Introducing Shyla Smith, the visionary founder of Muslin Comfort, a Central California-based, family-owned, and operated B2C company that has become a true e-commerce "unicorn." Shyla, an attorney by profession, embarked on a remarkable journey, leading her business to unprecedented success, with sales soaring from $162K in 2019 to an impressive $14.5 million in 2022. The inception of Muslin Comfort can be traced back to May 2018 when Shyla (a successful lawyer turned entrepreneur), a new mom battling postpartum night sweats, invented the groundbreaking 365 Blanket. This temperature-regulating and 100% muslin cotton blanket became the flagship product of Muslin Comfort, bringing the secret to better sleep to countless individuals. In 2020, Shyla faced new challenges with a Lyme Disease diagnosis, leading to the development of Muslin Comfort's breathable resort wear line. Her dedication to creating soft, breathable, oversized, all-natural comforters stemmed from a personal need, and the world is grateful for her innovation. Beyond her role as an entrepreneur, Shyla is a devoted boy mom who finds joy in animals, gardening, decorating, and instilling the values of hard work in her sons. Her journey to better sleep began with a personal struggle, and through Muslin Comfort, she has transformed that experience into a mission to help others enjoy a restful night's sleep.
Introducing Shyla Smith, the visionary founder of Muslin Comfort, a Central California-based, family-owned, and operated B2C company that has become a true e-commerce "unicorn." Shyla, an attorney by profession, embarked on a remarkable journey, leading her business to unprecedented success, with sales soaring from $162K in 2019 to an impressive $14.5 million in 2022.
The inception of Muslin Comfort can be traced back to May 2018 when Shyla (a successful lawyer turned entrepreneur), a new mom battling postpartum night sweats, invented the groundbreaking 365 Blanket. This temperature-regulating and 100% muslin cotton blanket became the flagship product of Muslin Comfort, bringing the secret to better sleep to countless individuals.
In 2020, Shyla faced new challenges with a Lyme Disease diagnosis, leading to the development of Muslin Comfort's breathable resort wear line. Her dedication to creating soft, breathable, oversized, all-natural comforters stemmed from a personal need, and the world is grateful for her innovation.
Beyond her role as an entrepreneur, Shyla is a devoted boy mom who finds joy in animals, gardening, decorating, and instilling the values of hard work in her sons. Her journey to better sleep began with a personal struggle, and through Muslin Comfort, she has transformed that experience into a mission to help others enjoy a restful night's sleep.
SHOWNOTES:
🛏️ Sleep Deprivation
🛏️ Temperature and sleep insights
🛏️ Tactile sensitivity and sleep habits
🛏️ Muslin fabric through history
🛏️ The power of customer feedback
🛏️ Separate blankets for couples
🛏️ Cooling mattress options discussed
🛏️ Travel sleeping hacks
🛏️ Silver lining of sleep struggles
🛏️ Synthetic fibers vs. natural
🛏️ What can we learn from Shyla’s sleep-night habits?
🛏️ And more!
SPONSOR:
🧠 If you “Can’t Turn Your Brain Off” at night…https://magbreakthrough.com/sleepisaskill
🧘 Need help meditating /HRV?! Check out my new favorite tool that you literally hold in your hand and feel it breathe with you, like a baby bird 🐤 Moonbird Code: SLEEP20
Can't afford a cooling mattress pad? Let me introduce you to Muslin Comfort's oversized blankets—Oprah-approved luxury that keeps your temperature just right, all year long. Perfect for those who seek the cool side of the pillow, but not the price tag of high-end cooling bedding. Code: SLEEPISASKILL **20% OFF
The Biohacker’s Bike — Need a no-excuses, 5-minute workout (!) that's exceptionally effective for managing glucose levels and building sleep pressure—outperforming others in its category for quick fitness results?! The Carol Bike has become my go-to. Code: SLEEPISASKILL **$100 OFF
GUEST LINKS:
Website: https://muslincomfort.com
Instagram: @muslincomfort
Facebook: Muslin Comfort
Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/the-shyla-smith
DISCLAIMER:
The information contained on this podcast, our website, newsletter, and the resources available for download are not intended as, and shall not be understood or construed as, medical or health advice. The information contained on these platforms is not a substitute for medical or health advice from a professional who is aware of the facts and circumstances of your individual situation.
The information contained on this podcast, our website, newsletter, and the resources available for download are not intended as, and shall not be understood or construed as, medical or health advice. The information contained on these platforms is not a substitute for medical or health advice from a professional who is aware of the facts and circumstances of your individual situation.
Welcome to the Sleep as a Skill podcast. My name is Mollie Eastman. I am the founder of Sleep as a Skill, a company that optimizes sleep through technology, accountability, and behavioral change. As an ex sleep sufferer turned sleep course creator, I am on a mission to transform the way the world thinks about sleep.
sleep each week. I'll be interviewing world class experts ranging from researchers, doctors, innovators, and thought leaders to give actionable tips and strategies that you can implement to become a more skillful sleeper. Ultimately, I believe that living a circadian aligned lifestyle. Style is going to be one of the biggest trends in wellness.
And I'm committed to keeping you up to date on all the things that you can do today to transform your circadian health and by extension, allowing you to sleep and live better than ever before.
Welcome to the sleep is a skill podcast. This episode is designed specifically for those of you who are looking for support with thermal regulation. As it relates to your sleep, you might be dealing with hot sweats. Maybe you're waking up throughout the course of the night and suspect that temperature is at play, but maybe you don't want to spend thousands of dollars for cooling mattress toppers or smart mattresses or all the things.
