How to choose a pillow that's comfortable to sleep on

2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44

By choosing a comfortable pillow, you will greatly help your body, you will sleep soundly and feel good when you wake up. These tips and a special Lifehacker checklist will come in handy when you head to the store.

How to choose the height and hardness of the pillow

When choosing the height and firmness of the pillow, the position in which you usually sleep plays an important role. When in doubt as to what this pose is, spend a few nights exploring.

When you feel that you are falling asleep, lie on your back for a few minutes, then on your side and on your stomach. Assess which position is most comfortable for you. For example, if you lay on your stomach for half an hour, but still did not fall asleep, this is hardly your usual position. Pay attention to the position in which you wake up in the morning. Write down all your observations so you don't get confused.

• If you love to sleep on the back, choose a pillow of medium height (8–10 cm), medium firm and possibly with a recess for the head.
• If you sleep on the sideChoose a pillow that is high and firm enough to fill the space between your shoulder and ear and support your neck well. The height of the pillow should be the same as the width of your shoulder - from the base of your neck to the shoulder point.

• If you sleep on belly, you need a soft and thin, almost flat pillow 6–8 cm high. If you can do without one, place a pillow under your stomach so that there is no lower back pain.
• If you constantly rolling over, choose a pillow of medium height. It should be soft enough so that it can somehow be adjusted to the current sleeping position.

How to choose a pillow filler

There are a lot of fillers now. Manufacturers give them their names, combine different types of materials, complicate the internal structure of the pillows.

A modern pillow is not just a bag full of down.

Inside there may be springs, several chambers filled with filler, several layers of different fillers, hidden rolls under the neck and other inventions of the pillow industry.

Therefore, we will talk about fairly popular materials and outline the questions that need to be answered before heading to the store: this way you can explain to the consultant what exactly you are looking for.

1. What stiffness of the pillow do you need?

Of the common fillers, the softest will be down (natural and artificial), holofiber, bamboo, cotton, silk.

Wool, materials with memory effect, gel are considered to be medium soft fillers.

The hard filler is latex, buckwheat husk.

2. Do you sweat a lot at night? Do you ever get hot on your pillow?

If in the morning you wake up on a damp pillow, your head is hot and as if stuffy, it means that the filler and / or cover of the pillow does not allow air to pass through well and does not breathe.

Pillows made of fluff, bamboo, silk have good breathability. However, synthetic fillers are not inferior to natural ones: the fibers in them are intertwined in such a way that a space filled with air remains between them.

If the pillow is breathing, it is elastic to the touch and quickly regains its shape after being compressed.

Latex and memory foam pillows are breathable thanks to the porosity of the materials and the ventilation holes.

3. Is it important to you how long it will take to care for your pillow?

It is easy for someone to take pillows to the dry-cleaner several times a year, while others do not have enough time to even throw them into the washing machine.

The most demanding pillows to care for are pillows made of natural feathers and down: they must be regularly dried, whipped before bedtime to evenly distribute the filler, and periodically taken to a dry cleaner, since you will not be able to clean them yourself. Wool pillows will also have to be donated to specialists.

It is recommended to vacuum the pillows filled with buckwheat husk. Once a year, you will have to empty the husk, sift it and put it in an already washed cover.

Bamboo, silk and synthetic pillows are machine washable. And on latex or memory foam pillows, simply replace the pillowcase.

4. How durable do you need a pillow?

The most short-lived pillows are made of bamboo, holofiber, artificial down. After three years or even earlier, the filler can get lost in lumps, and the pillow will become unsuitable for proper sleep.

Pillows made of materials with memory effect, natural down and feathers, high-quality synthetics will last up to five years.

The most durable are latex pillows. Their service life is 10 years and even more with proper operation.

5. Do you have any allergies? If so, what exactly?

Everything is clear here: you should not choose the filler to which you are allergic. The strongest allergen is considered to be down and feathers. But a bamboo pillow, in which many microorganisms have grown, can also cause unpleasant symptoms.

How to choose a pillow shape

Let's go back to your sleeping position. If you sleep on your back, choose a rectangular pillow. It can be with a roller or a notch under the neck, if you feel comfortable.

A rectangular pillow is suitable for sleeping on your side. Here, too, a roller under the neck and a notch under the shoulder are appropriate.

For sleeping on your stomach, choose a low rectangular pillow or a star-shaped pillow.

Pillow Buyer's Checklist

Stocked up with theory, now you need to figure out what to do if there is a sea of pillows in the store, and a zealous consultant is already persuading you to buy. Here is a checklist of your actions:

1. Tell the consultant what kind of pillow you are looking for (stiffness, materials, cost). Check if you have sleep problems.
2. Do not hesitate to ask our consultants about the properties of pillows, fillers, covers. Moreover, it is desirable that they explain to you what features of the materials allow the pillow to breathe, remove moisture, and so on.
3. Try lying on the pillows provided. Rate your feelings. With the correct height and shape of the pillow, you should feel relaxed, there should be no clamps or kinks anywhere.
4. Remember, or better, write down the characteristics of the pillows offered to you. At home, read about the properties of specific fillers. Explore the reviews of selected pillow brands.
5. No matter how carefully you choose a pillow in the store, to evaluate it, you need to sleep on it for a week. Because the comfort of the pillow will depend even on your mattress (the softer it is, the thinner the pillow should be). So find out if you can test your pillow at home and return it if it doesn't fit. The Law "On Protection of Consumer Rights" allows a return if the product has not been in use, the appearance, consumer properties, seals, and factory labels have been preserved. But some stores are more open to customers. So, IKEA offers to sleep on a new pillow for 14 days and change it if it turns out to be uncomfortable.