I sometimes feel like sleep aids are made or created by people who don’t really have a sleeping problem. If you do, you will know that a drop of lavender does nothing but smell nice. I have a sleeping problem, and think I’m authority enough on the subject!
That said, I do not have chronic insomnia, which I consider a blessing. I used to sleep like a log when younger. I’d sleep through anything – fireworks, noise, crowds – I could curl up in a corner and drop off just like that. So my sleeping problems crept up on me over the years. It isn’t so bad that I need medication, but I am always game to try any sleep aid!
These days, I go through bouts of sleeping through the night, and days when I don’t. When I do, my eye bags reduce in size and my skin looks clearer and better. When I don’t, I have eye trunks (not bags), and my skin dulls. Regulars will also know of my neverending battle with sleep – it’s something I’ve been battling for years so every night I sleep comfortably is a blessing!
I am therefore, always on the lookout for sleeping aids to help me go to sleep that more easily, and more importantly for me, stay asleep. One of the things that I tried are pillow sprays. REN Skincare has just released a new product, the REN & Now to Sleep pillow spray, and I have been trying it out for a while. Let me also share with you my thoughts on whether pillow sprays work, for those of us who have a sleeping problem.
I’ve tried a few pillow sprays in my time, so I’ll quickly tell you about them, because you may have come across them too.
This Works Deep Sleep Pillow Spray – RM99 | US$29 | £18 for 75ml
This Works Deep Sleep was one of the first few pillow sprays I tried, and I thought I’d blogged about it, but I apparently haven’t. I have gone through 2 bottles of the regular size, and when I spotted the limited edition large bottle a while ago, I bought that instead. I haven’t been using it very much since.
Why I liked the This Works Deep Sleep Pillow Spray is because they blend their spray with vetiver. Vetiver has a very earthy, green scent that doesn’t sit well with many people, but which I am partial to especially in fragrances. Deep Sleep to me smells less of lavender, as we are conditioned to think of as a sleep aid, and a more organic, earthy, woodsy scent.
It used to help me. I say “used to” because the effect has reduced somewhat for me. But I do still enjoy the scent, and how it makes my sheets smell. I have tried other things from the This Works Deep Sleep range. The shower gel was alright but had no effect of helping me sleep, and the body oil and roller ball oil was the same. No effect at all. The only item in the range that helped me was the pillow spray.
BUY IT HERE: Sephora, Net-a-Porter, SpaceNK, Asos, This Works website, Beauty Bay
REN & Now to Sleep Pillow Spray – RM99 | US$25 | £18 for 75ml
This is a brand new offering from REN Skincare, one of my favourite skincare brands. I believe it’s the first time they have something of this nature, which surprises me if I’m to be honest. I wasn’t expecting it from REN.
That said, I am quite happy with this REN & Now to Sleep Pillow Spray. It again, does not smell strongly of lavender, but is a blend of lavender and frankincense. Frankincense adds a depth of musky scent that is again, one I particularly like, and REN makes a skincare range infused with it, that I ADORE (not so for the scent but because it works so well)! I have been using this for the better part of 2 weeks, every night, and I like how it smells, and that the spray nozzle sprays out a fairly fine mist. The scent isn’t very strong, but strong enough when your head is enveloped in it as you lay on your pillow. I often spray some on my duvet cover as well, for a 3D effect. I need all the help I can get! 😀
While I cannot say that it helps me go to sleep (that’s the hardest part!) I have found that it helps me sleep a little better through the night. For me, that’s enough. However, as with last night, when sleep eluded me for most of the night, it didn’t help. It isn’t magical. But when it helps, it does seem that way! It comes in a handy 75ml size which makes it portable for travel, and it’s very slim, which I like because it’ll definitely have to travel with me!
BUY IT HERE: Kens Apothecary stores and website, REN Skincare website (USA and UK), Sephora, Cult Beauty
The Body Shop Deep Sleep Pillow Spray
I believe this one is discontinued, for I cannot find it anywhere online anymore. I blogged about a similar one from The Body Shop called Quiet Night a while ago. This is similar. Unlike the other 2 I’ve shown you here, this one has a bit more zing to it. It is nice, and again, when it works, it helps me sleep through the night better. But it isn’t a magic spray that sends Mr. Sandman a-visiting as soon as my head touches the pillow. I have to be very exhausted for that, which then puts a strain on my body. It’s a neverending balance I have to achieve!
