Holiday Gift Ideas: 12 Sleep Gifts For Better Zzz's

Shopping for someone who can't sleep? You're not alone. Nearly a quarter of American workers experience some form of insomnia, which costs the country billions of dollars in lost productivity. Insomnia can also increase heart attack risk.

This season, give the gift of sleep. These picks promote calm, block out light, wake you more gently and more. And let us know in the comments what sleep gifts you're giving (or hoping to get!) this holiday season.

Comments

[Rex Baker]

10:41 PM on 12/22/2011

For helping sleep, I thought the cell cell phone charger was a stretch.

[Neha singh mathur]

04:11 AM on 12/19/2011

Fantastic ideas for sleep gifts of all sorts and for people of all shapes and sizes ! Excellent ideas !!!

[awilcox]

07:53 PM on 12/17/2011

I noticed a couple good gift ideas to help with sleep, but some are ridiculous. I have suggested some of the gift ideas on my site though, and do really help, but I can't see bed sheets helping. Really? I think that is the last thing to consider buying to help you sleep.

[StrawHat]

03:07 AM on 12/17/2011

Great book: "The Power of Sleep" by Dr. Dement (great name!)

Sleep apnea. Take an on-line quiz. Talk to your doctor. Get tested. Do SOMETHING.

It kills.

[Nelson Montana]

11:17 PM on 12/16/2011

Sleep inducing sheets? People will buy anything.

[StrawHat]

03:25 AM on 12/17/2011

People are kind of easy marks when it comes to sleep. They're miserable, exhausted and desperate.

That's why I went to a qualified pulmonologist (board-certified specialist in sleep medicine) and took an eight week, hospital-based class (covered in part by my insurance) to learn the medical facts vs. the sales fiction.

Fact: Melatonin does help some people fall asleep and stay asleep, but not everyone. Guidance from an expert on how to use it is key. (Turns out, it knocks me out but I'm wide awake three hours later -- like I got a shot of adrenalin. Not good.)

Fact: As counter-intuitive as it sounds, the KEY to establishing good sleep hygiene is to hammer a proverbial stake in the ground when you pick a wake-up time and stick with it no matter what, seven days a week, 365 days per year (unless you're literally too sick to rise, e.g. the flu.) Your body will eventually adjust to this rock-solid wake-up time and make you sleepy enough at the appropriate time the night before to make that wake-up time work.

Fact: You will suffer until your body adjusts to the new rock-solid wake-up time. Deal with it as best you can, but do NOT sleep in to "catch up" or you'll be back to square one.

There's more: dealing with caffeine and alcohol, techniques for the various types of insomnia, sleep apnea, room temperature, room darkness...

It's complicated.

[WilmaJune]

08:09 AM on 12/16/2011

For the price of all the gadgets, it would be more beneficial to go to a sleep center. If a medical cause exists, they will find it.

[meg51577]

08:02 AM on 12/16/2011

The blurb about bamboo being eco-friendly is totally incorrect but a common misconception. Bamboo in its pure form would be eco friendly but would feel like a burlap sack. To make bamboo fabric you have to turn it into rayon, which is one of the most toxic textile manufacturing processes. It takes about 7 processing steps just to turn bamboo into a usable fiber, then you have to dye the fabric and put more chemicals on to make it soft (silicone softeners). Cotton grows from the ground as a usable fiber, which is much more eco friendly.

[StrawHat]

03:08 AM on 12/17/2011

Thank you!!!

High-thread-count organic unbleached cotton ROCKS.

[Cathy Margo]

02:39 AM on 12/16/2011

I love all the ideas but I have to add one of the best ways to get a good night sleep is to de-stress before bed. This may include a few minutes of meditation, a walk or an herbal night cap. I use iSleep Herb Pack for an herbal night cap because the herbs have been used for centuries safely and effectively. The herbs are covered by national health insurance if you live in Germany, Japan, China or Taiwan and Canada. Hopefully medicare and other insurance programs will one day figure out that herbs like ziziphus are a safe and effective solution for insomnia.

[guymccardlejr]

05:54 PM on 12/15/2011

Thanks for the good holiday gift giving ideas. This year I've done some research of my own and I've come up with the best affordable geek gifts of the year. They range in price from $15 - $150. I'm not personally selling any of the stuff, but I do include links to where they can be purchased at The Inconvenient Truth.

[colin72]

03:48 PM on 12/15/2011

"Give The Gift Of Sleep: 12 Slumber-Inducing Finds"

I'm giving this article.

[Twenty Row Kid]

12:20 PM on 12/15/2011

I use the Asti Sleep Sound Therapy System. It's the best. Be sure to check the review on the Brookstone one shown. It has a few flaws.