And you're looking for a more natural, affordable solution. Well, we've got you covered. A little bit about our guest. Shilah Smith is the visionary founder of Muslin Comfort, a central California based family owned and operated B2C company that has become a true e commerce unicorn. Shilah, an attorney by profession, embarked on the remarkable journey leading her business to unprecedented success with sales.
Sales soaring from 162,000 and 2019 to an impressive 14.5 million in 2022. And just as a quick aside, it even landed in Oprah's Magazine as one of her chosen items. So the inception of Muslim comfort can be traced back to May, 2018 when Shyla, a successful lawyer turned entrepreneur. And a new mom battling postpartum night sweats invented the groundbreaking 365 blanket.
This temperature regulating and a hundred percent Muslim cotton blanket became the flagship product of Muslim comfort, bringing the secret to better sleep to countless individuals. They've also become a sponsor of the podcast, so please support them. It helps support everything we're doing over here.
And they have also given us a generous discount code. If you use the code, Sleep 20 at checkout. Now, without further ado, let's get into the podcast. But first, a few words from those very important sponsors, including Muslim comfort. If you're listening to this podcast, you're likely looking to improve your sleep.
And one of the first places that many people begin when they talk to me about sleep is they want to know what's the supplement I can take. Well, I got to say, I honestly don't take that many supplements nowadays for my sleep. And I'm very grateful for that. A lot of things you can do for free. However, one of the supplements that I do consistently take and have taken for ages is magnesium, specifically magnesium breakthrough.
It's an all natural supplement that helps you reduce fatigue and sleep more peacefully. It even strengthens muscle and improves your heart and brain function. So while most magnesium supplements aren't full spectrum, magnesium breakthrough is the only magnesium supplement on the market that contains the optimal ratio of all three.
All seven essential types of magnesium. So imagine having the strength and energy to get out of bed every morning and face the day boldly, courageously to be able to show up as your best self and keep that energy up throughout the day and into the night. So if you want to give it a try, go to bio optimizers.
com forward slash sleep is a skill and you can use the code sleep. Sleep is a skill to get gifts with purchase up to two travel sized bottles of magnesium breakthrough. So you want to act fast on this. It's a limited time offer. Again, go to buy optimizers. com forward slash sleep is a skill. And I think you're going to be pleasantly surprised by the results.
Today, I'm very excited to introduce you to Moonbird, a pioneering biofeedback device. That's revolutionizing the way we approach sleep and they have just sponsored sleep as a skill. So in the realm of sleep science, stress management is always key and Moonbird leverages the science of heart rate variability or HRV, which, you know, we're talking about all the time on this podcast and it leverages it in a way to combat sleep disturbances caused by sleep.
by stress. This innovative device isn't just for relaxation. It's a tool to activate your body's natural sleep mechanism. So according to a significant study in psychophysiology in 2015, paced breathing, which is facilitated by something like Moonbird, was found to significantly increase vagal activity.
This directly impacts your parasympathetic system. system leading to improve sleep quality. It's about making tangible physiological changes for better sleep. Now, Moonbird goes beyond being just a sleep aid. It's a scientifically grounded tool for managing stress and achieving deeper, more restorative sleep.
Now for listeners who want to transform their sleep patterns, Moonbird combines cutting edge technology with proven scientific strategies. You can visit Moonbird. life and use the code sleep as a skill for a Special discount. And just a quick aside, I am using my Moonbird every single day, and it's made a profound difference in how I'm managing my stress and improving my own ability to manage my health and wellbeing through heart rate variability technology.
And welcome to the Sleep as a Skill podcast. I am really, really thankful for our guest today who's taking the time and who is become a partner with Sleep as a Skill. They've sent over their amazing Muslim Comfort Blanket, which, you know, I get a lot of different types of bedding paraphernalia, and this one is pretty amazing, stands out.
for a number of factors that we'll get into, but particularly if you listen to this podcast, you know, I talk about temperature all the time, temperature and sleep and how it's so crucial to find that Goldilocks setting, if you will, or like the conditions to bring about great temperature regulation in our bedding.
And this is the aim of our guest today is how to facilitate that for us. So thank you for taking the time. Thank you for having me. I'm excited to talk about this topic, because I think. That it's kind of hit on a lot, but no one really understands it. So I think it's You know, this is a good one. A hundred percent.
Yeah. And so maybe we can just begin at the beginning of how you even found yourself in this world of how the heck did this begin? How did I become, yeah, an entrepreneur in the, in the sleep world? I mean, I relate to the, the circuitous roots that we can sometimes find ourselves on. Yeah. But you know what?
It's, it's, It's legitimate and it's authentic and real and um, you know I think it's like it's like that shark tank story, which we actually turned down going on shark tank, but it's a shark Yeah, it's a shark tank story where I had a need and I was I mean i've always been a poor sleeper It's been a joke In my family like forever.
Yeah, um, and then after I had my second son I mean not only was I a poor sleeper, but then I started having really awful like indescribable night sweats like i'm sweating from my scalp and my elbows and like Just drenched in sweat and then I'm cold from my wet bedding and you know Maybe I'm co sleeping because I can't keep the kids out of my bed and I want something breathable So it's just like all these things and all these factors that were torture and literally torturing me And I was thinking about that today as I was, you know, thinking about preparing for this podcast about how sleep deprivation is Um, so it's not even about just, you know, you need it.