I’ve also tried a pillow spray from L’Occitane, but I did not quite like that one, hence my not mentioning it here.
Do Pillow Sprays Work? Do Pillow Sprays Help You Sleep?
I know you are wondering about this. Are pillow sprays just psychological or do they really help you go to sleep? Is it just a waste of time and money?
Well, from my personal experience, I’d say this is a bit of a loaded question. Yes, you can consider it a waste of money, because it is a bunch of essential oils in a spray bottle, and most people will tell you they can DIY. To that I say, please by all means do so. While I personally dabble in essential oils, I still enjoy using a pillow spray or mist, so work with your comfort level and determine worth yourself.
The concept behind a pillow spray is simple. It combines various essential oils, harnessing the benefits of aromatherapy, to help calm your senses and allow sleep to naturally take over. In that sense, yes it works. Because I enjoy these scents, I do find them calming. The scent is quite light in general. It isn’t meant to scent a room the way a diffuser does, and it really does only give a hint of a scent. So scent isn’t really what it’s about. I think it’s more of the way the scent of the essential oils affect our consciousness, and calms us down, often without our realizing, that helps it work.
Does it put me to sleep? No it doesn’t. But it allows for sleep to creep over a little more naturally. What is more important for me, is that it helps me sleep a little better, when I do enter Dreamland. I’d say therefore, that if you have a chronic sleeping problem, then these pillow sprays may supplement your current sleep aids, but does not supplant them.
However, if you are just going through phases of poor quality sleep, then these pillow sprays may help improve on your quality of sleep, helping you sleep through the night better.
Tips on how best to use a pillow spray
- Do not spray too near your pillow. This may mark your pillowcase, and it will also dampen it, which can be uncomfortable for some people. Instead, hold it about 20-30cm away from your pillow, and gently mist it.
- Spray it also on your sheets or duvet/comforter/blanket. For a more “surround-sound” effect, I find that spraying the pillow spray on your sheets and duvet envelops you better in the scent and makes it more effective.
- Use it as a body mist. These are perfume-grade, so you can usually also spray it on your body. Just spray a fine mist over yourself before climbing into bed.
- Use it to freshen your room or sheets. I also find that you can use these sprays to freshen your room, which again, helps envelop you in the light scent. This maybe more effective than just spraying on your pillow. If you are travelling a spritz of this on your sheets can make it feel a little more like home, and maybe help you drift off better.
Have you tried pillow sprays to overcome a sleeping problem?
As I said, I don’t have a chronic problem, but I do have a problem. I also combine the use of essential oils and ear plugs where necessary. The latter helps me most when I travel. If you don’t have a problem, consider yourself one of the lucky ones. I’ll take all the help I can get! 🙂
Paris B
I used to be a terrific sleeper, until I had a very difficult situation and became a terrible insomniac. Until I came across this book, “The Sleep Book: How to Sleep Well Every Night” by Guy Meadows. It’s based on “acceptance and commitment therapy“, which is scientifically proven effective. It worked absolutely brilliantly for me. I can only recommend this.
Life stresses definitely affect our sleep quality, that much I have to agree Maja! Incidentally, I’d come across that book before! But I couldn’t relate, because I wasn’t truly an insomniac, nor was I apprehensive about going to sleep. I just have trouble sleeping through the night, mostly. Unless I am particularly stressed about something, or have my brain working in overdrive on a problem or issue, then I just give up haha 😀
I’m honestly tempted to give this a shot, having been doing too many unnaturally late nights just because I lie in bed awake for HOURS. But I am still contemplating the merits of using pillow sprays, or perhaps I should run out and purchase oils for my diffuser…
I’ve found that keeping to a bedtime routine helps me as well. I go to bed at around the same time every night, whenever possible. Or when my body tells me it’s time to go to sleep. I try not to nap at all in the day, no matter how tired I am. And I monitor my caffeine intake. No coffee after 12pm, and also monitor your room temperature and digital/electronic consumption. I avoid anything digital after 9pm and set my phone to silent so I don’t get notifications. There are a lot of little things that determine my quality of sleep each night. Diffusing oils help, in that it makes the room smell nice. But I find reading (physical books, nothing electronic) helps me drop off more quickly 🙂
I have trouble sleeping, HAD actually, more about that later. My brain just doesn’t know how to switch off and even if it does eventually, I often joke that I sleep like a cat – outwardly relaxed and asleep, but hear and see everything. Anything can wake me up in a second and then going back to sleep is a nightmare. I tried muscle relaxation techniques, sleep inducing meditations, herbal supplements, This Works pillow spray and Aromatherapy Associates Deep Relax bath oil, but they didn’t do much to improve my sleep, maybe relaxed me a little, but that’s it.
