We can help mitigate that through a thoughtful consultation process. There’s definitely risks in buying a one-size-fits all / both partners approach too. Drop us a line at 1.250.384.2558 and let’s see if it makes sense for you to look at Fawcett mattress.

Organic Mattress VS Natural Mattress, a Canadian Alternative

Organic Mattress VS Natural Mattresses

What’s the difference between an organic mattress and a natural mattress? Good question. More and more people are getting hip to the fact that sleep is important! It’s actually become kind of trendy in certain circles. Arianna Huffington, founder of the Huffington Post, even has done a TED talk on “how to be more successful. Get more sleep”

The Huffington Post also has a few articles on sleep – “5 surprising ways your mattress affects your sleep and health” – among others.

Why is a natural or organic mattress an important choice compared to the typical mattress? We won’t go into detail in this article, but we’ve written about the topic here.

Let’s assume that you are ‘sold’ on the fact that natural materials are important for you to have in a mattress. But do you need an organic mattress? And exactly what is an organic mattress?

It’s about Certification

To qualify as an organic mattress, the latex supplier must go through a process to demonstrate to a 3rd party, that 95% of the latex that goes into the latex core is in fact organic and not man made synthetic material – among a few other items. Our Fawcett latex cores are 100% natural latex, tapped from a rubber tree.

So, An organic mattress has undergone a certification process. A company called “Control Union” has “pioneered the first global standard for organic latex: the Global Organic Latex Standard (GOLS).” GOLS outlines requirements for latex products made from organic raw materials, as well as for material from non-organic origins.

There’s also the Global Organic Textile Standard Standard (GOTS).

Do We Use Certified Organic Latex?

Does Fawcett use GOLS or GOTS certified latex in our mattresses? No, and Yes. Our suppliers offer Certified Organic Latex, and we have some in our warehouse. Organic latex is an option for our clients to choose to build in their mattresses. (all our mattresses are made-to-order)

Our mandate and mission is to offer our clients the healthiest mattress providing the best night sleep. So, after significant research, we felt we were better serving our clients by featuring and utilizing 100% Natural Latex Mattresses VS Organic. Why? We are using 100% natural latex in our mattresses, VS a blend. Some companies use an 80/20% blend. Make sure you ask.

Ultimately, the certification process, in our minds, is the main tangible difference between 100% Natural Latex and Organic latex. The supplier has paid extra to have it certified. The 100% Natural Latex that Fawcett utilizes in its mattresses is tapped from Havea-Brasiliensis rubber trees in a similar manner to how maple syrup is tapped from maple trees. We feature and generally use Natural Talalay Latex because we think it’s the best value for our clients without sacrificing quality or a healthy sleep environment.

How long will Natural Latex Last?

On average, latex mattresses last longer than most other mattress types, especially if they are organic or natural latex mattresses. Organic and natural latex mattresses last 8 to 10 years, and synthetic or latex hybrids last 6 to 8 years, while a traditional innerspring bed lasts on average less than 6 years.

Green Home?

Think of like this. You can build an incredibly green home, complete with rain water cisterns, solar power, excellent insulation and all sorts of green building practices. But unless you pay an engineer to certify it, and go through the entire cumbersome and expensive process, you won’t be able to call it a LEED certified building.

It’s not just about the Latex cores. Fawcett also uses 100% organic cotton ticking – think – the outside of the mattress that touches your skin. Organic Joma Wool is used as padding that is naturally fire resistant, temperature regulating and moisture wicking. This is the upper most layer below the ticking that offers an incredible sleep surface that will keep you warm in winter and cool in the summer without the need to add fire retardants.

What models Feature 100% Natural Latex?

All our models have 100% Natural Latex. The model 6 , Model 7 and Model 9S feature spring units. If you’re looking for a latex core mattress check out our Model 1 or Model 9. Both feature 6 inch 100% natural latex cores (available in certified organic material at your option for additional fee).

Both also feature the ability to customize firmness side-to-side to better match sleep preferences (back, side or stomach) as well as to better suit small and large people. What are you sleeping on?

Is it Bad to Sleep with Makeup on?

This is a question most men don’t have to ask themselves. But most women that wear makeup have been told that wearing makeup to bed is a no-no. But is it really bad?

It’s not that wearing makeup to bed is worse than wearing it in the day says Fayne Frey, MD “The skin does not know the difference between wearing makeup while one is awake and upright for 16 hours versus when one is horizontal and sleeping for eight hours,” Fayne Frey, MD, FAAD, board-certified dermatologist and founder of FryFace.com, told Apartment Therapy. “There is no science that shows wearing makeup to bed is harmful, but there is a deeply ingrained cultural norm to wash the face at nighttime and a lot of speculation!”

In an apartment therapy article, Caleb Backe, a health and wellness expert for Maple Holistics, expounded on this point, telling us, “Our skin gets covered with dirt, dead skin, and all kinds of pollutants throughout the day. By not scrubbing this outer layer of gunk and dead cells away, you effectively prevent your skin from repairing itself and producing newer, healthier cells.” Included in those pollutants are free radicals, FYI, which break down collagen in your skin and accelerate aging. Read: It could lead to wrinkles.

So, we all know it’s not a good idea. But it happens.

Katia Ameri, CEO and founder of skincare startup Mirra, suggests keeping makeup wipes beside your bed, and then following 3 steps to undo any damage.

1. Wash your face!
2. A double cleanse—oil-based cleanser first to break down the oils on your skin, and then follow with a gel or foam-based cleanser—so that you really clear out your pores – says Ameri.
3. You should then consider applying a detoxifying clay mask to draw out impurities

So there you have it. Not disastrous but good to avoid. Sort of like doughnuts. Once in a while, no problem. Every day, not so great. But make sure you wash that pillowcase. Speaking of pillows. Have you checked out our natural talalay latex pillows? Absolutely fantastic.

Casper Mattress? Buy a Mattress Online?

So you’re interested in a Casper Mattress? Maybe you simply want to buy a mattress online? Maybe you live 10,000 kilometers from the nearest mattress store and don’t have a lot of choices except ordering online? Perhaps you perceive that the best “deals” or “value” is found online?

Or maybe you shudder when you think about dealing with your prototypical mattress salesman, or sales lady…?

Whatever the reason, people are buying mattresses online now like never before! Let’s take a look at the options out there, and the most important factors to consider when purchasing a mattress online.

Most people have heard about the “bed in a box” phenomenon, where a mattress comes in a box, shipped to your door. It sounds pretty appealing, but we believe there are compromises.

Mattress Reviews

There was some controversy relating to mattress reviews and a relationship Casper had with Sleepopolis  – a mattress review site. And if you go on Casper’s website, wow – you’d think there was nothing BUT 5 star reviews…with an average of 4.5 / 5.0 from the graphic below.

But wait a minute….then we went on Consumer Reports, and checked the reviews there. A full 57% of Casper Mattress reviews are less than 5 stars on Consumer Reports. 

We wonder what the disparity is? Casper has almost as many 1 & 2 star reviews as it does 5 star reviews?

One thing we know for certain, is that (currently) Fawcett is running 35/35 5 Star Google Reviews and also 100% 5 star reviews on Facebook.  Alas, we know this streak won’t hold forever. But, we sure are proud of the what our clients are saying about us and our product.

What the heck are these things made of?

There are various foams that go into most mattresses. Memory foam has become trendy and popular. It comes in various forms, and levels of toxicity. (We won’t touch it, never mind sleep on it)

Ultimately when you buy a mattress that contains memory foam as wikipedia defines it, you will end up sleeping on polyurethane which contains additional chemicals increasing its viscosity and density. It is often referred to as “viscoelastic” polyurethane foam.

It seems that Casper polyurethane foam is one of the cleaner petroleum based foams from a review of their site.

It’s debatable and whether or not these foams can be harmful. However, we’d rather sleep on the natural latex that Fawcett uses. It’s natural rubber, tapped from a Havea-Brasiliensis rubber tree. The tree is ‘tapped’ in a similar manner as how maple syrup is harvested from trees. It is widely accepted that 100% Natural Latex doesn’t off-gas.

However, be aware there some mattress may contain a blend of synthetic and natural latex. This means that this combination would include synthetic petroleum based products. Fawcett utilizes only 100% natural latex in its mattresses.

What about a Warranty?

Casper mattress offers a 100 night free trial. While this may seem desirable – what’s there to lose? …it’s no feat to make a mattress that lasts 100 nights. In fact, a one star Casper mattress review we read, said their mattress was “comfortable for 4 months”. They also have a 10 year ‘limited warranty’.

This is where the “devil is in the details”. If you have an issue, you must ship your mattress back to Casper. In our experience, without a rolling and mattress packing machine, you will likely pay between $250 and $500 to ship your mattress back to Casper in the hope that they may agree with you about an observed defect. Now who’s going to do that? In our view, probably 1 / 10,000 people.

The Fawcett Warranty is simple and transparent. Most mattress companies have complicated warranties that are full of small print and confusing legal jargon, but we want to keep it simple: if your Fawcett mattress fails at any time within two years of the original invoice date, we will repair or replace it at no cost to the original purchaser.

