Our Kelowna Mattress Experience

Wow! I just realized that we have been open and selling mattresses and hot tubs in Kelowna for coming up on two years. Time flys some times doesn’t it. So am I any smarter now than two years ago? Why yes, yes I am! As the business gets older every month, we get just that little bit busier. Add to that the kids are a little bit older and busier as well and I can say I truely appreciate how good our intellibed mattress is every night when I roll into bed and every morning when I wake up feeling strong and refreshed. After the experience on our last mattress that barely gaves us two years of good sleep, yes, I certainly do appreciate it.

What else have I learned. Hot tubs are fun for socializing in and enjoying a glass of wine or cold beer but more than that, a hot soak at the end of the day really takes the soreness out of the ol’ muscles. Who knew that the Romans and the Greeks were on to something all those years ago with there baths. They were the first to discover the joys of hydro therapy and the basic principals have not changed in thousands of years – take your tired aching body and immerse in hot water for 10 – 20 minutes (longer if you like) and the aches dissolve away.

In todays busy pace, it is as important as ever to ensure you get the rest and relaxation you need and deserve to stay at the top of your game. Take a look at what we have to offer. www.intellibedokanagan.ca

Sleep Deprivation Leads to Pot Use

Attached is an article that talks about sleep deprivation in teens can lead to pot use or an increase in pot use. I have about 10 witty comments that come to mind but I think I’ll leave them there and let you have your own thoughts.

http://www.upi.com/Health_News/2010/03/22/Sleep-deprivation-linked-to-pot-use/UPI-99931269314977/

The Pressure

Easter Weekend was spent driving to Calgary to spend time with family and friends. I have to say; God Bless portable DVD players! My 2 boys (aged 4 & 2) behaved like perect little angels and if they did start getting unsettled, we flipped on the DVD player with a little Mickey’s Clubhouse and they were content to sit and watch. We stayed at my sister-in-laws brand new house. Chantelle got the bed with Tristan, the 2 year old, while I slept on an air mattress on the floor with Tyler.

Chantelle often complains of tingling in her fingers and shoulder pain whenwe travel and she sleeps on a surface that is too firm, I never had the pleasure until this trip. I was quite surprised on the degree of alignment and support I got from the air mattress, as after driving 7 hours my back was tight and I was expecting it to get worse on the air bed. Likely sleeping with Ty allowed me take any and all of the alignment and support values this bed had to offer since he is so light. But while my back was taken care of, I struggled with pressure points in my shoulders and hips all weekend. To the point, where waking up the one morning, my shoulder felt as if someone had been beating on it with  Sherwood 5030pmp wooden hockey stick all night (my favorite stick from my jounior hockey days) and the tips of my fingers were numb and tingling. It must of taken 15 – 20 minutes for the sensation to disappear.

Despite the fact that the mattress air level was moderate, my weight still displaced enough air that the surface under me was like a rock causing severe pressure issues in my shoulders and hips. I remember the same feelings on our previous pillow top mattress, where the foam had collapsed in the areas that we slept after only 18 – 24 months, although I had never experienced the tingling fingers before. Needless to say I was very happy when we got home to climb in to our intelliBED and have a deep, refreshing sleep. Now if I can only convince Tristan to stay in his crib and not come into ours at 3am every morning and start pinching!!

Should I pinch him back?

Testimonial

Below is the testimonial we received from Silk FM’s Morning Team, Andy & TJ (yes, they are a couple, they got married last August)

“Andy and Tj in the Morning” from 101-5 SILK FM talk about their Intellibed:

“We can’t imagine sleeping on anything else!  We just love our Intellibed and look forward to climbing into it each and every night.  As the hosts of a morning radio show, we get up at an un-Godly hour, so quality and quantity of sleep are very important.   Our Intellibed is so comfortable, provides just the right amount of support for each of us and honestly, we’ve slept more restfully since getting our new mattress a year-and-half ago.  Anytime we find ourselves on a different mattress, whether we go away on vacation or have to bunk with a sick kid, we can’t wait to return to our Intellibed.  It’s like a little piece of heaven at the end of your day.”

Penticton Home Show

We were down at the Penticton Spring Home Show this past weekend and had a very good time. The show was surprisingly well attended. definitely better than what we had thought it would be, which is always a nice surprise. particularly if you consider our last show was the Spring show at Prospera Place in Kelowna and coincided with the last weekend of the Olympics. Not very good planning on our part.

One common theme I kept hearing at both shows, was the number of people who have purchased a mattress in the past several years and perhaps invested a significant amount into the mattress, and are now very unhappy with the quality of sleep the mattress is delivering. We too have experienced this. A number of years ago we attended a wedding in Winnipeg and loved the mattress we slept on at the Fort Garry Hotel. Later that year we purchased a double-sided, pillow top mattress from a national chain, the mattress was heavenly. For about a year and a half. And then we noticed, that despite flipping the thing monthly and spinning it 180 degrees, that there were body impressions where we slept and the mattress was no longer comfortable at all. I remember waking in the middle of the night, going to the biffy and then it was a deliberate motion to lie down on my side that didn’t hurt. The pressure points I was experiencing were unbelievable.