What truly helped me were audio books. Have you tried listening to them before sleep? There are a lot of mobile apps with timer available, so that they can turn off automatically. You lie in your bed and listen to someone reading a book to you instead of letting your thoughts run around in circles. Just be sure not to pick a book that’s too much of a “page turner”, because then you won’t be able to fall asleep before you find out what happened next, lol. And it’s also important that the voice of the reader is pleasant and doesn’t annoy you in any way, and that it’s not too loud. I can’t fall asleep to music or TV for example, but audio books are a different story. They really saved me, can’t imagine going to sleep without an audio book now!
Thank you for the suggestion Ivana! I do read before bed, but physical books. I find I’m sensitive to noise (which is why I need ear plugs whenever I’m not sleeping at home, so I block out noise) so I’m not sure an audio book will work for me. My problem is that I never quite know how a book will turn out, and lately, I’m enjoying my book too much to go to sleep LOL! I guess I”ll be having a couple more late nights till I finish it! That said, I’m glad you found something that helps you. As a fellow light-sleeper, I can commiserate!
I know! I’m sensitive to noise too. I could never in my life fall asleep if someone was talking next to me, I even wake up if my dog starts grooming himself, but for some reason audio books don’t bother me. Maybe it calms me because it reminds me of childhood in a way, when mom and dad read to me. Or because the sound of reading is more monotonous than other sounds. Or it’s the fact that I don’t focus on the sound, but on the story instead, and it helps me to drift off easier (if the plot isn’t too dynamic, that is). Do try it sometime, it might work, who knows.
I will try it Ivana 🙂 Thank you for the suggestions! 😀
Hi Paris:
Happy New Year! I have been following your blog for years. And yes, I really enjoy reading your blog.
Your post today really ring a bell with me. Like you, I slept like a log in my younger days – I was known for sleeping through an earthquake as a child : p. But I started having issues with getting and maintaining sleep as I get older. I have too tried pillow sprays and have ambivalent feeling about them. I’d like to share with you and your readers what I have personally found to be useful:
1. Avoid the temptation of using smartphones / tablets / computers in bed – although this one I struggled with for a while.
2. A nice hot bath with some relaxing aromatherapy oils. My favourite is Deep Relax by Aromatherapy Associates.
3. White noises. I am using Insight App at the moment and found a few of their sleep meditation recording extremely helpful.
4. Restrict caffeine intake to maximum 2 cups of coffee a day. I read an article that stated there two types of caffeine metabolisers – fast and slow. I realised that I am a slow caffeine metaboliser then having coffee after lunch would often lead to poor sleep that night.
5. Exercise during the day – even if it is only gentle stretching before bed helps to relax muscle and reduce tension. Unreleased muscle tension could lead to unrestful sleep and stiff back or neck in the morning .
6. Stay positive and happy – an oldie but goodie : D
Hope this helps.
Cath
Hello Cath, thank you for sharing your tips and happy new year to you too! Thank you too for the support over the years 🙂 Incidentally, I’m already practising some of what you practise which I will have to agree, helps me a lot too! I cut off my digital consumption after about 9pm and stop watching TV by about 10pm at latest or my brain continues to buzz. My phone goes on silent mode so I don’t get notifications and it’s actually easy to ignore the phone once you get used to it 🙂 I stop drinking coffee after 12pm! Any later, I risk having a problem sleeping. It used to be by 2pm but I found even that to mess with my sleep. I do try to do some yoga everyday, which I think helps, or on days when I go for a good massage, it helps me drop off better too. I can never discount the benefits of a good, firm massage to work out the kinks in my body! I’m working on staying happy haha but I’ll get there. The only thing I can’t do is have a bath, but a hot shower certainly helps too! Also, regulating your room and bed temperature. I think sometimes, I go overboard in picking my sheets, so some are thicker than others and then it’s less comfortable. I’m always tweaking! Sometimes, some things work, but then they stop working after a while, so I have to keep monitoring how I feel. Currently though, I do read before bed, and I know what’s keeping me up – a good book. Sigh… can’t win ’em all 😀
I am also a big fan of REN and was also surprised to see this kind of product from them.
I didn’t think it fit with their brand aesthetic, especially with the way the packaging was and all LOL!