Mattress failures include but are not limited to: visible impressions of 3 cm or more in any given area, seam failures and faulty springs. If your mattress fails after the first two years, it is covered by a 12%/year prorated warranty for up to ten years.

We will even provide complimentary pickup and return delivery for any mattress requiring warranty work within 30km of Victoria BC.

What about price?

Casper mattress has 3 levels of mattresses. They start at $675, $1175 and $2500 for Queen size. They have different petroleum based polyurethane foams and layers of such foams.

Fawcett sells direct to consumer as well. There is no middleman. But we put high quality, long lasting components into our mattresses – that cost a premium for us to obtain. We use local tradespeople to cut, assemble and sew the components of the mattress together.

The result? An incredibly comfortable, long lasting, made in Victoria, Canada – mattress made from the most sustainable and natural materials available. Our Queen size mattresses start at $1299.

What about Free Delivery?

Casper mattress offers free delivery – in most areas.

What about Fawcett? We offer free delivery in Victoria BC. However, we didn’t design our business model around a certain number of mattresses being returned and free shipping.

Instead, we utilize the best components available, like Joma Wool, Organic Cotton and as mentioned, 100% Natural Talalay Latex. Outside of Victoria? We’ll work to find the best price on shipping and pass that on.

So, you still want to buy a mattress online? Well, we’ve got an app for that.

What we mean, is you can purchase a Fawcett Mattress online! In fact, a number of people have.

You can even choose off-line payment, and we’ll contact you to ensure the details of desired firmness are correct – along with any other customizations. If you’re serious about your health and wellness and want a mattress shipped to your door, take a look at our Model 1.

Buy a Mattress at Costco?

Should you Buy a Mattress at Costco? There are a lot of reasons why it’s better to buy a Mattress from your local, natural mattress producer. Yes we are that. But, believe it or not, these are not simply self serving reasons.

1. When you buy a mattress at Costco, you’re buying from a large multinational company. Where was your mattress made? By whom? what kind of labour practices do they employ?
2. When you buy a mattress from Fawcett, you’re supporting a small local company and contributing to the local economy.
3. While Costco may be good for buying some items, they don’t have mattress specialists (that we know of) like Fawcett does.
4. When you purchase a Mattress from Fawcett, you’re able to speak to the guy who makes it. You can watch your mattress being made! “what goes into a mattress” – is important.
5. Fawcett builds its Mattresses from the most sustainable, natural materials available. Costco? not so much.
6. A Fawcett Mattress’s firmness can be customized, for no additional fee. Firm one side, soft the other? Yes you can.
7. Fawcett Mattresses (currently) have 34  5 out of 5 Google 5 star reviews. We’re a mattress shop, with some big distinctions.
8. Costco, for most Victorians…is a bit of a jaunt – out of town. Think of the fuel you’ll save by shopping in the Rock Bay District!
9. Fawcett makes custom RV and Yacht mattresses. We’re pretty sure that’s not on Costco’s radar. Need a ___ shaped mattress? We can do it.
10. Factory Direct. Fawcett you’re paying for materials and skill. The result is an amazing product. Costco you’re paying a middleman.

Can Vitamin B6 Help Recall Dreams Move Vividly?

Can Vitamin B6 Help Recall Dreams Move Vividly? A study, just released on April 18 2018, explores the relationship and effects of vitamin B6 and a B complex on dreaming and sleep. Apparently there’s been anecdotal evidence of  improved dream recall by taking moderate to high doses of vitamin B6. Before you rush out and by enormous quantities of B6, please consult with your Physician before pursuing any radical dietary or supplementary changes! …Damn it Jim, we’re mattress makers not doctors…

The study, conducted by scientists in Australia, involved 100 participants utilizing randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled testing, found that “vitamin B6 significantly increased the amount of dream content participants recalled but did not significantly affect dream vividness, bizarreness, or color, nor did it significantly affect other sleep-related variables.”

The participants ingested 240 mg vitamin B6 (pyridoxine hydrochloride).

So, perhaps we should just take our Vitamin B Complex before bed, and we’ll be good? Not so fast. Participants in the B complex group actually showed significantly lower self-rated sleep quality and significantly higher tiredness on waking!

So, you want to be a more lucid dreamer? An article in Medical News Today, outlines a few methods that could work:

• Reality testing. This “involves examining one’s surroundings multiple times throughout the day, questioning whether one is awake or dreaming.” Two reliable techniques are rereading written text — as text continuously shifts in dreams — and the “inhalation test,” which involves inhaling air with one’s lips closed.
•  Wake back to bed (WBTB). This technique involves going to bed, waking up after 5 to 6 hours, staying awake for between 10 minutes and an hour, and then going back to sleep. It is meant to “launch” the dreamer directly into the rapid eye movement (REM) phase of sleep, which lends itself more often to lucid dreaming.

•  Mnemonic induction of lucid dreams (MILD). This is often combined with the WBTB technique, but before going to bed, the dreamer must repeat a phrase such as “next time I’m dreaming, I will remember that I’m dreaming.” This is meant to establish intention, which will make it more likely that that person is able to attain lucidity within their dream.

We can’t guarantee better dream recall with our Fawcett Mattresses. But being well rested with a good night sleep can’t hurt!

Want better sleep? Leave your work at the office

It really isn’t a surprise that bringing your work home with you can increase stress and lead to sleep issues. Most of us can surmise that computer work, with a bright LED light blazing in your face for an hour before you try and sleep, isn’t the best preparation for a good night’s sleep.

But what about the stuff that goes on at work during the day? Do you work with great people? (like the Fawcett Team!) Or are there rude and disrespectful people cluttering up your life?

It turns out, the emotional ‘toll’ that toxic behaviour experienced in some work places, can also wreak havoc on your sleep habits. While we probably know this anecdotally, there is a recent study, by the American Psychological Association that delved deeper into “Workplace Incivility and Employee Sleep: The Role of Rumination and Recovery Experiences” – Yes, it’s a heavy duty research paper, not the most friendly reading. But hey, that’s why you’re here right? We’ll give you the ‘Coles notes’.

(this guy below is angry because someone was mean to him at work. Not good!)

The summary findings were;
“Employees with the highest levels of recovery experiences (better able to detach psychologically and relax after work) sleep better, even in the face of workplace incivility.

This provides empirical support for the importance of attending to workplace conditions and promoting positive affective conditions as a means to maintain and improve employee well-being and subsequent performance.”

So, one of the key points is that people whom were able to “detach” more fully from work after hours, were subsequently more able to deal with rumination. (negative experiences that you’re not able to let go of). Employers should take note. These issues and negative environments at work, cost your company dearly in many ways.

• When your employees are sleep deprived this is costly for the company on many levels.
• Sleep deprivation is estimated to cost the US Economy $400 Billion / year
• There are direct & real costs associated with a negative work environment outside of sleep loss

The other problem area of “bringing work home”  which most of us are all-too-familiar with, is checking work emails at home often. We need proper boundaries between work and life balance – the down time to recharge our batteries and recover – otherwise, studies show that those  employees who scored high on work-to-life integration reported less recovery activities and in turn were more exhausted and experienced less work-life balance and well being.

So, put down the device, email will be there for you tomorrow. In fact, while we’re on our rant, we did discover some articles about some really innovative ways to be less tied to email. (remember the old days, when there was no email? Things still got done)

…our next post. How to deal with email. Hey – it’s going to help you sleep better, right? Oh, that and an amazing Fawcett Mattress 😉

What’s in a Mattress?

Duane Franklin, co-founder and master mattress builder, says a few words about Fawcett.

Fawcett Square One Sofa

We started from “Square One” with this collection.

The Fawcett square one sofa pieces connect together to form any configuration you desire, and its static cushions make it ideal for the person who doesn’t like the look of loose seats and backs. The Square One keeps it simple; no loose cushions to constantly fluff and rearrange makes this collection very low maintenance.

We build furniture of the highest quality with the most environmentally friendly products available to us.

All of our furniture is constructed of sustainably farmed solid beech and an environmentally harvested ply that has no added urea formaldehyde. We pad our products with natural, fair trade latex and 100% organic and hypo-allergenic wool; the strong synergy between these components results in a product that wicks moisture and regulates temperature while offering maximum comfort.

Our mission is to make better sofas, chairs and mattresses using materials that our clients can feel good about bringing into their homes.

Square One is available in a variety of Fabrics & Wollsdorf FOC Earth vegetable dyed leather top grain leather.

Widths of: 70″, 78″, 88″ and 96″ are available. Priced from $2,940 in Grade A Fabric

Interested in ordering a Square One? We’re able to ship across Canada, but if you’re located in Victoria BC, drop by and let’s chat.

Adjustable Bed and Mattress

We’ve combined our (new!) Boomerang bed with an adjustable bed and mattress to make a pretty amazing combo.

We’ve sold a a ton of them over the past 6 weeks…there seems to be something in the water…? or maybe it’s just that a lot of people are discovering how versatile they are.