Now, I can assure you this will not happen on an intelliBED but it sure is difficult to convey that to people because they have heard it before and look at what the are stuck with today. My personal experience is that after 2 years on our current intelliBED mattress, there is no sign that it has even been slept in never mind body impressions. I was recently back in Calgary and there is an 8 yr old mattress there at Head Office that the only way you can tell it is an experienced mattress is that the top stretch nit is looser than a new one. Other wise it still looks and feels terrific.

The only thing that interrupts my sleep nowadays is my 2-year-old. But he’s just so darn cute I think I’ll put up with the occasional kick or punch to the head from him.

Fight fatigue at Work

Below is an article from Sleepy News.

A growing epidemic in this day in time, is drowsiness at work. This is a common occurence among America’s workforce due to the fact that we are generally over-worked, over-stressed and over-booked in our daily lives. A life lived in overdrive can certainly lead to some level of exhaustion, especially if we are not getting the sleep we need.

Falling asleep at work is, as you know, a big no-no. Not only can this get you in deep trouble with your boss, but it can have a detrimental effect on your health, safety, and productivity at work. If you find yourself dozing off while you’re on the clock, take solace in the fact that there are ways to help fight the fatigue and regain your professional composure:

- Instead of combating the afternoon lull with caffeine – a tactic that creates the illusion of efficiency and alertness, but actually “borrows” energy from your life force that you didn’t have in the first place – try taking a 5 minute power nap! Even a brief rest can reduce stress and help you relax, which can give you the increase in energy you need to complete your tasks of the day.

- Take a walk around the block. By removing yourself from the confines of your office by getting out into the sunlight and fresh air, you give your body an instant boost. Even if you only have 10 minutes to spare, taking a brief stroll outside will help clear your mind, alieviate your anxieties and get your blood pumping – all of these will help you feel more alert and alive.

- If napping during the day isn’t an option, an alternative is meditation. It gives your body a rest and produces slower brain waves that are similar to sleep. This period of restful awakeness will provide some of the same benefits of napping without the shuteye.

- Prevent the battle of fatigue by getting at least eight hours of sleep every night. Skip the after-work drinks and the night out with the boys! During the week, it’s best to rest your weary head in bed – especially after a gruelling day at the office. This will give you the stamina to keep up in the days ahead, while keeping your mind fresh and focused.

Lupus

Last week, we had a customer come in to see us that suffers from Lupus. I only had a very, very basic understanding of Lupus and how I would be able to help her. I have since taken a deeper look at Lupus and how intelliBED mattresses may help an individual that lives with this disease. There are 4 types of lupus and the main one is called Systemic Lupus Erythematosus, say that three times real fast! Lupus is an autoimmune connective tissue disease that will effect any part of the body.

How can intelliBED help? Some of the symptoms of Lupus can be relieved or allieved by a good mattress (ie – intelliBED),  these are symptoms such as joint pain, fatigue and myalgia – which is muscle soreness. Proper pressure relief is essential for a person with Lupus as it will help greatly with the joint pain and myalgia issues which in turn will allow that person to enjoy a better nights sleep and better deal with fatigue.

I am happy to report that the lady we saw last week has now been on her Relief Perfect for 7 nights now and has felt an improvement in her sleep and energy levels.

Our Olympic Atheletes

Watching what I can of the 2010 Winter Olympics has left me with a number of impressions. One big one is that I am unbelievably proud of all our atheletes. There was a huge anticipation of medal after medal being won by our guys and even though that hasn’t quite been the case so far, I have seen nothing but 110% by all the Canadian atheletes.This includes Shannon Rempel, who competed in the 500m and 1000m long track speed skating. Shannon sleeps on an intelliBED, and we hope to see her fighting for a medal in 2014 in Sochi, Russia.

Great Article

Attached is a link to an article written about intelli-gel, the magic behind intellibed mattresses.

SLEEP ESSENTIALS

1. Maintain a regular sleep/wake time schedule
2. Establish a regular, relaxing bedtime routine
3. Create a relaxing, dark, quiet, comfortable and cool sleep environment
4. Use the bedroom only for sleep and sex
5. Finish eating 2-3 hours before bed; however, it is also not good to go to bed hungry
6. Avoid caffeine, nicotine and alcohol close to bedtime
7. Sleep on a supportive and comfortable mattress, with a good pillow and linens
8. Exercise regularly, finishing at least 3 hours before bed
9. Go to bed when you are tired and get up if you cannot sleep