Zen and The Art of Towel Folding

We do our own laundry in the sleep lab. Green and blue sheets and blankets and...towels. There is something so soothing about taking a warm, clean towel out of the dryer and burying your face in it. The smell of fabric softener, (ah, Snuggle!) and the softness of the cloth against your face is very comforting.

People suggest that when you can't sleep, try counting sheep. Never worked for me, I get lost after 47...48...49... and by the 50's I'm confused and start using my fingers. I'm bored and my mind starts to wander and I'm in the dark holding my fingers up, basically looking like an idiot to myself. If the purpose of counting sheep is to get your mind off of things, it doesn't work for me. I've found that doing something repetitive does. Raking the red and orange fall leaves, painting fingernails Flamingo Pink and folding fresh towels out of the dryer.

Zen Gardens , although gardening purists say that is a misnomer, there is no such thing, work on the idea that the repetition of movement stops the chaos of your thoughts and aids in relaxation and tranquility.

I always worried one of my 3 cats would look at the sand and get the wrong idea!
Skip the visual.
Check out ,Zen Gardens for use at work or as gifts for non-psycho cat people, it's a wonderful gift idea.

But in the meantime, remember the laundry. Try it. When you can't calm yourself down and feel entirely too wound up, throw a load of towels in the wash and do your usual routine for bed. If you still can't sleep, drink some milk, wait for the dryer to cycle to end and start folding towels. Smell, fold, stack, smell, fold, stack, smell, fold, stack-
No counting allowed, just soothing repetition-

That Snuggle bear's got it made.

'Discover the Gift of Sleep'-SleepCompass.com Jane