Adjustable beds can be really useful for therapeutic purpose, such as recovery from surgery, swollen legs, back pain and circulation issues. They also offer a host of comfort benefits such as massage, customizable from side to side (the bases come as two separate single XL units to configure a King size bed) and a luxurious convenience for reading or watching television.

Featured are:

The new all wood Fawcett Queen Size Boomerang Bed, available in White Oak or Black Walnut,  starting at $3295  – in White Oak.

The amazing Fawcett Model 9 all Latex Mattress – priced at $3299 (not to be confused with the amazing Fawcett Model 9 S …as in S for inner Spring…but lest we digress) 

Adjustable base, Leggett & Platt mechanism, starting at $1889 in Queen Size

Come on down and give it a try!

Melatonin and Sleep

Is it bad to take melatonin? Melatonin and Sleep? Good questions. Everyone has had a tough time sleeping at one time or another in their life. Have you ever been tempted to try melatonin? We weren’t sure what the story was about Melatonin. So we researched some articles on it. Here’s what we found:

What is Melatonin? Mia Finkelston, MD, a board-certified family physician explains;

“Melatonin is a hormone that is produced by the pineal gland (a small gland that is located in the brain), and it helps to regulate our sleep cycle”

So, although Melatonin comes in the form of a natural vitamin/pill supplement it is actually created in our brains naturally. For this reason, it seems most physicians believe that it’s relatively safe for short term use. 

Melatonin isn’t recommended for those under 20 years old, or for those whom are breastfeeding or pregnant. Finkelston recommends consulting with your physician before taking Melatonin, as there can be a number of side effects such as dizziness, irritability, headaches, feeling sleepy during the daytime, slight depression, and in some cases stomach cramps.

Experts recommend;  “Don’t rely on melatonin solely to fix your issues in the long term,” says wellness coach Kaitlyn Noble. “While melatonin is perfectly safe and can provide relief, it’s important to investigate why your body isn’t falling asleep naturally if it’s chronic.

However, not everyone is sold on the merit’s of Melatonin and sleep, nor agree that taking it is a good thing. Some experts say, if you’re taking Melatonin, then you’re are using hormone therapy. Hormone therapy is a very complicated topic rife with detrimental health consequences when used carelessly. 

“Administering hormones can actually shut off our body’s hormonal negative feedback loop. 
It’s like heating a room by a space heater and the furnace shuts off because it isn’t needed.”

A nutritional blog called the “Butter Believer” – the author, Emily, goes as far to say that Melatonin is a “scam”.  Emily references the fact that there’s virtually no bonafide scientific evidence to conclude that Melatonin actually works. She suggest the “evidence” that is available, actually may be propaganda perpetuated by those who stand to gain by the sales of Melatonin.

Yeah…we’re not going to touch this one. Good or bad, you decide. But hopefully you are a bit more informed about Melatonin and the potential benefits & risks. Whatever you do, CONSULT YOUR DOCTOR BEFORE TAKING MELATONIN – or anything else for that matter.

What do we know? We know that our Fawcett mattresses have helped hundreds of people sleep better and get more rest at night. Now that’s all right!

Can’t sleep? Could your gut be keeping you awake?

Can’t sleep? An interesting article; Could your gut be keeping you awake?  As well as new research coming from Professor Matthew Walker (“Why We Sleep”)  Director of UC Berkeley’s Sleep and Neuroimaging Lab poses the position that sleep is in fact so important, that we should question not why to sleep, but rather why wake up.

Professor Walker goes on to say;

“We know an enormous amount about the relationship between a lack of sleep and appetite, obesity and weight gain, as well as aspects of insulin resistance and glucose regulation. What we don’t fully understand yet is the role of the microbiome in sleep”. 

Microbiome is apparently, as defined by dictionairy.com

Christine Hanse, Author of the book “Sleep Like a Boss” has advice about how to best prepare your body for sleep. She offers a number of books on what she calls “holistic sleep books”.

“If you wanted to improve sleep, you could try a gut-friendly regime by eating a broad and inclusive diet with real food, not processed. Everyone is going to be different. You could try being vegetarian for a month and see if it helps. Double your fibre intake and eat fermented foods every day, such as full-fat yoghurt and good-quality cheeses. Increase the range of foods in your diet.

“Eat berries, green tea, 70 per cent dark chocolate, decaffeinated coffee, nuts and seeds. Don’t eat just before you go to bed, but equally, don’t go hungry. Avoid snacking before bedtime. I don’t want to be too prescriptive but really, if you want richer microbes, you’ll eat more of a range of foods and that will induce chemicals that will calm you.”

Our bodies are complex and barely understood in the grand scheme. As, with any of this information, please consult your physician before making changes to your diet or anything else health related! 

Midcentury Modern Furniture Reupholstery

Midcentury Modern Furniture Reupholstery;  Do you have some midcentury modern furniture you’d like reupholstered? Or maybe simply a favourite chair or sofa that needs some TLC?

At Fawcett, not only do we create fantastic mattresses and new furniture. But we also have master reupholsterers on staff that can breath new life into quality furniture that needs a refresh. Here’s a an example of our recent work!

Tommy Sofa Bed

Tommy Sofa Bed

We did a lot of research to find the perfect mechanism for our Tommy sofa bed and of course ended up bringing in these mechanisms from Italy. Their superior construction and amazing design result in a sofa that does an incredible job of housing the bed inside of it.

The sofa itself is firm yet comfortable and when it opens, you’ll find a Fawcett 3″ – 100% Natural Talalay latex mattress in a multi-stretch cotton cover. The Tommy Sofa-Bed is available in European Double and European Queen size with a variety of different arm shapes.

Overall dimensions for the sofas are:
Double – 37″ Deep x 77″ Long
Queen – 37″ deep x 84″ Long
Mattress dimensions are:
Double – 56″ x 79″
Queen – 63″ x 79″

Priced From $4208 in Double Size; Also available in a 3/4 size for $3871

Fawcett Project Chair

The Fawcett Project Chair was the first collection under the Fawcett banner, and its classic lines will stand the test of time. Why “Project”? One of the criteria for this line was that it meet our mission statement of “Sustainable Furniture without Compromise.”

At Fawcett, sustainable goes beyond the materials we use – while we source as many natural materials as possible, we are also committed to designing and manufacturing furniture that can be offered to our customers at an approachable price point. Achieving this goal became our “project”, and we succeeded when this collection was born.

The project chair is available in dozens of various fabrics and colours including either faux leather or Wollsdorf FOC Earth vegetable dyed top grain leather.

Priced from $2175

It’s Cold Out There – A Worthy Cause

One of our fantastic Fawcett Team members, Mr Steve Anan, brought this worthy event & cause to our attention. Each year, the Mustard Seed Food Bank & Street Church raises money to help the homeless in Victoria with an event called the Coldest Night of the Year.

Should you like to Donate to the cause, here’s the link that Steve and his son are raising funds for the Mustard Seed Food Bank. Please consider donating to what we think is a great cause!

7 Reasons to Get More Sleep

We can think of dozens of reasons of why more sleep is better. But how about just 7 Reasons to Get More Sleep ?

1. General Health. There are many studies about sleep and health. But what’s important are your long term habits. One night of poor sleep isn’t going to be an issue. But hundreds of nights, over a period of months and years can lead to heart disease, heart attacks, diabetes and obesity.
   
2. Weight Gain. Lack of sleep can cause our fat burning mechanisms to be less effective, make us crave food and actually changes our fat cells.
3. More Sex? Research of 171 College age students corresponded with increased desire and 14% more likelihood in having sex the next day.
4. Better Memory. Lack of sleep ruins our concentration, which makes it tough to read and process similar tasks. Researchers now think that both our declarative and procedural memory are negatively impacted by lack of sleep.
5. Stronger Immune System. There’s some serious science that links a healthy functioning immune system and sleep.
6. Increasing Human Growth Hormone Production. Hey, even if you’re grown up, HGH is important to healthy functioning of our bodies. It helps us maintain lean muscle mass and stay looking fit and young.
7. Better Skin. Yes, even your skin benefits from sleep. In one study, good sleepers had 30% more recovery from transepidermal water loss (TEWL) which apparently helps us look better!

Our goal at Fawcett is to try to help our clients get the best night sleep possible. What are you sleeping on?

5 Ways to Keep Your Mattress Clean

So you’ve bought a very cool Fawcett Mattress. Now, here are 5 Ways to Keep Your Mattress Clean happy and healthy. Cleaning your mattress helps prevent excess build up of skin, mites and other undesirables.

1. Vacuum your mattress. We suggest about once a month. But if you’re someone who vacuums their home once a month, try for once every 3 months. Baby steps.
2. Use baking soda. Sprinkle some on your mattress, gently rub it in with a brush, and then repeat step 1. Vacuum up the baking soda. This will help keep your mattress smelling fresh and clean.
3. Keep liquids away from your mattress! Moisture and mattress are not a good mix.
4. Use the hottest water setting on your washing machine when you wash your sheets every week. Use a high setting for the dryer too, so that any critters meet their demise.
5. Get a mattress protector. It will mean you don’t have to clean your mattress as often and reduce the chance for mite infestation and body oils contamination. We recommend the Dream Serene  or the St Dormier Wool protector for the best protection.

