The product: The Headshoe (Headshoe Co., Boulder, Colo., www.headshoe.com), a device designed to enable deep relaxation by shielding users from nearly all light and sound. The Web site urges users to put the Headshoe on and lie face up on a flat, unyielding surface such as a carpeted floor or camping bed.
Ease of use: The back of your head rests on the headpiece. A beanbaglike pillow filled with flaxseed stretches across your eyes. It gently conforms to the curves of your brow and eye sockets, giving you complete darkness. The earpieces are easily adjustable.
The giggle factor: The earpiece, which looks like a set of bulky headphones from the ’80s, erases most sound. After you stop laughing (because you have a contraption called a Headshoe hugging your skull), it really cuts down on peripheral noises. You do relax.
Observations: If you hear anything external, the sounds are greatly muffled. A roommate walking into an apartment, for example, sounds like a neighbor moving furniture upstairs. But the sound of your breathing is magnified, which is soothing.
Deliberately inhaling and exhaling sounds like a windy fall day.
The Kinks: If you achieve deep enough bliss, you may forget about the inadequate neck support — and the $99.99 price tag.
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