Snuggling Stuffed Animals Works Better Than Valium
Some good Karma came my way, last week, when my fiance had a business trip out of town, my baby’s loving Nana wanted to have him sleepover at her place, my daughter was with her father, and my stepchildren were with their mother.
This meant I had one entire night alone, all by myself.
I once looked forward to these nights the ENTIRE bed to myself! Eating pizza in bed! Wearing my most ugly yet most comfortable pajamas! Not brushing my teeth! – but as I tried to fall asleep, I felt out of sorts and kind of lonely. The silence was deafening. That is, until I found Ellie, and spent the night sleeping with her.
Who is Ellie? Well, Ellie has been in our family for almost 10 years, and is one of my daughter’s favorite stuffed animals, who has travelled the world with us, and is treated, as far as a stuffed animal goes, as well as an actual human. We all love Ellie, the stuffed elephant, and everyone knows to talk to her lovingly.
So when I saw that my daughter had left Ellie, the stuffed elephant, on my bed, I decided to just hug this stuffed animal to see how it felt. Before I knew it, I was acting like a toddler and Ellie, the stuffed elephant, became like my security blanket, and made me feel extremely relaxed and comforted. I held this stuffed animal even tighter. So, yes, I admit, I slept, cuddling with Ellie, the stuffed animal elephant, the entire night.
I’ve never been a good sleeper. It’s not uncommon for my friends to be like, ”You sent me an e-mail at three a.m.” To which I respond, ”I couldn’t sleep!” I also have the worst time falling asleep, my mind never stops thinking or worrying or stressing.
But it turns out, all I needed to get a good night’s sleep, is not to work out for hours a day, or listen to meditation apps, or drug myself, or drink no caffeine after noon.
I just needed a damn stuffed animal to cuddle with at bedtime. I wish I had known this years ago.
I haven’t cuddled a stuffed animal in, well; let me do the math”¦maybe almost thirty years? I didn’t tell my fiance that I slept with Ellie The Stuffed Elephant the night he was away, because, really, telling your fiance, when you are a forty year old woman who has finally figured out how to get a good night’s sleep by simply cuddling with a stuffed animal sounds totally insane. And, also, he’d be like, ”But you have me to cuddle with.” It’s true. I make my fiance cuddle me each night, because it relaxes my brain, to an extent, but it does not compare to the best sleep I’ve had in years, thanks to sleeping with a stuffed animal.
Now I think I actually want or need to cuddle with a stuffed animal each night, because, oh, how I love to get a good night’s sleep, so I don’t feel like snapping people’s faces off the next day! So now I’m of the opinion that you are NEVER too old to cuddle or sleep with a stuffed animal. Before you bash, I suggest you try it out. Grab one of your child’s favorite stuffed animals and sleep with it. Tell me how you slept!
My only hurdle now is to somehow admit to my fiance about how I think I need to sleep with a stuffed animal. He’ll think I’m nutty, but he already thinks that, and I wonder if he will he get jealous that I rather cuddle with a stuffed animal?
But it worked so well, so it may be nutty, but this mama woke up feeling actually”¦happy and not half-dead!
I have had other nights alone in the house, and haven’t slept well. Who knew that sleeping with a stuffed animal because now I believe you are never too old to sleep with one is actually an experience that could change my life in a positive way?
So now, if I can get up the nerve for it, I will tell my fiance to cuddle me, while I’m cuddling Ellie, the stuffed elephant. Or somehow try, maybe, to hide a stuffed animal in the bed, which is what I’ve been doing for, oh, the past week.
(Image: getty images)