Flipping your mattress is sensible in the event you own a flippable mattress! Generally mattresses that have a “pillow top” are not flippable. However, at Fawcett our “pillow top” (we don’t call them that…but lest I digress) mattresses are flippable.

Both our Model 9  (latex core) and Model 9S  (spring core) come with a 3 inch latex “topper” which is like a pillow top, but better.

Why? Because it’s not attached to the lower part of the mattress and can be flipped. The lower core can also be flipped if in some of our models. Want a flipper, we can create you a flipper.;-)

So, these type of options help ensure your mattress lasts a long time 😉 Along with keeping up with your 5 Ways to Keep Your Mattress Clean of course.

Is your Bedroom a Social Media Free Zone?

Is your Bedroom a Social Media Free Zone? In 2017 Facebook surpassed the 2 Billion monthly active users number – with over 63% of North Americans using the service each month.

So, the chances are, that you use Facebook, Youtube, Instagram, Twitter or some other Social Media service.

Or maybe you use all of them!? These services have real quantifiable positive impacts when properly applied to business growth or other similar endeavors such as non-profit fundraising & awareness.

More controversial, is Social Media’s positive, or negative impact on our personal lives. I like to take a bipartisan approach here. Social media is both good and bad.

We would probably be less connected to our friends overseas, in Japan, Europe and Australia – without Social Media.

We also keep in touch with people we have met only once or twice – are not close friends due to geography – but are connected to on Social media.

But more and more people are becoming what we could call “Social Media Addicted”. There’s no clinical diagnosis for this “condition”, however, most of us know what it looks like.

Have you ever felt ‘anxious’  because you forgot your phone? There’s now a term for that feeling of anxiety when you are ‘sans-phone’ – it’s called Nomophobia. Remarkably, “a study, sampled 2,163 people, found that about 58% of men and 47% of women suffer from the phobia”

Some of the physical and emotional symptoms reported were:

Symptoms

• anxiety
• respiratory alterations
• trembling
• perspiration
• agitation
• disorientation
• tachycardia

Emotional symptoms

• depression
• panic
• fear
• dependence
• rejection
• low self-esteem
• loneliness

A recent report by Canadian researchers (go Canada!) found that just ONE HOUR of Social Media use can derail proper sleep.

The report found;

‘Importantly, significant associations were found when social media use exceeded one hour per day, suggesting that even this level of social media may be negatively associated with sleep duration.

‘Although females spent significantly more time using social media than males, the relationship between the use of social media and sleep duration did not differ by sex.

So we know that using social media, even in the day time may affect sleep habits. How about if you’re using your phone in bed at night? Is your Bedroom a Social Media Free Zone?

Researchers think that the blue-white light emitted by mobile phones prevents our brains from releasing melatonin. We need this hormone to sleep properly. Generally the research points to eliminating computer, tablet or mobile phone usage about an hour before bedtime. Here are three lessons learned from what happens when we do just that.

So, you may have an awesome, comfortable Fawcett Mattress. But if you’re using your phone, tablet or too much computer use close to bedtime, then you’re probably shooting yourself in the proverbial foot. We’re guilty here too, so don’t feel bad. Most of us are!

Personally I’m going to resolve to reading before sleep. And yes, from one of those old fashioned paper things. Not the phone. 😉

Sleep and Professional Sports. Does it matter?

Sleep and professional sports. Does it really matter? The Seattle Seahawks think so. The Seahawks travel longer than any other NFL team in the league due to geography.

They take their sleep science seriously. Their 40 players wear devices which track the number of hours and depth of their sleep. Sam Ramsden, the Seahawks trainer, says  “I’ve always had a belief that sleep is one of the main ways your body recovers, Some of the best players on the team are the best sleepers.”

NBA players nap. Steve Nash hails from Victoria BC Canada, and is a former SMUS student, as well as 2x MVP and 8x NBA all star! He also naps and claims napping helped him get through the season more efficiently.

Both NBA and NHL players like to nap – likely due to their hectic schedules which find them in different cities regularly, and often leaving town late at night, along with early morning practices. Sometimes they may not get in to their hotel room until 3am, and practice at 9am. We agree, who wouldn’t need a nap?

A Harvard study found that pulling an all-nighter could reduce reaction times by 300% and take days to recover.

Research has show proper sleep results in:

1. Enhanced ability to capacity to cope with stress.
2. An increase in human growth hormone and testosterone
3. Enhancement in both recovery and performance

Speaking of sleep and professional sports performance, here’s a interactive reaction time test to see how awake you are. Enjoy.

Of course most of us are not professional athletes. But, we all want to be the best we can, at whatever we do. Maybe we want to be a better parent, teacher, lawyer, engineer, customer service provider. In order for us to be the best we can be, we need to get appropriate and quality sleep. Sleep can help our performance at work.

The next time you get grief for napping, just say you’re training like a pro.

If you are a professional athlete – cool! You need to get on one of our Model 9 mattresses.

What is the healthiest bed and mattress?

What is the healthiest bed and mattress? There are some crazy chemical baths out there. Yes. We’re talking about your mattress! Do you own a memory foam mattress? Thinking about one – don’t do it!

Over 90% of mattresses produced contain toxic chemicals and substances that are linked to serious health issues. Memory foam in general is one of the worst offenders. Some of these chemicals are;

• Polybrominated Diphenyl Ethers
• Boric Acid
• Formaldehyde
• Antimony

We’re really proud of using natural materials at Fawcett. Not only are our mattresses incredibly comfortable, they also are healthier. So, what’s in a Fawcett Mattress?

The components of our Fawcett mattresses are:

• Natural Talalay Latex Foam from Global Talalay – healthy, breathable, hypoallergenic and non-off gassing.
• Joma Wool from New Zealand – naturally fire resistant, temperature regulating and moisture wicking.
• 100% Organic Cotton Ticking with High Thread Count This is the part of your mattress that you sleep the closest to.
• Simalfa Adhesives. Water based, adhesive is a nasty sounding word, but it doesn’t have to be!
• Unprocessed Cotton Felt – is a felted cotton padding used to add comfort and additional layers.
• Pocket Coil Springs (in our M6, M7 and M9S…our M1 and M9 feature latex cores)

What is the healthiest bed and mattress? We can’t say we produce THE healthiest mattress in the world. However, we’re definitely creating the healthiest mattress that we can, with the most sustainable and natural materials available!

So, if we spend 30% of our lives on a mattress, does it make sense to invest in a quality healthy mattress? We’re talking about an investment of less than a dollar a day over the lifetime of the mattress, to ensure you’re sleeping on something to keep you healthy.

Which leads us to a question…What are you sleeping on! Our amazing, non off gassing mattresses start at $899

Fawcett Holiday Hours

Are we open, you bet! Every day? Not really. Hey – maybe a little skiing or well, something like that. Happy Holidays!

12/24/17 Closed (Sunday)
12/25/17 Closed (Monday)
12/26/17 Closed (Tuesday)
12/31/17 Closed (Sunday)
1/1/18 Closed (Monday)

Mattress too firm ?

Mattress too firm? Are you an older person? then it may be causing sleep challenges. At least this is what research conducted by the Brazilian Association of Sleep has found. Elderly ‘subjects’ that slept on high firmness rated mattresses took an average of 67 minutes to fall asleep. When these people switched to a medium firm mattress, they took only 21 minutes to fall asleep.

As we age, we often acquire various ailments and chronic problems. These range from autoimmune, various injuries racked up along our journey in life or other diseases. In fact, 62% of adults aged 65-74 and and 81.5% of those over the age of 85 years old had two or more chronic conditions.

Given this, it means that as we age, we need to plan for these changes in our body so that we are able to get the proper amount of sleep required. Maybe you’ve liked firm mattresses through your adult life but haven’t been sleeping well…? It could be time to look at a new softer mattress.

But what if you need a softer mattress and your spouse sleeps great on the current firm one you have? At Fawcett, we have options. We’ve got something called our no compromise mattress. With our latex core models such as the M1 and M9, we can create a softer mattress on one side, and a firmer mattress on the other side. Even better, we’ll customize your mattress like this for no additional fee.

As we get older, our bodies change and what used to be comfortable, may not be now. Here are a few other tips courtesy of comfort keepers to get the best night’s sleep possible for older adults:

• Make sure you follow a regular sleeping schedule, going to bed and rising at the same time each day.
• Avoid taking long or frequent naps during the day.
• Make sure you get regular exercise!
• Sit in natural light; it regulates the body’s sleep-wake cycle.
• Minimize caffeine and alcohol.
• Make sure your bed is for sleeping only.  If you’re unable to fall asleep in 15 minutes, get up, move to a chair and try another activity.

What causes sunken eyes?

As we age, we often get dark circles under our eyes. Sometimes this can happen to younger people too. What causes sunken eyes? We came across a well researched article that uncovers some of the causes.

