The majority of neck pains generally caused from your neck bending or twisting in the wrong direction for a long period of time. Almost a 1/3 of your life is spent sleeping under your pillow. Do you wake up with a sore neck? If yes, have you considered that your pillow may be causing your pain?
Pillows are meant to keep your head parallel to the mattress not on any angle. The best pillow for you will enhance and aid a wonderful night’s sleep. If you watch TV in bed or read at night then you will need to also look at angle of your neck then. Try to avoid bending or pushing the neck forward or on its side for any length of time.
The content of your pillow is also important, feather pillows seem to be the cause of most neck pain as they don’t provide much stability or support. They feel soft and inviting at first but as time goes by the feathers move so you end up with no support. Buckwheat or similar fillings are noisy but generally cooler as the air is able to circulate through the particles, though the continued noise may cause a restless night. Then there are latex pillows, these can feel nice and light but can make your head feel like it’s bouncing around all night, they generally aren’t a solid pillow so can take a bit of getting used to with the texture of the contents.
Lastly, is memory foam with contoured edges pillows (Complete Sleepers), these are made from foam that with the use of your body heat, will mould your body and create a comfortable cradle for your neck and head. Its increased density and velocity have been shaped to suit the design of your head and enhance the comfort of your sleep.
All pillow types come in low, medium and high density fillings. These help with sleep positions. Back sleepers generally need a thinner pillow to get proper spine support, side sleepers usually need a bit more support in firmness or contouring and tummy sleepers need extra thin pillows to stop any extra contorting of the neck.
So with all this to consider when choosing a pillow, it’s nice that there is one pillow on the market that makes the choice easier by offering an adjustable pillow. The Complete Sleeper pillow is an adjustable memory foam pillow that has inserts that can be removed to suit your style of sleeping as well as your body size. It has 2 inserts in the middle that can be removed to adjust the angle or height preference. The top has a mushroom shaped surface to allow air flow and with removable “noodles” to adjust the preferred density more, it ticks all the boxes.
So as you lay your head down tonight, be aware of your pillow. If it feels lumpy, flat, no longer in its original shape, discoloured from sweating or if you just can’t remember when you originally bought it or if you wake up with regular headaches. It may be time for you to look at a new pillow to get you sleeping better and reduce neck pain.
Here at Lakeside Chiropractic we have The Complete Sleeper pillow in stock in two forms that differ in softness to cater for multiple bodies. If you would like to purchase a complete sleeper or get some general advice on the product you can visit our website at www.lakesidechiro.com.au or feel free to call us on 93000095. We look forward to hearing from you shortly.
