How do you choose the right pillow?
What a difference a pillow can make. The right pillow can provide you quite a deep, rejuvenating sleep. The wrong pillow leaves you feeling stiff, sore and exhausted. It can misalign the bones in your neck, pinching nerves and causing a headache.
A proper pillow is one of the most-important elements of a good night’s sleep.
What’s the best sleeping position?
We generally recommend sleeping on your side or your back, but your preferred sleeping position is usually set at an early age. If you’re a stomach-sleeper, moving to your side or back is not always easy. Below we share guidelines for choosing a pillow no matter in each position.
What pillow brand do you recommend?
We wish there was a way to recommend one pillow that would work well for everyone. However, we’re all shaped so differently and have unique sleep habits and challenges. Dr. Neely and Dr. Shulman are both side sleepers but because Dr. Neely is so much more broad than Dr. Shulman the pillow that works for him would definitely end up causing issues for her.
Here are their favourites:
Dr. Neely’s pillow choice
Dr. Shulman’s pillow choice.
Recommendations for various sleep positions:
Back sleeper:
- Avoid a pillow that is too high or stiff. This over-flexes the muscles in your neck during the night.
- Ensure that your pillow isn’t so flat that your head extends backwards.
- If you feel that your pillow is too flat (or are stuck with a flimsy hotel pillow), fold a hand towel in half and put it under your pillow to add some height.
Side Sleepers:
- Focus on keeping your head inline with the rest of your body. Choose a firmer pillow that elevates your head.
- Side sleepers can also benefit from a pillow that has extra support under the neck.
- If you find yourself sleeping with your hand between your head and your pillow, that’s a sure sign that your pillow is not firm enough or is too flat. This can result in both neck and shoulder injuries. Use our hand towel trick of placing a towel (folded or not) under your pillow to play with different heights to correct the issue and avoid having to purchase many pillows before finding the right one.
Stomach Sleepers:
- Sleeping on your stomach can be hard on your neck as you have to sleep with your head turned to one side.
- Learning a new sleep position is challenging but doable. Start by beginning your sleep in the desired position. If you wake up on your stomach, just move back to your back or side. Your body will eventually become more comfortable in the new position.
- But…as you’re learning this new position choose a pillow that isn’t too thick so that your neck can stay in line with the rest of your body.
Finding the right pillow can be challenging so when you do we recommend purchasing an extra for the future.
Need help finding the best pillow for you? Ask us next time you’re in.