A number of factors can contribute to this effect officially known as “tear trough hollows”

• Age often plays a factor. It’s more prevalent in older adults. As we get older, our body has less collagen. Collagen is the most abundant protein in the body and a lack of it makes our eyes seem sunken.
• Nutrition & Vitamin Deficiencies
  • Deficiencies in vitamin C, K and iron can cause sunken eyes. People that suffer from general malnutrition may have sunken eyes.
• Sleep Issues
  • Poor quality or not enough sleep can cause sunken eyes. (could be your mattress?
  • What’s good quality sleep?
    • – sleeping for much of the time in bed
    • – taking no more than 30 minutes to fall asleep
    • – waking no more than once per night
    • – not being awake for more than 20 minutes during the night
• Dehydration
• Weight Loss
  • People tend to get thinner in their faces first.
• Genetics
• Smoking
  • Try not to smoke for a number of reasons. It also causes a decrease in skin elasticity.
• Allergies
  • Allergies can cause inflammation, causing dark circles.
• Sinus infections
• Trauma
  • An injury to the face or head can cause dark circles under your eyes.

So now we know what causes sunken eyes…how about some fixes?

Some home remedies?

1. Stay hydrated! Limit things that dehydrate you – caffeinated beverages, alcohol. You know, all the fun stuff. 8 – 10 glasses of water a day will help!
2. Good quality sleep.
3. Almond oil. Not sure where you find this, but apparently it helps as it’s high in vitamin E.
4. Raw potatoes on the eyes. Yes you heard that right. Apparently it’s the vitamin C, enzymes and starch.
5. Tea bags. Let them cool after making your tea and place under your eyes for 10 minutes.
6. Cucumber slices. This is beginning to make me hungry. Cooling and reducing swelling.
7. Fish oil. Break open the capsule and place under your eyes. Be careful not to get in your eyes 😉
8. Lemon oil. Often referred to as ‘nature’s bleach’ aids in dead skin removal and discoloration. Make sure you dilute, and be extra careful not to get IN your eyes.

If all else fails, you have the home remedies provide for ingredients to make a spartan meal.

Disclaimer: We didn’t come up with these ideas or concepts and have no idea if the home remedies actually work. Reader beware! Read the article in full here.

What is the best mattress? Lawsuits & Mattress Reviews

What is the best mattress? A tough question. We could easily say Fawcett Mattresses are the best mattresses! But of course that may be a little bit self serving…

But really. There’s a sea, a virtual cornucopia of information out there. Or misinformation…? There are mattress review sites to check out. Like Sleepopolis for example. So these can be trusted resources, right? Well maybe not.

Derek Hales, an entrepreneurial business degree graduate of Kansas State University, started Sleepopolis after trying a couple of mattress-in-a-box brands. He posted a video of his wife and him trying out a Casper mattress and it quickly racked up 25,000 views. Derek made deals with the mattress companies that when people clicked on his videos through to the mattress maker website, he would get an ‘affiliate payment’. Affiliate payments have been around as long as the internet and are big business. Last year $4.5 billion was paid in affiliate fees.

With the explosion of cheap mattress-in-a-box companies, Derek built Sleepopolis into a online review juggernaut. He was receiving 500,000 visitors a month and millions of views of his mattress reviews.

So that’s the end of the story? Well no…

Eventually a number of the mattress companies began to re-asses their relationship with the various mattress review sites that had sprung up. Generally the mattress companies were paying about $50 to $250  per mattress sale for referrals. Taking into account the amount of referral traffic Derek’s site was sending Casper, Leesa and other mattress companies, apparently he was making $2,000,000 a year from referring web traffic to the mattress sites.

In April of 2016, Derek’s relationship with Casper had soured. He put a note on his website that he could no longer recommend a Casper, and recommended a few other brands. “He even added a little yellow box near the top of that page, which read: “Thinking about buying a Casper? Do your homework! Check out these 4 mattress companies that Sleepopolis loves.”

This “little yellow box” was on the number one search term for Casper Mattress Review. So needless to say, Casper wasn’t too happy! Next, Casper filed a lawsuit alleging Derek and his site (as well as two other sites) were using deceptive advertising practices!

After some legal wrangling back and forth, Casper funded another mattress review site to buy Sleepopolis. Derek’s out of the picture now.

What happened to the little yellow box warning readers about Casper and sending them somewhere else? It’s long gone, replaced with a green box featuring a special coupon for – you guessed it – a Casper mattress.

It’s buyer beware when reading mattress reviews. A multi-million dollar affiliate business and review sites that look independent but aren’t, mean take your online reviews with a grain of salt!

Read the whole story on Fast Company here.

We’re proud of the Google reviews rating we have. We keep striving to exceed our client expectations, and we’re happy when they share the love. Ready to purchase a Fawcett Mattress? use this coupon code to obtain $50 off the price of any mattress or bed. FAWCETT50

Is Lack of Sleep Affecting Your Genes?

We all know how we feel when we get a lack of sleep.  Some describe lack of sleep as “feeling as if I’ve been run over by a truck”. No offence intended to those who actually may have been run over by a truck. But you get the idea. We’ve all ‘been there’ at some time or another.  Is Lack of Sleep Affecting Your Genes?

Research by Dr Simon Archer and his team in Britain was recently featured in the BBC online news. The research indicates that about 500 genes are affected from lack of sleep. “Genes associated with process like inflammation, immune response and response to stress became more active.” The Dr’s team also saw increased activity of specific genes associated with diseases like cancer and diabetes. Most importantly, the reverse happened with the volunteers added a hour of sleep, instead of subtracting one.

Further research about sleep deprivation and genes demonstrates that it takes only one night of sleep loss for the genes that control your biological clocks in your cells to be altered.

Is Lack of Sleep Affecting Your Genes in the longer term? Doctors are still trying to determine whether the genetic changes are reversed after one or a few good night sleeps, or if the changes are longer lasting. Epigenetic ‘marks’ have been found altered in shift workers and people suffering from type 2 diabetes. So this means perhaps genetic changes are longer lasting and could cause serious illnesses.

Science aside, getting a good night’s sleep makes us feel better! And that’s important for quality of life!

If we had unlimited means, we think we would choose an adjustable bed for the ultimate in sleep arrangement options. What are you sleeping on?

What’s in a Pillow?

Warning & Disclaimer: This post may sound sound like a shameless advertising plug for our products. But’s it’s not! These pillows are amazing. Really.

What’s in a pillow? Pillows are all the same, right? That’s what I thought. When I started working with Fawcett, my wife who is a physiotherapist insisted that I buy one of the Natural Talalay Latex pillows for her. I did, and she loves it! She recommends Fawcett natural latex pillows for her clients for issues with neck pain.

So one weekend when she was away, I decided to give this Fawcett Natural Talalay Latex pillow a try. I’ve never been really picky about things like pillows. I mean, how different can they be?

But, I’m converted.

After that weekend of “wow, this thing really is amazing” epiphany, I promptly bought my own matching natural talalay latex pillow. Duane, a CoFounder of Fawcett loves these pillows, but says they aren’t a “magic” solution – or going to heal all of our client’s neck issues. True, of course. However, I had already nicknamed it my “magic pillow”.

I’m now “that guy” who takes his pillow with him on travels where possible.

Some other benefits & notes about this pillow are:

• Naturally antimicrobial, dust mite resistant & hypoallergenic
• Durable; maintains shape and consistency
• Sleeps cooler than a traditional or down pillow
• Doesn’t off-gas; just like our mattresses!
• I’ve got a Queen high-loft and am side sleeper, ave size male
• My wife has a Queen low-loft and is a back & side sleeper, ave size female

Ready to pull the proverbial trigger? Wait no longer, and purchase your awesome pillow online, or instore @ Fawcett: 408 John Street in Victoria BC. For a limited time, use this coupon for 7% off a Pillow FAW7ACC

Free Local Delivery?

Yes we do. Fawcett offers free local delivery anywhere in greater Victoria BC, Canada. Generally that means within about 30km of downtown. Of course, we have been convinced to drive further. Live out of town? No problem. We offer $100 flat rate shipping to most destinations in Canada!

Bed in a Box?

So you’ve been thinking about getting a new mattress. And there are these trendy new mattresses that are called “bed in a box”. They are shipped to your residence, and you unpack them…and voila, your mattress is ready! Sounds pretty good?

And for some people, a bed in a box may suit their needs. For example…If you live a long ways from a mattress store – like thousands of kilometres, then it could save some considerable time and expense.

But we can’t help feel that the mattresses-in-a-box we see for sale online equate to “you get what you pay for”. When it comes to mattresses many people don’t differentiate between the various materials and components that go into them. Perhaps it’s because mattresses are actually fairly complex – and the materials vary widely.

So what tends to happen is that people default to convenience and price…but…

• Is a mattress in a box convenient? Yes.
• Is a mattress in a box inexpensive? Sometimes…in the short run.
• Is a bed in a box comfortable? For some people, if they get lucky.