It's like legit torture without it. I mean, your brain starts dying. Your body starts dying. Yeah. So, you know, I was a dying and I felt like death all the time. And I just had one of those moments where I'm, you know, wrapping him up in his little like muslin swaddle blanket. And I'm like, this is what I need.
This, I need this. For my bed and I couldn't, I Googled it, you know, went on Amazon, did the things, couldn't find anything, definitely couldn't find anything that was like pre shrunk and that would fit like a large king bed. I found some little throws here and there. And yeah, I started asking around. I asked my sister, you know, the artist I was just telling you about Boston.
Um, she's like, you know, in the design world and everything, I figured like, you know, She's like, no, but I, I have looked for something. I asked somebody else. They indicated they had looked for it and couldn't find it at one point. And so I was like, okay, you know, I'm not special in terms of having this idea, but I am a bulldog and I am like literally sick and literally tired of not sleeping well.
So I have, I have to get this blanket and I have to try it. And I was like a mad woman on a mission, but like I was mad from like sleep deprivation, right? And I'm like, I must have this blanket. Yeah. So I, I, you know, my husband's like, I don't like, okay, like you're just on one of your things. Yeah. So I get this blanket made and put it on our bed and we wake up in the morning and I slept great.
I was like, wake it up, like getting my coffee, like, but I wasn't saying anything. And he turns to me, my husband turns to me and I'm like in the doorway to the bedroom. I remember distinctly. And he goes, okay, I get it. And I'm like, and I was like, you get what I was like, I didn't wake up with my nightly leg sweats.
Like I slept great. I slept through the night. And I was like, how did I not know you have nightly leg sweats? That's disgusting.
The communication breakthrough that you didn't know you need it. I was like, how do I not know this? But maybe I'm like so far away from them and we have such different skin tones. You know, temperature styles and sleep. Oh, who knew? Anyway, he slept great. I slept great. And he was like, I get it. And I was like, dude.
We have to make these available to people. Oh my god. People, people need to be able, if it just helped us sleep better and I legit had slept better like than I could remember. And obviously he did too. And so it started with like, you know, we bought five and like I threw up an Etsy shop and I sold them and then 10 and then the reviews started coming in and people are sleeping better.
And it just, you know, it just, it really just, I mean, I wouldn't say solved the need, but definitely tremendously helps with the problem. A lot of people have. In fact, I didn't even know the extent of the problem until my customers actually started educating me through their reviews and all the problems they've had with sleeping.
Ah, well, I love stories like that too, like solving our own problem and then getting to see the domino effect of then your problem is so relatable to so many other people's problem. And one of the things that's so interesting to me about the temperature piece and sleep is that a lot of the things that we'll do over here at Sleep is a Skiller around kind of hearkening back to ancestral days.
What can we learn from how we slept for thousands of years versus this new phenomenon of sleeping in these like foam mattresses? with covered in all these thick, heavy duvets and what have you. And part of the thing that we're hearing and learning, different experts that we've had on the podcast and what have you, is some of the trouble with our thermal regulation at night with our modern bedding, is that we are cooking in this kind of foreign materials that aren't particularly breathable.
In plastic. Exactly. You're cooking in plastic. It's hoverware, pretty much. I wonder why we're sweating and like everyone's Uncomfortable. And waking up at three, four in the morning or whatever. And so if we look back to how we slept, like we had a sleep anthropologist on the podcast years ago. One of the things that they pointed, they went to the Hudson tribe in Africa, they brought aura rings, and they really looked at how kind of modern day hunter gatherers are living and how they sleep.
And they would see that they would sleep basically on the ground, pretty much. And, you know, that's one of the coolest places in the environment. And so they're on almost like a natural cooling, you know, surface with kind of minimal coverings and natural coverings. And so one of the things I would see is that that temperature, it would really facilitate Well, and then you've got the grounding aspect from being on the ground and then the ground cools through the night, which actually like our body kind of does as well.
So that's, that's a really interesting point. Yeah. Right, exactly. And so anything that we can bring into our, cause of course, then, you know, you say all this and people are like, well, that's nice, but I'm not going to go sleep on the ground. So it's like, how can we. to bring it all, marry these two lifestyles and pluck some of the things that are workable.
And what you're speaking to is really solving that problem. And not only is there the temperature component of the regulation, but also just the issues of co sleeping or, you know, the size component of the pulling on the duvets and kind of, you know, not getting enough coverage, whereas yours is so oversized that it allows for that room, which is quite noteworthy as well.
And what I was thinking about as you were speaking is I just kind of have this image of like, you know, in a teepee, right? Yeah. And there's, it's, it's so different now. Like, you know, for some reason, like we expect kids to sleep like by themselves in this, room by themselves with no like human contact and I mean my oldest is 11 he still is like in bed with us every night you know and I just kind of gave up the fight and honestly I love the cuddles in the morning but so like if you think of but if you think about like that tp situation So you've got that comfort, right, of all those bodies around you.
But then what was something that, what was something that they had, as you touched on in the beginning, um, from an early, you know, from an early historical standpoint? And I would talk, you know, even in more in depth about the textiles and the fabric, because I think that's something I'm just now starting to realize was a problem for me, that I was tactile sensitive.
And I was with my clothing and stuff, but I knew it was always a struggle. I always wanted to sleep naked and my mom always wanted me to sleep in pajamas. Yes. And I had these sleep problems anyway. And then I, I, for the first time ever, like literally last week, I was able to sleep in pajamas and it's Muslim comfort.
