This is a sponsored post - all text is my honest opinion.
I recently received this gift box,The Ultimate Dream Kit, from TENA Lady to help with a sound night's sleep and very welcome it was too. Like a lot of women I'm trying to re-establish a sleep pattern after emerging from the menopause. The night sweats from those years have taken their toll, disrupting the deep REM sleep we need to process the workings of the mind and rejuvenate the body.
According to TENA 61% of women in the UK admit to experiencing bladder weakness at some point in their lives which certainly applied to me years ago. I wonder how many in that survey declined to admit they did? It's not an easy subject to discuss, but I thought it's the least I could do to be honest with my readers. Childbirth left me with stress incontinence - coughing, sneezing and even just carrying a bag of heavy shopping caused me to leak; I felt at my least feminine and painfully embarrassed too. While I was waiting for an operation to repair what was actually a prolapse, I relied on TENA pads to allow me to carry on with my everyday life. And now they've introduced a range of night time pads which offer all night protection allowing you to have a dry and comfortable night's sleep.
I'm already a fan of This Works as a brand that actually delivers on its promises. After a warm bedtime bath, I've been using the Deep Sleep Night Oil to give myself a lovely massage before bundling up my cosy pj's. My bedtime ritual is to read until I'm drowsy and just before I switch off the light I waft a couple of pumps of the Deep Sleep Pillow Spray across the entire pillow. It has the most delicious aroma of Lavender, Vetivert and Wild Camomile that combine to give an incredibly relaxing effect. I've used it for the past week and it really does work. Previously I'd read until sleepy and then somehow the minute my head would hit the pillow all sorts of unfinished business would start zooming around my brain. No more tossing and turning for me now! Click on the highlighted link below or above to be taken to the Sleep Solutions page of This Works.
The Night Time Pukka tea delivers the same dreamy notes of Lavender and the floral blend was easy on the palate, but I didn't actually drink it at bedtime as was recommended. I cut down on liquids in the evening so as to reduce my trips to the loo - another legacy from having babies or just a sign of old age? Who knows, but bedtime drinks are out for me.
I'm always happy to have a new book to read and this one was a good introduction on learning how to understand the meaning of dreams. "Discovering what the dream is telling you is half of the game; the other half is to apply the insight. A dream is practical and useful-if and only if- you apply its insight. Its application helps you unleash your potential one step at a time and puts the odds in your favour of achieving success, peace and happiness." Some people say they don't dream, but I seem to have my dreams drifting about in my head for ages. Maybe once I've finished the book I'll have a better understanding of what the messages from those dreams are and can work on them. Another of the gifts was a Dream Catcher that you may see in the first shot - said to encourage happy and positive dreams!
"When you cease to dream you cease to live"
Malcolm Forbes
"Dreams" is a journal that seeks to inspire us to follow our dreams. Whether you've just turned 60 like me or are still in the full flush of youth, there's never a better time to write down your hopes and aspirations. Unless you pin them down, pad them out and map how your future could look you'll never start taking steps towards those dreams. I know this may sound crazy, but turning 60 has taken me a bit by surprise. It's a big number, prompting not just a full stop and a new paragraph, but I think it heralds a whole new chapter in my life. At the moment I'm taking stock and this inviting journal will be most useful for laying out my plans.
Anna x
