One of the most valuable remedies for those suffering from sleeplessness
is to lie in an air bath during the entire night. This idea can be
carried out very easily by raising the bed covering in such a way as to
remove its weight from the body, thus providing what we might call a
chamber of air in which to sleep. With the aid of a large safety-pin or
a horse-blanket safety-pin, the bed clothing may be kept thus suspended.
The safety-pin is pinned through all the coverings in the centre of the
bed and then by means of a string passing through the safety-pin and
running from the top of the head of the bed to the top of the foot of
the bed the bed covering can easily be raised to the desired height.
The appearance of the bed is then somewhat like that of a small tent.
One may not feel warm immediately after entering, if the weather is
cold, but if the covering is thick enough and the air is entirely
excluded, a perfect air bath, warm and comfortable, can be enjoyed
during the entire night. The head, of course, will keep its usual
position outside of the covers. No underclothing or night clothing
should be worn when attempting to carry out this idea.
The problems associated with covering are of considerable importance.
Many people are unable to sleep because of cold feet and many
are overheated by an excess of covering. It should not be necessary to
bury one's self underneath a heavy load of covers in order to keep the
feet warm. Use as little covering as possible and still maintain the
bodily warmth. Eider-down bed covers are very valuable because of
their light weight and great warmth-retaining qualities. Overheating
during sleep produces restlessness and robs one of the sense of
refreshment on awakening. The question of cold feet I have already
dealt with. The difficulty, in most cases, is one of defective
circulation before going to bed. If one will be sure that his feet are
warm and his circulation good before retiring to bed he will invariably
have no trouble of this kind, even during winter time. I do not mean
that one should be chilled by insufficient bedding, but I certainly
would advise as little covering as is compatible with a comfortable
degree of warmth.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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