Proper Sleep Pillow Position
Depending on how you sleep, there many alternative ways to sleep with your pillows that benefit the whole body. Most of us don’t sleep like they do in the movies (neatly laid out on our sides with both hands serenely resting under our check). Rather, our sleeping bodies take on a life of their own (and make for comical photographs).
Strategically placed pillows make for wonderful tools to support the body while it rests.
Back Sleepers
When lying on your back, a pillow should support the natural curvature of your cervical spine, with adequate support under your head, neck and shoulders.
Additionally, placing a pillow or two beneath the knees further alleviates any back strain. This position is the best overall to help the back rest comfortably, and many people find it helpful during a severe bout of back pain or while recovering from spine surgery.
Side Sleepers
When lying on your side, a pillow should support the head and neck so that your spine maintains a straight and natural horizontal line. A thicker pillow is usually needed for sleeping on your side than sleeping on your back.
Additionally, bending the knees and placing another pillow between the knees keeps the spine in a neutral position. Without support between the legs, the upper leg rotates downward, pulling the pelvis and distorting the natural line of your spine.
A firm pillow between the knees usually prevents this downward rotation better than a softer pillow. Adding support between the knees can prevent back pain and allow the back to heal and rest better while sleeping.
Stomach Sleepers
When lying on your stomach, the pillow should be relatively flat (or the head should rest directly on the mattress) so your head and neck aren’t strained.
Additionally, it’s often helpful to place another relatively flat pillow under the abdomen or pelvis to help the lower back keep its natural alignment.
Combination Sleepers
Most of us change sleeping positions throughout the night. Varying sleep positions benefit from different sized pillows to account for different body parts requiring support. A single all-purpose pillow is likely to result in a pillow that is too high for sleeping on your back or stomach, or too low for sleeping on your side.
Wool-Filled Pillows
Wool has been known to relieve many body aches and pains, including back pain. Wool naturally helps you relax, relieving stress and tension, and allows your body to peacefully enter into sleep. This makes for a truly restorative sleep.
Wool-filled pillows offer excellent support for the body.
We offer various types of wool-filled pillows:
- Our Sleep Pillows are made with wool batting – sheets of wool sewn into an organic cotton encasement. These smooth pillows come in flat, medium or full.
- Our Customizable Pillows are made with wooly bolus – tiny balls of wool placed into an organic cotton zippered encasement for easy adjustment of wool.
We also offer Contour Pillows and Neck Pillows for neck support, as well as a Body Pillow for those side sleepers who like to wrap their arms and legs around a longer pillow.
Browse our wool-filled pillows to learn more about all of our options.