It just got me really thinking about, The tactile and they're sleeping with what natural fur back in the day, natural furs, leathers, um, cotton, you know, they're sleeping with the natural fibers and the natural breathable things. And they're sleeping all as a unit. So it's just really interesting that like, how can we kind of emulate that?
I mean, at least with the textiles. today. It just kind of makes sense when you deep dive it. Well, that same anthropologist, I always love referencing him since, you know, did some really interesting work to kind of flex our thinking on how things had been. And to your point around sleeping with kids and co sleeping, one of his haul outs was that in the past, teepee example or what have you, and these like, you know, kind of limited areas, and we'd all be presumably kind of clustering together for safety and whatever.
If we were sleeping on the ground and we would have our, you know, child with us that the thinking is it was much more challenging to deal with some of the concerns that people had spoke about in the past where, or speak about now with SIDS and some of our concerns with co sleeping. Whereas if you're on the ground, there's, you're going to feel any sort of issues if we're dealing with rolling over in the wrong way or what have you, because we don't have that inducive foam or, you know, that shift in those materials.
And so not to get us too much on a tangent, but yeah, we can go totally. But what you're doing and to bring it back is that I'm left with that experience of how can we marry these natural kind of fibers and options that are naturally thermoregulating. bring it into our modern bedding experience and then help support the whole family for sleeping better.
And that's one of the most popular podcasts that we've had ever is actually on that topic of co sleeping. And I hear both you and your husband sleeping better. And it sounds like even the kids and everyone by not all of us huddling together with all of our body heat and trapping all of that within a non breathable space.
Well, and what I found about the muslin to be really interesting, too, is Um, I, I mean, there's, there's so many different side roads I could go down like what springs to mind though, instantly is, is the one review I got from the couple who had been married 25 years. And for their 25th anniversary, they bought my muslin comfort three 65 blanket.
And she said it was the first time in 25 years that they were actually able to cuddle and sleep with the same blanket because they'd always used separate blankets because one slept hot, one slept cool. Um, and, you know, then I was talking to somebody else who was saying, you know, my husband's just so hot and I, you know, don't like him getting near me, you know, in the night and I'm like, you're, you're going to be fine if you've got Muslim comfort because Because the way, so let me just show you real quick, actually, kind of, sort of, I don't know if I've got the best demonstration.
But, so the way it is, like if you think of gauze, you know, that bandage gauze, it's like a really light weave, it's a fine weave, but it's a larger weave, right? Because you want, you know, Air to circulate so muslin is that but it's gone through enzyme washes and all these things to make it Super super soft and there's a certain number of layers.
So within those layers you have airflow and air circulation Like I wish I was like in front of a better window where you can literally see Or you could like blow like if I have a steamer you can see the steam coming through and that's how breathe It allows your body To temperature regulate itself assuming you don't have like polyester plastic pajamas on or something, right?
Yes. Um, but so even just adding, like, I'll just, you know, my husband was cuddle, I pull the blade, I, you know, I pull the blade, I get myself just a little bit of muslin in between, and it, and it does the job. Like, just having that, breathable, you know, space in there. Um, it lets your body just do it. So people are like, you know, we've, of course you can't please everybody all the time.
And you know, we have had a couple people who are like, this isn't temperature regulated. And I'm like, well, yeah, the blanket isn't temperature. Like the blanket allows you, your body to temperature regulate itself because it can breathe. And it'll be the weirdest experience. Like, You, you, you have to experience.
I mean, you have one now, but you have to experience it to believe, like, okay, you can kind of feel air circulation coming through and you can feel the heat and it moisture wicks. So, like, if you are like a hot sleeper and having the night sweats, it sucks that away from you. So your bedding isn't wet and then it just miraculously dries, but you're still like, you're still cozy.
It's, it's, it's, it's a miracle. Like, I mean, it's, it's literally been around since like. Jesus Christ and Cleopatra, like it's been around since the beginning of time because it's so durable and breathable. And that's the actually in the beginning, in the beginning was the word. And after the word was Lesley Cotton, um, but literally like Cleopatra, like all the women, especially used to use it for undergarments and their night shifts.
Um, because of exactly that. And then somewhere along the line, I don't know, it became the fad to use other fabric, but muslin was really regarded as like silk. It was that prized back in the day. And yeah, it was like, Ooh, I've got muslin undergarments. I've got muslin petticoats, like. Wow, so interesting.
They knew what they were doing. They knew what they were doing. And, that also brings me to, there's kind of a different protocol, if I'm correct, in that, using this, you don't necessarily want to have the sheets underneath, is that right? So, yeah, so I reach, I mean, it's like, there's, there's always the argument of the top sheet.
Like, it's almost like the vaccine argument. It's like that big. Um, let us know what you think is really big. Um, so personally, I just, I like using the three 65 blanket. I don't use a top sheet. It was designed. To be used european style, which is just a blanket. No, no top sheet over time I have had so many people ask me for the top sheet.
I'm like fine. I'll give you a top sheet So I just launched. Oh, no way just launched the top sheet and literally I remember that I've been asked for it so many times that the morning after launching it I go into my email and i've got a review from somebody saying like oh my gosh I just tried the bottom sheet.
I feel like i'm sleeping in the cloud Please come out with a top sheet and I was like Your wish is my command. I just dropped it last night. Oh my gosh. Okay. Well, you heard it here first. So that's amazing. Okay, so then that would allow, because it's the same type of material, we're not potentially messing with some of the breathability by having, you know, some, I don't know, kind of lacking in the, the same capabilities that Muslin is able to provide.