However, the materials & components that go into a mattress are not equal. The cheaper the mattress, the cheaper, and more inferior, the materials. What’s the problem with this? Inferior mattress components often mean:

• Toxic and even carcinogenic mattress. If your mattress is making you sick, is that worth saving a few pennies a day?
• Here are 7 signs your mattress may be making you sick.
• A Less durable mattress. If your mattress needs replacing or has serious wear impressions after a few years, is it really less expensive?
• Less comfortable. The higher quality materials such as high quality natural latex and springs simply provide a higher degree of comfort.
• Lack of customization. One size fits all is the norm for most bed in a box mattresses.
• Poor quality sleep. This one really follows less comfortable, but we think it’s an important point on its own. Poor sleep means poor health. The link between proper sleep and health are strong.

Cheaper mattresses always mean cheaper materials. We actually pay more for the raw materials that go into some of our mattress, than most toxic mattresses actually cost the consumer. Yes it’s cliche, but you get what you pay for.

Even worse, many toxic mattresses are not cheap! (especially if they need replacing in a few years) We’ve seen bed-in-a-box models priced in the same range our mattresses made with natural talalay latex, organic cotton & organic joma wool. Ours are customized for the individual and hand-made by our amazing Fawcett mattresses craftsmen What’s with that?? Hint. We’re factory direct.

So, it begs the analysis, let’s compare an amazing Fawcett mattress to a Bed-in-a-box mattress!

Sales Position

We’re Seeking someone who can become a Fawcett Product Evangelist (watch our Chief Product Evangelist speak about our stuff)

Where? 408 John St @ Turner, near Bay St Bridge

Fawcett Mattress manufactures mattresses that are hand made with the most sustainable, natural materials available, right here in Victoria! We also create a variety of beds in our unique manufacturing facility which is joined to an open concept showroom where clients can see their mattresses being created while they shop.

If you’re tired of just looking for a “JOB” and are looking for a position that could grow into something much more, Fawcett could be the perfect fit for you. Here’s what we are looking for:

Our shop space lacks mirrors, and smoke. So do you! We’re looking for an enthusiastic energized individual that has a passion for sustainable materials & helping future clients make the right purchase choices for their health and personal situation.

You have retail sales experience and are great with people; including;

* Meeting and greeting prospective clients in a professional friendly manner
* Learning about the Fawcett products so that you are able to help meet the clients needs
* Collecting payments and entering client information in * Quickbooks and or a CRM system.
* Basic inventory tracking and ordering of products

Bonus if you’ve got these skills!

*Bookkeeping skills/experience
* WooCommerce and or WordPress experience to update online products
* Instagram, Facebook and Twitter are your friends; comfortable posting to social media

If this sounds interesting to you, please reply to this ad your work history or resume / CV.

***This position pays $15 – $20 / per hour & has benefits. Pay dependent on experience.***

How to apply? Simple. Just click here to apply for the position! and include your latest CV/Resume in PDF, DOC, RTF or TXT format.

Meet the Fawcett Christen Bed

Meet Fawcett Christen Bed! As it turns out, a lot of people don’t seem to know that we make…awesome beds. Sure we may be biased, but our clients love our beds too!

What makes our beds great?

Here are some details about the Christen Bed.

• Minimalist design; modern contemporary design
• Smaller profile for smallish spaces
• Reasonably easy to move or disassemble
• Customize size of headboard or rails (minor changes no extra fee)
• Various leg options; walnut, oak, maple or metal
• Sustainable products utilized in construction
• Customize the fabric or leather
• Stemma frame support
• Excellent value for a hand-made, custom product

Why Is Sleep Important to Growing Children?

Is sleep important to growing children? We recently came across a fantastic article about the effect sleep on children, and their development. The article was featured in the Positive Health Wellness Blog – which focuses on articles about diet and nutrition, recipes, fitness, beauty and aging and more. The highlights are below.

Studies have demonstrated that children who don’t receive the proper amount of sleep have many problems, such as controlling their emotions. Others act out in naughty ways because their brains need the rest. They take risks, and as they get older, they can have problems with depression and anxiety.

Sleep is related to healthy growth.
Proper sleep has been linked to Studies have shown that those who don’t get enough sleep are more likely to be obese. This is the case for both children and adults. One study specifically looked at teenagers, who got one less hour of sleep than average. They were more likely to become obese than their regular sleeping counterparts.

Fighting Infections
During sleep, children produce cytokines, a type of protein. The body needs this to be able to fight off illnesses and infections. The proteins are produced more during illnesses to help promote sleep and encourage anyone to sleep more to fight off the illness. There is a cycle that Mother Nature has created to ensure our bodies fight off infections as much as possible instead of succumbing to them.

How Much Sleep do Children Need?
Newborns will need between 16 and 18 hours of sleep a day. This isn’t going to be in one sitting. Some will sleep through the night for 12 hours without a problem and then need a few one-hour naps throughout the day. Others will have four-hour naps with periods of awake on a regular basis.

As babies reach the three-monthstage, they need around 11-15 hours of sleep daily. Between four months and a year, that time drops to between 9 and 12 hours, and most will sleep through the night and just need a few naps throughout the day.

Toddlers and preschoolers do a lot of running around and growing. They will sleep between 11 and 14 hours a day, usually in one sitting throughout the night. Between the ages of 6 and 13, children need somewhere between 9 and 11 hours of sleep, and usually not with a nap in the day. They may have a nap if they are ill.

So is sleep important to growing children? We’ll say an unequivocal yes! All in all we found this article very interesting. We know sleep is important, but it often seems neglected. We make sure our kids eat properly, that they are safe but sometimes we may overlook the role that sleep plays in their health, well being and long term development! With that, we’re going to take a nap. With our kids.

What mattress to look at? We have our 3.5 year old sleeping on a Fawcett Model 6. He loves it, and so do we. Younger children? How about the Model C(rib)

Stemma Bed Frame – Start with a Foundation

At Fawcett, we produce and manufacture our own amazing beds. Certain components we purchase, like the core base frame – a Stemma Frame, which is carefully crafted to provide proper support for your Fawcett Mattress.

The manner in which the Stemma base is constructed creates a little bit of flex to the bed. The wood slats are are also adjustable in firmness. Each side is adjustable – for couples this is a great option.

If one person prefers a firmer support base compared to their partner sleeping on the other side, simply adjust accordingly. Simply slide the torsional sleeves toward the middle and this will create a more flexible or softer base. When placed to the outside, the base is firmer.

Then, we’ll add our custom crafted bed to the frame. Featured here, is the Christian Bed.

Minimalist and slight in design and often considered for smaller rooms where space is a concern, this bed is well suited to many homes from transitional to contemporary.

All of our beds are manufactured in house using the same materials and sensibilities as our mattresses.

All of our beds are available in many fabrics from recycled content, to all natural as well as our selection of either faux leather or Wollsdorf FOC Earth vegetable dyed leather top grain leather. Featured here is a grey Tonica fabric.

Next simply add a Fawcett Mattress, and you’ve got the near perfect healthy sleeping environment! Special project? Different size bed or mattress? No problem. We’ll create almost anything to suit your needs.

Caffeine compared to climbing stairs?

What helps keep you alert? Caffeine compared to climbing stairs? We’ve all had nights where we can’t sleep. Worries, sirens, kids, or for no apparent reason at all. Perhaps it was the spicy italian sausage or a bit too much red wine. Or your mattress? Yes, your mattress…we do sell mattresses – you know? 😉

What’s the remedy? Recent research compared the effect of caffeine VS climbing stairs for 10 minutes. And the results?

“The team found that under the stair-walking condition, participants reported greater motivation to work and an increase in energy, compared with those under the caffeine condition.”

The energized feeling was temporary and the caffeine had no measurable effect.

We at Fawcett prefer a balanced approach. Don’t take our caffeine (coffee) away…never!….but combining quality java with a good walk, run, yoga at lunch time (or stairclimb) helps keep us alert and sharp on those days when you simply can’t get enough sleep.

Disclaimer: Fawcett Mattress takes no responsibility for your increased consumption of caffeinated beverages, red wine, beer or any other such fluid you may imbibe. Furthermore, any injuries resulting from increased walking, yoga, cycling, any and all exercise, as a result of this article, we shall be forever indemnified.

Ahem….However, if you wish to credit us with a better night’s sleep due to our amazing mattresses, or for any other reason, we will humbly accept.

Causes Of Lack Of Sleep

Recently we spotted an article on CBC.ca about the major causes of lack of sleep.

We thought the article took an interesting approach, because of the way it broke down each ‘risk factor’ to the average number of minutes per night that it affected a person for lack of sleep. Individually, it’s not a big deal. But if you are at risk for multiple risk factors, it can really add up. Take a look:

The paper summarizes a few of the known risk factors associated with lack of sleep:

• BMI — People with a body mass index considered to be overweight or obese sleep on average between about 2.5 minutes to seven minutes less per night, on average.
• Smoking — Smokers sleep on average five minutes less every night.
• Gender — Men sleep on average nine minutes less than women do every night.
• Sugary drinks — Have been associated with 3.4 minutes less sleep every night.
• Shift work — People with irregular working hours tend to get 2.7 minutes less sleep every night.
• Commuting — People with commutes of between 30-60 minutes each way tend to get 9.2 minutes less sleep. Those with longer commutes of more than an hour fare even worse, with 16.5 minutes less sleep.
• Exercise — People who get less than two hours of activity per week tend to get 2.6 minutes less sleep than those who exercise.
• Mental health — People with medium to high risk of mental-health problems sleep on average 17.2 minutes less per day than those with low risk.

