Friday 17 October 2014

Health post about lymphatic drainage. Minor interest.

Gee, here’s weird. Okay, I’m sleeping on the floor with a big double duvet folded in two – on half and under half. If I have a self-inflating 7.5cm camping mat underneath (so not mega-padding), when I get up in the morning I have double bags of fluid under both eyes and a kind of dewlap that I thought was fat on the front of my throat. And some fluid retention to my ankles and abdomen.

If I take the camping mat away and have nothing but plain floor under the single-thickness duvet, in the morning I have no fluid retention to ankles and abdomen, nor on my throat (so it must have been fluid not fat – I guess the sinuses drain via there) and under my eyes is just wrinkly.


Floor sleeping affects lymphatic drainage that much! Who would have thought it?

21 comments:

Rebecca said...

So........will you be eliminating the self-inflating camping mat?????

Pen Wilcock said...

Oh, yes - I don't usually have it nowadays. I just got a yen for comfort a couple of nights, which is what alerted me to the difference it makes. I hope you are doing well, honey. Prayed for you today. xxx

Jenna said...

With your inspiration, I recently spent our 8-day Feast of Tabernacles sleeping on a couple of quilts folded on the floor (didn't do the whole camping out bit). I found the difference is incredible. And I think you were right on target: one has to get past the IDEA of sleeping without a proper bed. I felt great, slept great. I noticed a huge increase in my dreaming; I sleep so fitfully usually (and suspiciously, in the bed) that it was a marked difference. I got up in the morning without that fog--which I wonder might relate to your lymphatic drainage post here. I also noticed what I perceived as a reduction of pressure or compression in my joints, as though I were walking taller and lankier. I was considering getting an IKEA pillow top to put underneath the quilts but after your post here, will reconsider. Hmm...... I need to find homes for all that mess that I'm hiding (even from myself) under the bed (revisiting Pen's posts about ejecting 365 things....)

Rebecca said...

Thanks for praying. Progress is slow, sometimes painful, but noticeable :)

Judy Olson said...

That does it! I'm trying it tonight. Pen, do you use a pillow? Anyone else?

Pen Wilcock said...

I have one flat, soft pillow for sleeping.

kat said...

too extreme by far for me, but very glad it's doing you good xxx oh and what's wrong with saying you're form Narnia, I did it all the time at one stage of life ;-)

Pen Wilcock said...

Extreme Floor Sleeping. How exciting! xx

LANA said...

I have sciatica. When I sleep in my bed my left hip often hurts. Do you think sleeping on the floor on a quilt would be helpful to someone like me? I am 65. How long did it take you to make the adjustment from bed to floor?

Pen Wilcock said...

:0) Hi Lana - I am no authority on this, but I'd give it a go if I were you. See Jenna's and my responses to your comment on this previous post. x
http://kindredofthequietway.blogspot.co.uk/2014/10/sleeping.html

Judy Olson said...

I did it! I slept on the floor, and I am happy to report no stiffness or soreness. I did wake up several times during the night, but that is not unusual. My dreams were very vivid. I could see things more clearly, like people's faces. I have a particular health issue that I would like to see cleared up and will try the floor for a week at least and see if there is improvement. (I am 62, by the way)

Pen Wilcock said...

:0)

I am finding that, like eating greens and drinking water, sleeping on the floor is something my body now craves.

kat said...

you Radical you!!! xxx

Pen Wilcock said...

:0D

Look no further. The revolution begins here. With cabbage.

Rapunzel said...

By coincidence I'd been thinking a lot about sleeping on the floor lately. Already have slept for maybe a couple of years on a cotton futon mattress on the floor, the elevation of 5 inches is perfect for my small blind elderly dog to hop up here.
I live primarily in the loft of the house, and lately I've been looking at the space and saying to myself, "That mattress sure takes up a lot of space."
Then laundry day a few weeks ago the sheets were not dry yet at bedtime, so I folded one of my quilts in half and slept inside it like a sleeping bag. Oddly more comfortable than layers of sheets and blankets. Have been doing it ever since.
At Zen retreats we always sleep on the floor and I sleep wonderfully well. Always attributed it to the day-long meditation. Hmmm.
The Manimal is going to London for a week or so on Friday, that would be a perfect time to experiment with extreme floor sleeping as he's not interested in extreme anything.

I'm curious now as to the WHY. Will poke around and see what else I can learn.
Thanks for the inspiration (instigation?)!

Pen Wilcock said...

The WHY:

A good article here ~ http://www.zafu.net/sleepergonomics.html

And Katsuzo Nishi, here ~
http://www.nishiusa.eurocontrol.biz

xx

Pen Wilcock said...

One further thing on floor sleeping. A body gives off a considerable amount of moisture asleep in bed at night. If sleeping on the floor wrapped in a quilt or sleeping bag, it is important to air it over the banisters or porch rail or just flung over a door for a few hours on rising, and helpful to sleep in not always one place if the floor is carpeted, to allow the carpet opportunity to air out.
If sleeping on a low futon or mattress, this MUST be on a frame, as mould will accumulate in the mattress otherwise, and if the floor is carpeted it will go mouldy under a mattress straight on the floor with no frame.

Judy Olson said...

I also found the article on zafu.net and it makes a lot of sense. I've just finished night #3, and I actually FEEL BETTER! I have a certain feeling of well-being! And it's funny, because last night I woke up a lot, and was annoyed by blankets and pillows sliding all over the place (my folded duvet is on a bare wood floor), but even so, I still felt well rested and rather chipper this morning. And weirdly, I keep looking forward to going to "bed"! This is marvelous, I cannot thank you enough!

Pen Wilcock said...

Good, isn't it?

:0D

Rapunzel said...

Thank you for the WHY,
Years ago when I first got rid of my bed frame and put the futon mattress on the floor you told me to make a low frame under it to allow air circulation and prevent mold. I did, and have not had any mold problem, so thanks for that, too!

Pen Wilcock said...

Good girl!

We have known each other that long? Hmm. One day we must meet in person. x