We all know the Japanese have a few, erm, interesting cultural quirks ( maid cafés , anyone?) but their new trend for dealing with pain and stress is really something. It's called "otona maki" or "adult wrapping" and recently shot to fame when it was featured on a Japanese TV show. It was developed by Professor Nobuko Watanabe , who created the Toco-Chan maternity belt (basically a bra for your baby bump) and is supposedly based on the concept of baby swaddling – where babies are wrapped tightly in soft cloths to emulate the feeling of being safe and secure in the womb. In otona maki, however, adults aren't wrapped like little baby burritos; instead, they're tied in a sheet in what looks like a cross between the happy baby and wind-relieving yoga pose. Once in the sheet, the participants are rocked gently from side to side. Really. The practice costs around £20 and lasts for 20 minute s and, according to Japanese blogger Yayoi Katayama, "It's helpful to regain natural flexibility and improve posture". She said that after the session she also felt "relaxed and rejuvenated". Another recent session of otona maki with new mothers, intended to help them overcome birth pains, also seemed to produce promising results. "It felt warm and there was this feeling with my body," said one mother . "I have never experienced this before so it's quite hard to describe properly."