This $379 weighted blanket could help you sleep better and feel less stressed

Avery Hartmans
Gravity blanketGravity

Sitting underneath a Gravity blanket is like receiving a really gentle hug.

The weighted blanket is plush, large enough to envelop your whole body, and is designed to feel like about 10% of your body weight.

Gravity is a Kickstarter project developed on the idea that a weighted blanket can reduce anxiety and help you sleep better — sort of like how a thunder vest works for dogs. There’s some science to back that premise up, but that doesn’t even really matter: The blanket is just plain comforting.

I used the blanket for only a few minutes and felt the effects, and Gravity already has more than 14,000 backers on Kickstarter. In fact, the company beat its $A29,246 goal in just 45 minutes, and has now raised more than $A3.81 million on Kickstarter.

Here’s what it’s like to snuggle up with the Gravity blanket.

For now, the Gravity blanket isn't intended to be a bedspread -- it's meant to be a blanket just for you. The blanket measures about six feet by four feet.

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Gravity comes in three different weights: 2.2kgs for people who weigh 45kg to 68kg, 9kg for people in the 69kg to 90kg range, and 11kgs for those who weigh 90kgs or more.

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While the inside of the Gravity blanket looks and feels a bit like a bean bag, the outside is a soft micro-fleece.

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The company cites research that weighted blankets can increase serotonin and melatonin levels, and decreases cortisol levels.

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Source: Gravity

This helps you sleep better and feel less stressed, the company says.

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Source: Gravity

Gravity will eventually cost $A379, but by backing the company's Kickstarter campaign now, you can get a blanket for about $A257.

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The company expects the Gravity blanket to be in the hands of its Kickstarter backers by Fall 2017.

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As with any Kickstarter campaign, pledge at your own risk. For more information on the Gravity blanket, check out the company's campaign page.

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