It's just a number of thickness. So my 365 is eight layers, which is two ply and I could get into all of that and how they're intricately sewn and like each layer creates its own little breathable, like pocket almost kind of a thing. Um, so the top sheet is two of those. So it's really lightweight, really easy breezy.
My husband's like, Oh, I want to try this. And I'm like. Okay, there you go. Like, on your side. I'm just not, I'm not team Top Sheet. I never will be team Top Sheet. I feel that, yeah. The less we have to deal with, the better, in my opinion, but yes. It's just one less thing to kick at night. Like, I've already got the dog under there.
Like, all this. Yes. Too much going on, yeah. But that is interesting to know for those who like, so sometimes like our bedroom, we have, it's a pretty aggressive air conditioner blowing in. So it feels like that could be another like layer when it is that aggressive, but still breathable at the same time. So allowing you to kind of Yeah, and I think some people just don't want to go to the hassle.
I mean, all of our stuff is machine washable. Like, I mean, I was like, it has to be washed at home. Like this has to be easy. And you know, it has to be pre shrunk. Like if it needs special instructions for washing, it's not going in my house. Like, I don't have time. Um, well, that's also why I made like the king queen, like square.
So you don't have to worry like what corner is what because life is too short. Yes. It's too short. Love it. Oh my gosh. I don't even know what I was talking about now, but. Oh, well the, that's fantastic with the sheets and the layers of that. Oh, the washing. Yeah. I mean, I guess theoretically if you use a top sheet, you would have to wash, you know, the 365 blanket or whatever less.
Yes, you got it. So, I mean, there's that. If you want great sleep, you've got to get your temperature right, which is why I'm so grateful to have partnered with Muslim Comfort, home of the viral temperature regulating 365 blanket. Created by a real mom battling postpartum night sweats, blankets are meticulously crafted from 100 percent muslin cotton to provide a perfect blend of softness and breathability.
So no more restless nights, sweating, tossing and turning. Muslim Comfort is designed for hot and cold sleepers. It's temperature regulating and oversized to ensure that your sleep is not interrupted. Additionally, Muslim Comfort offers a 30 night risk free trial. No questions asked. And beyond that, this part was really important to me, affordability.
We understand that not everyone has access to high end cooling mattresses or mattress toppers. So Muslim Comfort. emerges as the perfect solution providing a breathable and comfortable alternative at a fraction of the cost. And now for the exciting part, Muslim Comfort has brought us an exclusive offer.
If you head on over to muslincomfort. com and use the code sleep20 for an amazing 20 percent discount on your first order. That is right. 20 percent off to get better sleep. Again, remember temperature is key to getting great sleep, and this could be your path to controlling your temperature on your terms.
Are you looking for an easy and impactful way to elevate your fitness and sleep quality simultaneously? Well, then you need to hear about the Carol bike. It's become my latest obsession. It's an AI powered exercise bike. That's really creating a lot of buzz in the fitness world with its effective five minute workouts.
The Carol bike stands to support your heart rate, variability, HRV, and sleep quality. and VO2max, which are key markers of cardiovascular health and overall well being. And this boost in your fitness protocols can directly influence your sleep by aiding in blood sugar balance, which consequently supports reducing those disruptive wake ups that are often tied to metabolic health.
What makes the Carol Bike especially appealing is its focus on brief, approximately, again, five minute workouts that fit effortlessly into even the busiest of schedules. These workouts are tailored to tap into your body's innate mechanisms for balancing blood sugar, which is crucial for avoiding those restless nights caused by glucose fluctuations.
Just today, after indulging in a meal rich in fruits and sweet potatoes, a combination that typically would really spike my glucose levels with the addition of the Carol bike, my continuous glucose monitor showed that my levels stayed nicely balanced thanks to that quick five minute workout. So this is a testament to how integrating Carol bike workouts into your daily life in between zoom calls and all the things that you got going on can help you commit to a journey towards improved fitness and more.
Serene, uninterrupted sleep. And isn't that what we all want? It even earned the 2024 Good Housekeeping Award for its innovation in health and fitness. For those who are eager to integrate an efficient science backed workout that aligns perfectly with a hectic lifestyle while delivering enduring benefits, the Carol Bike represents an exciting opportunity to do just that.
Now, thankfully Carol has hooked us up with a discount. If you use the code, sleep is a skill, all one word. You'll get a discount at checkout. And if you pull the trigger on the Carroll bike, please let me know how it works out for you. So now not only has this kind of taken off, but my understanding is, I mean, it's taken off to the degree that it's like landing an Oprah magazine.
It's like become this little viral sensation from what I have gathered. And so it's really kind of taking off and clearly it's hitting on. Some of these pain points that we're talking to is here's what I see so many times for people is that they're sleeping in environments that aren't conducive to getting great sleep and they don't even quite realize it.
And so it feels like you're kind of handling some of that for them, meaning that I know of a lot of people that will say, Oh, I love to get into bed in a cozy bed and be all warm and I use a heating pad or whatever the heck they do. But we would actually be. Aiming to obviously not uncomfortably cold, but really working with our body to be able to get it to have some of those drops.
And so a lot of people listening are tracking their sleep in some capacity, wearing different sleep trackers and what have you. And time and time again, because we've now worked with hundreds and hundreds of people wearing different. sleep trackers and get to see in depth the difference. And then one of the easiest ways that we see to overnight make a difference with your readouts are related to temperature.
