Over the weekend, as part of my (mumble)-eth birthday, I got a lap harp (think mini hammered dulcimer - sort of!). I also got lots of “fou-fous” (pampering stuff that smells nice). One of which included some lavender “pillow mist” (something you spray on your pillow as part of aromatherapy, that helps to calm the senses, depending upon the scent).

Quite unexpectedly, these gifts have turned into gifts for the whole family. As I’ve mentioned before, my son has had difficulty falling asleep in recent weeks due to his new diagnosis of epilepsy, and associates bedtime with the seizures. We’ve tried weaning him a bit from the one ritual we instituted because it seemed that he was growing more and more dependent upon it, rather than relaxing as weeks and weeks went by with no seizure activity. Also, it seemed somewhat unfair to the other kids that he got so much attention at bedtime, when others had issues with insomnia as well (even though my daughter didn’t do well with back-petting, storytelling, etc.).

So, tonight, I spritzed a little of my lavender pillow mist on each of their pillows while they took turns brushing their teeth. Once they were settled into bed, I played my lap harp in the common hallway to their rooms, so that all could hear as they lay in their beds quietly, in anticipation of sleep.

This way each of them got the same amount of attention, and all of them got to have something to focus on and soothe them to sleep. Further, it wasn’t interactive, something they all have difficulty with because they try to prolong whatever it is. Sure enough, it seemed to ease them into dreamland, and we all had one of the most painless and smoothest transitions on record!

Photo credit: Stock Xchng