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Mallary Tenore Tarpley's avatar

"Women shouldn’t have to earn their rest. Yet, so many of us feel like we do." Yes! I can relate to this so much.

I've struggled with sleep issues for years. I often sacrifice sleep to get more done, but at what cost? (I've been asking myself this more and more as I get older.)

Really appreciated this post and its overarching message. Thank you!

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Kristi Koeter's avatar

Yes, you're definitely not alone in this. When my kids were little, the solution to anything I wanted to do out of the routine came at the cost of sleep. It's harder to justify these days.

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Mallary Tenore Tarpley's avatar

Yes! My sleep issues really ramped up after having kids, and especially while watching them and working during the pandemic. It's still hard juggling it all without sacrificing sleep. Maybe I will get more sleep once they're grown up. :D

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Kristi Koeter's avatar

It's happening for me. I believe in it for you 😀.

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Jared Caraway's avatar

I went from the tired, old, sleep-mask-shaped objects to the Mzoo “3D” type and ultimately landed on Manta.

I might have to give the silk one a go, though. Looks very comfy.

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Kristi Koeter's avatar

Oooh, I'll have to look at Manta. But I'm happy with the Mzoo right now.

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Jared Caraway's avatar

The Mzoo worked wonderfully for me for a while! I just found that after a number of cycles through the washer and regular usage, it started coming unstitched along one edge and the elastic started to give a little. But it's an excellent entry-level mask, I'd say.

By the time you wear it out, I'm sure there will be some crazy cool new mask on the market. The one that looks like a face bra is kind of hilarious 😆

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Kristi Koeter's avatar

Lol. I'll look to see what you're using when mine wears out. 😀

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Jess Mujica's avatar

I'm just yes yesing away while I read this. The logistics, the life phase, the crazy narrative we play in our heads about how we have to earn our way to bodily functions like sleep, rest, and breathing.

So, since you asked our thoughts on this topic, here's my recent post:

*Humor Issue* What will you do for sleep? Hot picks for perimenopause sleep

https://open.substack.com/pub/womenscycleawareness/p/humor-issue-what-will-you-do-for?r=18pm6g&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web&showWelcomeOnShare=false

...and just today, I made a mental note to replace our old eye masks! So great timing!

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Kristi Koeter's avatar

Love it. Thank you for sharing. "Wake up, hotter than a boiled egg" had me rolling. Oh man, I didn't even get into the separate blanket and no flat sheet business. And who knew it had a name?

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John Koeter's avatar

Oh and you are alright too :)

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Kristi Koeter's avatar

❤️

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Kris Aldred's avatar

Love the message of listening to your body! I needed to hear that today 🩷

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Kristi Koeter's avatar

I love when that happens—kismet! Thank you for sharing.

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John Koeter's avatar

More like 32 seconds, not 3 minutes and I use Alexa’s whisper mode at night. Just for the record

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Alison's avatar

I started to care more about sleep when I began writing about it for a living. It started with mattress reviews, then splintered off into other areas (biology, cultural expectations, etc.).

Your point about granting yourself permission to sleep (and even rest) resonated with me. If I wasn't doing something "productive" then I was wasting away. Now I'm intentional about taking breaks and view them as beneficial -- after all, you really can't pour from an empty cup.

And Alexa...I used my Echo as an alarm clock for years and it turned into screaming matches asking for five more minutes. (Now I have a sunrise alarm clock and thank God for that.)

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