I mean, there's other things, but wow, there's not so many things that on like just an overnight basis, can we see such a immediate change and temperature is one of those things. And so for those of us that deal with, you know, You might say, Oh, I have to wake up to go pee all the time throughout the night.
And you might think it's the, a bathroom issue, but more often than not, we can see, and sometimes that is, but there's actually often the problem of a misattribution error in that we think we're waking up to go pee, but it's really, we've been awoken from, you know, temperature, right? That is so interesting you say that because I literally never thought about that, but I've always been the wake up multiple times to pee at night.
Again, like I'm known in my family, like Shiloh has to wake up multiple times and it wasn't until you said that that I realized I don't anymore. That is huge. That is one of the number one reasons people come our way. I was just thinking about that. Like I don't. Wake up. Yeah. That's amazing. So people will, they'll go get their prostate checked.
They'll go, you know, try to, there's like, is there something wrong? And often if we reverse engineer, sometimes it is actually like a bladder thing or timing of, you know, the drinks. But many times if we break down, There can be environmental things that are occurring and then once you're awake, because you haven't gone to the bathroom for hours and hours, then yeah, you could totally go.
And so we think because your body's also that makes sense because your body's programmed like wake up and pee, right? Isn't that what everyone does? Oh, yeah, exactly. So now. Let's see. Because now it's been hours, so of course you can go. Maybe the source point might take some digging and temperature is a really important place to look.
So, okay. So having said all that, another thing that we do is ask everyone four questions, you know, personal around how you're managing your own sleep. But before we get into that, is there anything that you really want to make sure we hit on or did we miss anything about this topic of what you've created, the difference that that can make for people's sleep?
Yeah, I just think, you know, to just touch on again, um, you know, something I didn't even know was a thing, you know, with these whole separate blankets, people sleeping with separate blankets. And yes, I've, you know, he's got his and she's got hers and, um, and it's for temperature regulating. But then a lot of people do it for the secondary issue, uh, or it could be a first versus you, the bed, the bed hogs.
Yes. Right? Totally. And like, fighting with your partner, whatever, or the dog, or whatever, to get your blanket. So Yes. When I was designing it because I was like analyzing now, like, okay, what do I hate about my bedding? Um, I was like, I can design it whatever size I want. So I designed a huge, you know, 10 feet by 10 feet, 120 inches square on Kings.
Like you can actually size down with my brand. In fact, if you want like a traditional bit. You need to size down. Good call. But yeah, but I just I was really tired of Betting that I was like, I don't know who came up with this, but this this is not working not for bigger beds Anyway, and we do do custom orders and um, like for instance, we just released taupe I call it chad's chad's taupe because It's a little funny story.
Um My customers are like laughing about it now. They're like, Oh, there's Chad Stope. He, he was a customer of ours, customer of ours in Florida. And he came to me, so he DM'd me on my, like, personal Instagram and was like, You know, I really like Muslim Comfort, I slept with it, but then I cheated on you and I had to go to another brand because I really like taupe.
And you guys don't have a taupe color, like, is there any chance you're going to bring on a taupe color, da da da da, because I'd really like to, like, Go back to my Muslim comfort. And I was like, okay, Chad, I will make you a taupe. Like, send me a Pantone color, pick your taupe, I'll make you a taupe. So he did.
We colored, like, he would do all the legwork. And so I was like, fine. If you like it so much that you went to all this, I'm gonna micro batch it. So I micro batched it and I just put it up for on pre order for everybody and like everyone's just loving like it's chad's it's chad's taupe So we're just really in tune with our customers.
Like I talk to them all the time um, i'm always working on research and development to make things like even more durable because You know, I have six dogs and two boys and things need to stand up to that. We also like actually one of our customers, um, developed like oxy clean on steroids, bio bright, which is like an all natural, um, all purpose.
Um, um, it can go in your like dishwasher and go in your washing machine anywhere. And it works better than bleach and completely non toxic. So yeah, we actually, uh, all natural chemists. Customer develop it for us. And like, here you go. You should use it. And we were like, Oh my gosh, cause we viewed everything and there were some things like we could not get scenes out and now we get everything out.
So what is it on the website too? That's amazing. Bio bright. So it's just amazing like how the brand is kind of morphed and the customer relationships that I've established and all the things I've learned. Oh, that is amazing. Well, thank you so much for listening to your customers and to yourself and creating what you've created.
And I'm grateful to have it on my bed. So I really appreciate that. Just amazing. So, and it makes a big deal for me. It is a big deal for me to be able to have things kind of up my sleeve to suggest for people of how they can manage this temperature topic without necessarily having to spend thousands of thousands of dollars of, you know, cooling mattress.
I think that that can be really important for the average person to have just a bevy of options that are available. And I just thought of this too, for those who are kind of like, I don't know, you know, are these podcasters like full of it, whatever, yes, honestly, we're Dr. Recommended again, customer bought it for her husband who was dealing with hormone fluctuations and she's, um, an OB.
And she's like, I love it. It worked so well. I now recommend it to all of my people who are dealing with menopause and hormonal changes and night sweats and all this stuff because it helps. And then I've got other customers who are like, I've literally tried everything for menopause and little like we have a review.
She said, I tried everything for menopause and the night sweats. And this was the only thing. Oh, that's amazing. Yeah. The hormonal shifts. Yeah. I know. It's like sometimes I get overwhelmed and like, can I do this? Like, what am I even doing? Like my, you know, I'm, I'm a lawyer, like what am I doing running this like company?
