I used to be an Olympian when it came to sleep. Growing up, and well into my student days, I could sleep up to 12 hours a night, every night. In fact, if it weren’t for alarms, I may well have slept right through the day!
That all changed when I started working – I began to sacrifice my time in bed for events, blogging, catching up with friends – and at first, it wasn’t an issue. Up until the summer of last year, I could easily get to bed at 2am and be up for 7am bright-eyed and bushy-tailed. But as the repetition of reduced sleep each night continued, that ability dwindled away.
By the end of November last year, my sleeping pattern was in tatters. To make matters worse, I’d just started freelancing full-time (with some unexpected my trials and tribulations at being my own boss) and I was working myself into the ground.
I knew something had to change.
Reviewing my sleep space
I decided it was time to get serious about my sleep. I actually find it surprising that we don’t really talk about sleep – I mean, we’re spending practically a quarter of our lives doing it, so why not make it as good as it can be?!
The first step I took was to review my sleep space. I was spending a lot of time in my bedroom, sometimes even working from my bed. That just wouldn’t do – I have since learnt to separate my workspace from my bedroom and truly embrace relaxing when I’m in bed.
Then onto the bed itself: I have a great wool bedding set, and a few ethically-made pillows, but my mattress was your average spring one I’d been given by my landlord when I’d moved in. I decided it was time to find a good alternative, and it was at that point that I came across the Leesa mattress.
Green credentials
The first thing that caught my eye when browsing Leesa’s website was their B-Corp status. It’s a great certification to look out for if you’re trying to shop ethically: it shows the business meets rigorous standards of social and environmental performance, accountability, and transparency.
Leesa does this in a few ways. Their mattresses are made from Avena foam, a manufactured material that gives off low amounts of VOC’s and they’re completely recyclable.
Leesa also limits their environmental impact by avoiding landfill waste (they donate or recycle any mattresses returned under their 100 night risk free trial) and they plant a tree for every mattress sold to offset its carbon footprint.
Dream sponge
Alongside Leesa’s ethical approach, I was struck by the quality of their mattresses.
When mine first arrived, it was in a slimline box with simple instructions. There’s no assembly required, I just had to remove the packaging and let it unfurl on my bed frame, as the pictures show.
By the time it was on my bed and had fully decompressed, I was surprisingly excited. I’d never slept on a foam mattress before, and I knew it was going to be a revolutionary moment. I scrambled onto the bed, laid flat and thought: Wow. It’s like I’m being hugged. Wait. Are my shoulders sinking in further than my butt? Is this what memory foam does?
Thankfully, once I was settled on the mattress I felt supported and balanced, evenly hugged by the top layer of sponge. I’m usually a back-sleeper, but I also found it incredibly comfortable to lay on my side, something I don’t usually do.
On waking the next morning, I was immediately aware of how comfortable I was. And I was warm, so perfectly warm, as if my body heat was being reflected back at me. It was immediately noticeable that I was more comfortable and had slept deeper than normal because of the warmth.
Donation programme
Leesa donate one mattress for every ten bought to charity, and they encourage that you donate your old mattress too (so long as it’s in good nick, of course!)
A personal recommendation is to donate to the British Heart Foundation, as they are present almost everywhere across the UK and they offer a reliable collection service which you can book here.
£80 off
It was a real delight discovering Leesa and improving my sleep by switching to one of their mattresses. I’m also grateful to be able to give £80 off a new Leesa mattress to you, which you will receive by clicking through to their website. If you do decide to try one, I’d love to know how you get on!
This post is sponsored by Leesa. I was gifted a Leesa mattress in order to write this review. All views and opinions expressed are my own.