Some major disasters have been linked to lack of sleep. Some mentioned were Three Mile Island, Chernobyl, Exxon Valdez, and the Space Shuttle Challenger. So definitely don’t mess with your nuclear reactor or spaceship if you’re sleep deprived. Read the article in its entirety here.

At Fawcett, although we sell mattresses. Really we are helping people achieve a great night’s sleep, and peace of mind. What are you sleeping on?

5 Surprising Ways Your Mattress Your Mattress Affects Sleep and Health – Huff Post

We came across this article in the Huntington Post. Even though it’s a couple of years old, we thought it was definitely worthy of a post in mattress talk.

There are some good tips in the video associated with the article, specifically the interview with Dr Robert Oexman who runs the Sleep to Live Institute. Some quick take-aways;

• What feels good to you in the store may not be what feels right at home. Spend a bit of time laying on the mattress at the store if you can.
• Are you allergic to the mites and items which tend to form in most mattresses? (hint, use a protector you can wash!)
• When to get a new mattress? Even though mattresses can last 7 – 10 years, consider replacing before your mattress shows signs of wear and sagging support.
• 92% of people say a comfortable mattress is important to a good night sleep.
• Keep the screens out of the bedroom. The light keeps us awake and prevents proper sleep.
• In a 2009 Study, 59 healthy men and women slept 28 nights on their regular mattress. Then they slept on a new med-firm mattress. The researchers found a significant reduction in stress.
• If you have asthma, you may want to invest in a mattress protector and change your mattress more often. As many as 20 million Americans, and 2 million Canadians are allergic to dust mites found in beds.

We’re proud of the natural products we use at Fawcett. We utilize the most natural and sustainable materials we can source on the market.

The natural latex we use is tapped from Havea-Brasiliensis rubber trees. It also has the added benefit of being naturally anti-bacterial, anti-fungal and is dust mite resistant. Who likes bugs? No thanks!

— Thanks Steve for sourcing this article!

Children’s Sleep and Stress

As adults, we’re (sometimes acutely) aware that stress can cause a lack of sleep for us. But what about our children? Do they actually lose sleep from worrying about things?

Unfortunately, lack of sleep due to stress isn’t exclusive to adults. 20% of kids aged 8 to 17 say they worry a lot. Anxiety can lead to a lack of sleep and higher levels of cortisol (not good for our bodies/system with over extended periods of time).

What can you do?

• You can help your child manage stress and anxiety by spending calm, family time together.
• Help your child manage their anxiety VS trying to eliminate it.
• Don’t avoid things just because they cause anxiety.
• Express positive, but realistic expectations.
• Respect their feelings but don’t endorse them.
• Keep it real. Don’t reinforce their fears or ask leading questions.

How about physical factors?

• Get your kids outside. Well, at least get them exercising…which usually means getting them outside. It’s been demonstrated moderate to vigorous exercise can help protect your kids.
• Cut back on the sugar. Sugar stresses the body and brain and causes more damaging cortisol to enter their system.
• Choose a Fawcett Mattress  – a healthy non-toxic mattress that is comfortable for your kids. We recommend the Fawcett Model 6 for children and Youths.
• Too many mattresses are full of chemicals like Polybrominated Diphenyl Ethers with adverse or unknown effects on people. Don’t add these stresses to your lives!

Questions? Simply drop us a line @ 250.384.2558 or Email Us and we’ll be happy to help.

Announcing the Fawcett M6 Mattress Contest Winner

We’re happy to announce that Lori Tessler of Winnipeg Manitoba is the grand prize winner of a Fawcett M6 Mattress!

Happy Sleeping Lori!

Mattress Shop…with some (big) distinctions!

At Fawcett, we’re a different kind of mattress shop. Let us count thy ways.

1. Customization. This is really cool. Normally you can choose a softer or firmer mattress. But at Fawcett, we actually can make one side (left or right) firmer, and one side softer. So if you like a firmer mattress, and your partner likes a softer mattress, there’s no compromise. This option is available in our M1, MV, M7, and M9 mattress options.

[Read more]

No compromises. Customize mattress firmness side to side.

Generally when you buy a mattress, you may have the option of a soft, medium or firm mattress. If you’re single, this may work alright for you. However, if you have a partner that sleeps beside you, then one of you may be sacrificing.

Larger, heavier people typically tend to need a firmer mattress than smaller lighter people. More often than not, couples have a significant weight and size difference.

At Fawcett, one of the amazing things we do is customize firmness side to side. One side could be firm, one side softer. There are actually 5 choices for firmness levels at Fawcett:

Here are some general guidelines – comfort & firmness is subjective.

• Soft – usually too soft for 95% of people. However, a good fit for elderly or lighter adults who like a very soft mattress.
• Med Soft –  a good choice for those who like a softer mattress, often side sleepers.
• Medium – middle of the road firmness, great for guest bedrooms, a second home,  and anyone who likes a medium mattress.
• Medium Firm – a good fit for people that like the feel of a firmer mattress, often back sleepers.
• Firm – recommended for larger people that like the feel of a very firm mattress.

Customizing your mattress for firmness is available in all of our mattresses to a certain degree. Our natural latex foam core models, M1, and M9 will represent the most noticeable difference in firmness compared to our inner spring models the M6, M7, and MV.

So you simply choose your preference and we’ll customize your side to your needs. Your partner can chooses the firmness they like. No compromises, happy sleeping.

Not sure which one is right for you? Come into Fawcett if you live on Vancouver Island and we can help. If you live too far away for a visit, give us a call and talk to one of our experts. They can help you make the right choice for you and we’ll ship anywhere in Canada.  😉

Google & Facebook Reviews

We are really proud of our Google & Facebook Reviews! Take a look below, and click on the links to read directly on Google or Facebook 😉

Custom Mattress for RV – Yachts, Boats, Trailers, Motorhomes & Odd Size Beds

We have recently created mattresses for Yachts, RV’s and other custom orders like odd size bunk beds and all sorts of other applications where an exact custom size mattress is required. We’ll also customize mattress firmness and materials according to your specific needs.

Our clients are generally pleasantly surprised regarding price.

We create our custom mattresses made from the most sustainable and natural materials available. It also turns out that these materials – natural talalay latex, 100% organic cotton, and joma wool, also are components which last and provide exceptional comfort.

If you live in Victoria BC, we’ll help measure the required size. If you’re outside of Victoria, we’ll walk you through taking the correct measurements to ensure your final product is exactly what you need.

Airstream trailers or RV? A lot of people are retro-fitting these fine travel machines and updating upholstery as well as  – their sleeping areas with Fawcett Mattresses. VW Vanagon? Chevy Motohome? Winnebago?

We’re able to ship anywhere in North America, heck, probably even overseas to Europe or beyond if that’s where you need the mattress to go. Let us know what we can create for your special project, vehicle or yacht.z

Here’s an image of a original 1980’s airstream chair we started with…once stripped down, we begin to add the new fabric.

Middle phases of adding new material.

Finally the new material in place, complete with seatbelts 😉

 

Below is a mattress for a 35 foot boat with a V-berth that we created. As you can see, the shape is irregular. No problem! Simply complete the special request form below, and we’ll get back to you ‘tout suite’.

Buying a Mattress? 3 Considerations.

If you’re like me, the only thing I really thought mattered with a mattress was price – and to a lesser degree comfort. Then I discovered Fawcett. It turns out there are a whole lot of other important factors to consider.

Comfort #1

If you’re not comfortable, you can’t sleep. If you can’t sleep you get sick and die. No, really this isn’t dramatic!

There’s a mountain of research linking sleep deprivation with serious and fatal diseases. Read our 7 reasons to get more sleep. It’s not just about avoiding disease or an early death. Good stuff happens when you get more sleep!

But how do you ensure a mattress is comfortable? Firmness levels are important. Generally speaking larger, heavier people need a firmer sleep surface than a smaller lighter person.

However, back-sleepers in general need a firmer mattress than side-sleepers. Here’s where many mattress fail. What happens if you weigh 280lbs and your spouse weighs in at 95lbs? Who has to sacrifice?

At Fawcett – no one! Our Model 1 and Model 9 mattresses are able to be customized side-to-side. You can have firm one side, and soft on the other – for no additional fee.

In addition to customization from side to side, Fawcett also creates our products made-to-order. So you are able to customize materials, firmness – we are only limited by our imagination.

Materials #2

This may not seem important at first glance.

But think for a moment. We spent approximately 1/3 of our lives in bed. You’ve got that mattress about 2 inches away from your mouth and your skin is virtually pressed against the mattress material. Our skin is the largest organ in our body, and it’s able to absorb things that touch it.