But then I'm like, you know, it's worth it because like, I actually, I actually am helping people. Like I'm help, I helped myself and you know, it is for a reason. I am helping people. It's not just. you know, another blanket or bedding company or whatever, you know, absolutely. No, I so appreciate you adding that in because that's our whole intention and mission on the planet is to provide as many kind of tools and takeaways and understand that we're not just kind of set or destined to get our stuff done.
current sleep experience doesn't have to keep on going that way, that there are so many things available, including things like this. So thank you so much for sharing about that. And one of the things that so many people have loved with, uh, different people that come on the podcast who clearly have thought deeply about their sleep is how they're managing their own sleep.
So excited to hear your feedback on that. And our first question is always, what does your nightly sleep routine look like right now? Oh gosh, well, I mean, um, definitely always, and someone just asked me this today, like do you use all of your own products? Yes, that's the only thing in my house, um, is Muslim Comfort, uh, for, from the bathroom to the bedroom.
Like, it's all I use, I'm testing it, I'm using it. That's all I, I mean, I'm wearing it. This is, I mean, the shirt I'm wearing is, it is muslin. Muslin, oh yeah, I put an M on the end, didn't I? Yeah, yeah, it's a type of weave. Anyway, but yeah, so like it morphed into the resort line. Um, but yeah, I just tried to, um, earplugs, the 365 blanket, um, My dogs.
Amazing. And that's it. Yeah, yeah. That's my thing. The dogs though. I gotta have my doggies in my bed. I love it. What's so good too, it's, it's kind of like what works for each individual because we'll have so many people that will talk about, Oh, I have to keep my dogs out of the bed, blah, blah, blah. But then there's absolutely the group that will see like tangibly that it makes such a difference just that experience.
experience of having, you know, the fur babies in the room. Well, I mean, I have mental health issues, anxiety, and, and things like that. There's some dogs. One of my dogs in particular, she's just like a shaky mess and she gives me anxiety. I try to keep her away , but I've got two dogs that have just a very peaceful, like, aw, grounding zen energy and, and yeah, so, and they're just like very calm and they cuddle.
And so those, those are my sleep companions, . Oh, I love that. That's amazing. Okay, so then, so that gives us a snapshot of your nights and what might we see in your mornings? Oh, that's hard. So I love coffee, but I have Lyme disease and that can sometimes really trigger that. So, um, hibiscus tea has actually become a big go to.
Um, after going to India to visit my manufacturer, I started doing the Marsala chai. Oh, which is really good. Really delicious. Yeah. Um, so I do that and um, try not to check my email too early. Yes, same. Usually I'm hitting the ground. I'm hitting the ground running, but it is hard. It is hard to get up because you know that morning sleep under the 365 blanket is it's pretty epic.
That is amazing. Okay. And I love the chai too. That's a great call out. I might I've kind of forgotten about shy. I need to bring that back in the rotation. Okay. What might we visually see on your nightstand or if you're kind of traveling, maybe proverbial nightstand or things in your environment? I mean, it's definitely the earplugs.
When we travel, we take our 365 blanket. No way. That's great. Yeah. In fact, we were, we just went somewhere a couple hours away and we didn't take it. We were like, okay, this is ridiculous. It's winter. Like how bad like, you know, it's gonna be cold. We'll just like have the nice big down comforter like it's been a minute Right.
Yeah We were so miserable. Thankfully, I have, I had brought a throw blanket with me and so I ended up using that and he slept miserable. That is so, you know, I have actually talked about this at different points. I have been known to, in hotels, if they're really hot and like they've got like the non breathable blankets, one crazy thing I've done is taking towels and then making the towel, you know, your blanket and that's like a rough, like when you're in dire straits, I guess you could say.
But I can totally see what you're saying about, especially when it's like a domestic, like you're traveling and driving there or something. That could be a great kind of work around. Amazing. Okay. The other thing I don't know why it took me so long is, number one, I mean earplugs. My husband snores. I mean, one of my dogs snores is bad.
Um, my son snores. So earplugs and white noise. Oh my, let's get you sleep test. Okay. Well, we'll, we'll get you set up on that. Yeah. But white noise too. Like Sarah, like it's Alexa turn on ocean sounds every night and it's just, I keep it on loud and that is going to come on right now. Alexa off. Yeah. That helps too.
Just like for me, cause I think I've got that. condition or whatever where or maybe it's just my personality but I can't distinguish between like the fan whirring and then like hear the tv on or whatever it's all just noise yes and I can't so having a white noise thing that just Is what my brain hears the most.
Huge. Huge. Yeah, we love those two. Same. I will often travel with those as well. So important. Okay, great. So you're covering that. You're covering kind of the audible noises, earplugs, white noise, all of those sort of things. And then what would you say, so far, given your management of your sleep to date, what would you say has made the biggest change to your sleep game?
I mean, honestly, I would say It's my brand. I would say it's my blanket. It's my, I mean, of course, I mean, but that's, but that's, I mean, that's legitimately authentically. The truth is it really changed everything. Um, it makes all the sense of the world. If we believe in something enough to build an entire brand around it, that is the game changer.
Yeah. Yeah. I mean, I, I sleep better now than I used to. I ever have. And I do think a tiny piece of that is, um, I always had that unsettled feeling that I was supposed to be, I wasn't supposed to be in the eight to five. And I wasn't supposed to be like, you know, I love practicing law and all of that, but it was like, I always knew that I was supposed to have my own thing.
Like I was supposed to do my own, build my own thing. And ever since I have, it's like that piece of me has gone, has, has been like, oh, you, okay. You, you like, yeah. So that's kind of been an interesting. It's like finding your life's purpose or if you want to go dramatic, you know, uh, yes, I can relate so much to what you're saying because that was sort of my experience too.
Part of my discontent when I couldn't sleep for that period of time was this lack of purpose, things not going in the direction that I wanted them to go and just this kind of floundering on what was next and the sleep component was so transformative and so. so maddening when it wasn't working like you really for me it was felt like I was like losing my mind during it and it was scary so I completely hear you on and then once you're able to find that thing that can make that difference for you it's like you want to shout it from the rooftop so yeah because I mean I'm sure you went into the whole anxiety and then like almost like a nervous system like a nervous breakdown like now I can identify it now because I was there and I didn't even know it was happening and it was from utter sleep deprivation.
Oh, it is just so challenging and the the thoughts that go through your mind during those periods of time of like is it Am I always going to be like this? Am I stuck like this? Is it the new reality? Like, oh my gosh No, I just we're we're gonna like have to cut this down but no, I was just talking to somebody else about that exact same thing and especially like I start having major anxiety about that and okay today I'm laid up and like I'm non functional today like is this are my kids gonna know me as the mom who's who's laying on the couch every day because my mom had back issues and things like that and yeah I was like that's not going to be me and then suddenly it's me and so it's like All this PTSD on top of the mom guilt.
Well, well, the dad's just sleep. They never, they don't, not even a thing. Right. But we have it. Yeah. But I think I don't, I mean, I'm almost 44 and great. Oh, thank you. Um, well, you know, now that I'm sleeping better,
but no, like I, I finally now I'm to the point where I know how I hustle. I know how I am. I have faith. In myself to know that okay, it's going on day three of non functional It's okay. Shyla. Yes, it'll it'll it will it will pass like go get an nad shot Or go do a coffee enema and get a good night's sleep and eat You know, you will go back to normal.
You will trust that don't go down that deep dark rabbit hole you You'll come out the other side uh, so Helpful. Thank you for putting that in for the listeners that are still in that state of what is going on with my body What can I do to interrupt this and knowing that? I think you might agree with this.
This certainly was the case for me that while I was going through that period of time, it felt like there's no silver lining, like what could ever come out of this. And it turned out to be one of the best things that could have ever possibly happened to me because it changed the entire course of my life, gave me that sense of mission and purpose and like lights me up.
I cannot believe that this is my career. It's like amazing. So I. Yeah. I think what is available for people is when your body is not sleeping, it's trying to tell you something and there's a message in there and there's an opportunity for us to really have that breakthrough. So, so appreciate your story and sharing that and then making this difference for so many people on the ground continually and with lots of innovation coming from the sounds because I don't even know some of these different the chads.
You know, dope or whatever. The whole thing. So, so happy to have partnered with you and to be able to be along for the ride. It's really fantastic. So I so thank you for also just taking the time. So how can people check this out, test this out for themselves, follow all the work you're doing? What are the steps?
So Muslim comfort. com, you can find us there. We're on Facebook, Instagram, Tik TOK. We've got free shipping on what is it? 169 or over, which covers like pretty much all the bedding, which is like our number one, I would say like 90 percent of our sales are the three 65 blanket. Sure. Um, that's what we're known for.
So get it, try it. We've got 30 day return, you know, use it. Sleep with it. You don't love it. Just. Send it back. Amazing. Oh, well, thank you so much for taking the time for doing the work for sharing authentically your story. So inspiring for those people that I know when I was struggling with my sleep, I just wanted to see success stories of people getting to the other side and not being stuck in that state.
And you're one of those people. So really incredible. Well, let me just add really quick, and I'll try to be really quick, you know, I get frustrated and I almost try to like Not get angry because when I started this, you know, there was no other blankets or anything being marketed as breathable and temperature regulating.
Well, now they're all over the place. Yeah. You know, I won't name names, but they are synthetic. They are plastic. They are not going, they're not, they're not going to work. Like you're going to be lied to. Like, there's no way they can work. There's no way synthetic fibers breathe. They just don't do it. . Yeah.
It's like a physics thing. It's not gonna do it. And not only that, like not only that, like the whole circadian rhythm thing, and like literally customers have educated me how like the fibers that you put on you, um, change your whole body rhythm. And it goes back to the Bible talking about like, not mixing fabrics and stuff.
It's crazy, but like, just don't fall for the gimmick. Like, yeah. If it's not a ma, if it's not a natural fabric, if it didn't grow on God's green earth like. don't have it in your bed if you want to sleep better. My, my personal opinion. I love that. Amazing. Well, thank you so much for this. Thank you for the time.
And I'm grateful to have one on my bed. And that's just been really amazing. And my husband loves it too. So more of the merrier out there for more people trying this, but I really appreciate it. Thank you so much. Thank you. You've been listening to the sleep as a skill podcast, the top podcast for people who want to take their sleep skills to the next level.
Every Monday, I send out the sleep obsessions newsletter, which aims to be one of the most obsessive newsletters on the planet. Fun fact, I've never missed a Monday for over five years and counting. And it contains everything that you need to know in the fascinating world of sleep. Head on over to sleep as a skill.
com forward slash newsletter to sign up.