So when you look at how much time we spending bed and that we are constantly pressed against the mattress, it makes perfect sense that you need a mattress that doesn’t emit toxic materials that you may inhale or absorb through your skin.

Natural materials do cost more. But your health and well being is worth it! Need justification? If you amortize a better quality, higher priced mattress over 10 years, the difference is negligible.

That said, we also have incredibly well priced products. Why? We manufacture our products and offer them direct to the consumer. So our clients are purchasing factory-direct. 

Warranty #3

What happens if your mattress fails? What happens if your it is too firm? Too soft?

All our competitors offer warranties, but when you read the fine print, most of them are next to impossible to actually make a claim.

At Fawcett, we tried to create a transparent warranty, that was simple and easy to understand. Check it out here. Most mattress manufacturers do not have any ability to “edit” your mattress after you’ve bought it and slept on it. (there’s a small fee

However, at Fawcett, this is one of the things that makes us unique. If your mattress turns out to be too firm or too soft after you’ve slept on it for a few weeks, you can have it edited, or changed, by our team of craftsmen. They can replace the foam component with softer or firmer foam, all for a small fee just to cover our costs.

Getting a new mattress is great. But it isn’t a cure-all for everything. There are many reasons why people can’t sleep. Here are a few key issues to avoid if possible.

Learning and Sleep

Learning and Sleep

Most of us intuitively know that we function better on a good night’s sleep. How about learning? Is it really impacted by sleep and if so, what kind of data is out there to support such a claim? That’s what we were wondering, and set out to explore.

Researchers at Harvard Medical School suggest that sleep impacts memory in two ways. First – attention. If you’re sleep deprived you can’t focus well, and focus is needed for proper learning. Second – ‘consolidation of memory’. Apparently the reorganization of our memories, is critical to our ability to recall them.

Learning and memory are summarized in three different functions. Acquisition, consolidation and recall. We know that we have to be awake to acquire or learn things and probably to recall them. But the consolidation function is thought to happen when we are asleep through a strengthening of our neural connections that form our memories. Ok. So proper sleep is necessary for optimal memory function and our ability recall memories.

How about sleep deprivation? Again, we all know anecdotally how we feel after getting only a few hours sleep. But does lack of proper sleep really affect how we learn? The short answer is yes. Our ability to recall information we have already learned and possess is reduced when we are tired, due to neuron fatigue. Even worse, our judgement becomes impaired. This can be dangerous of course, leading to accidents or injuries at work or home.

Better consolidation of memories, and subsequently better learning, have been correlated with an afternoon nap. There’s a lot of research and evidence that says what we intuitively know. Sleep helps us learn more efficiently, and retain more of what we learn.

If you have children, sleep is important for their basic development. When a baby is sleeping, their brains are active all night long. Newborns actually learn in their sleep. They are growing their nervous systems and the connections between the brain and muscles. Naps for kids have been demonstrated to improve kids ability to retain information too.

So, the next time your spouse, partner or friend gives you a hard time for sleeping in, or going to be early, just tell them you’re busy learning.

References
http://healthysleep.med.harvard.edu/healthy/matters/benefits-of-sleep/learning-memory
http://www.parents.com/health/healthy-happy-kids/why-your-kid-needs-sleep/
http://www.sleepdex.org/learning.htm

What’s the best mattress for a great night sleep?

There’s no easy answer to this question. There are scientific reasons related to why some mattresses are uncomfortable for you, but others say they are fine. Doctors in a WebMD article say:

“When you lie on any part of your body for an extended period of time, the weight of it reduces the flow of blood through those blood vessels, which deprives the skin of oxygen and nutrients,” Decker says. This causes nerve cells and pain sensors in your skin to send a message to your brain for you to roll over. Rolling over restores blood flow to the area, but it also briefly interrupts your sleep. Ideally, a mattress that reduces the pressure points on your body should give you a better night’s sleep, Decker says. Yet the ideal mattress is different for each person.”

That makes sense. However, some people prefer a firm mattresses and some like a soft one. If you’re single, you may have luck in finding a mattress that matches your body type.  However, for couples, what about if your spouse prefers a firm bed, and you like a bed that is more forgiving and soft. Or more accurately, you need a different mattress firmness to ensure proper sleep patterns. Generally, one of you would have to sacrifice, or maybe both of you – by meeting in the middle somewhere regarding firmness.

This all-to-common compromise is something we at Fawcett Mattress set out to solve – and have. With a Fawcett Mattress, you can custom order each side of the bed to a specific firmness and custom comfort, that’s right for you, and your partner. Perhaps the best part? This customization is simply part of the way we build mattresses at Fawcett. Without compromise. There’s no additional charge or fee to create the perfect mattress for you and your family.

Restlessness and irritation replaced by comfort and tranquility…

We had a female client come into Our mattress showroom looking for a mattress that would work for her very particular mother.

She lamented that her mom was terribly uncomfortable in her existing mattress, which as it turns out, was only one year old!

She went on to explain that it was a memory foam type mattress and her mom not only slept very hot, she had strangely, constantly itchy lower legs.

I suggested that she may be having a reaction to the petroleum based memory foam in her mattress. We knew that memory foam (Viscoelastic) was a hot product to sleep on.

This client was very interested in the information that I gave her on our Natural Botanical Talalay latex mattresses, covered in Joma wool quilted Organic cotton ticking. She specially liked that this earth based, non off gassing, hypo-allergenic product was available in 5 firmnesses.

She felt confident enough in my explanation of this wonderful natural product and was so impressed with the comfort of our floor models, that she ordered one on the spot, as she felt it would be a mattress that may work for her mother. This client was extremely pleased to find a Victoria based mattress manufacturer with such a thoughtful product, that would be made locally and specifically for her….

We made this client a Model One, medium firmness, Queen size natural latex mattress and delivered it free of charge to her mother, who I did not meet through this process.

Jump ahead just over a month….and one of my staff came into the back and told me there was a client in the showroom who wanted to speak with me.

I came out to the showroom to be greeted by my client, whom I immediately recognized. I instantly said, “Hi there, nice to see you, how is your mom doing?” She was beaming and said..” She is well. She is out in the car and wants to meet you”. I said, “certainly is everything OK?” To which she replied, “Oh yes!” 

I walked out to her vehicle and was greeted by her smiling, elderly mother. This lovely lady said, “I just wanted to meet and personally thank the person that has made my life so very much better!” 

She went on to explain that she has never slept better in her life. Her leg irritation had been completely eliminated and she slept for blissful, comfortable hours on end. She insisted on hugging me, which I found very touching. She also said that an odor that she had come to live with, had disappeared with her new Fawcett mattress. She felt so grateful for the comfort and tranquility that she was now feeling, that she brought me some natural hand made soap that she really liked. Both her and her daughter said that they wished that they had found us sooner and that they were telling all of their friends about Fawcett Mattress co. 

She hugged me one more time, patted me on my chest and climbed back into their vehicle.

We said our goodbyes and I walked back into our work shop feeling even more confident of the difference we can make in peoples lives, with our thoughtful, natural, locally hand built mattresses.

Duane Franklin, Fawcett Partner

I’m no Princess!

Yes, I’m in the mattress business..

But, cleanliness aside, I have never considered myself to be a princess when it comes to what I am sleeping on. I travel a fair bit and when I do, you never know what you’re going to be sleeping on and I don’t remember ever thinking “This mattress is killing me!”

Until about four weeks ago when some good friends who live part time here in Victoria BC offered us their place for several months while we renovate our home.

I literally woke up the first morning with neck, back and shoulder pain like you wouldn’t believe. So bad in fact that I really had no idea what had caused it. I was trying to think of what I might have done on the previous day. I never in my wildest….dreams..imagined that this was caused by the mattress I was sleeping on.

So, on to night two, three and four.

It must have been around the fifth morning that it started to occur to me how directly the pain was related to the pressure points where my body was contacting the mattress. It was getting worse by the night. When I started to analyze the situation, I realized that their mattress had mountains and valleys in the sleep zones and the padding in the pillow top mattress was unevenly compressed.

What should I do?

Well, I immediately texted them to see how they would feel about me sending their mattress off to be recycled and offered to replace it with a brand new model nine mattress as “rent” for using their home. Apparently, they aren’t too attached to that mattress..

So, I got Duane to build a medium/firm model nine and had it delivered within the week. 

One night and I was on the mend and by the third night, I was literally back to normal.

If this didn’t happen myself. I would literally not believe it.

I have a whole new perspective on chronic pain. We see a lot of clients at Fawcett who are dealing with all sorts of issues and this was as close to that as I can imagine I will ever come.

Will a good mattress fix you?

I think the answer is likely no. 

But, what I now realize is that a bad mattress can do a lot of damage and by the time most people start looking to replace their old mattress, I have no doubt in my mind that it is long past overdue..

Part of the reason that this happens is because so many people dread the thought of shopping for a mattress. I read recently that in most peoples mind, the experience is right up there with buying a used car.