We’ve gone over ways to know what kind of pillow to buy, but what do you avoid? Here’s a rundown of the rules of thumb when it comes to things you should avoid when buying a sleeping pillow.
AVOID SLEEPING PILLOWS INCOMPATIBLE WITH YOUR SLEEP STYLE
What kind of pillow you buy depends a lot on your sleeping style. In essence:
- Side Sleeper: You want a pillow that’s fuller. If you’re on your side and the pillow is too low, then you’re going to be waking up with shoulder and neck pain.
- Back Sleeper: You want a slimmer pillow since you don’t have the head-to-mattress gap when sleeping on the side
- Stomach Sleeper: Much like a back sleeper, you want something thin.
So, make sure you study yourself. Start with the style you prefer and then take note of what side you end up on when you wake up. Once you see a pattern emerge after a full week of tracking, you’ll know what kind of pillow you want to avoid.
AVOID SELLERS THAT USE NON-CERTIPUR-US FOAMS
Just as recently as 2019 were people concerned about the potential dangers of memory foams emitting toxins into the air. The primary concern is that memory foam mattresses and pillows could emit large amounts of volatile organic compounds (VOCs).
"Is it CertiPUR-US approved? No? Then that's a pass, my beloved sleepmate."
As a response to these potential dangers, non-profit organization CertiPUR-US began a certification program that checks to make sure that foams aren’t made with ozone depleters and other potentially toxic chemicals. Our foams are certified, and you should make sure that that’s true for wherever you buy foam mattresses and pillows as well. If the seller isn’t certified, take caution and go to a seller that does.
A SLEEPING PILLOW ON THE CHEAP
If you’re picking a pillow that is around $10 or less, you’ll get what you pay for. It’s affordable and in the short-term, the pillow might be good. Great, even. However, once you start using it for more than a month and you’ll most likely have a sleeping pillow that doesn’t perform nearly the same way it did when you first bought it.
Generally, and this is true for cheap feather fills especially, the sleeping pillow will start to lose its ability to hold its structure when you’re asleep. This won’t be evident when you first lay on it and then go into a deep sleep either. It could happen a few hours into your sleep where it changes into a shape that’s not ideal for you or your sleeping position. Since evaluating a sleeping pillow takes some time...
… BUY ONE WITH A 110-NIGHTS TRIAL!
Make sure that wherever you buy your pillow, make sure that it comes with a 110-nights trial. This means a few things. First, the seller believes in its product (like us, for example!) and confidently lets you use it for 100 nights for free and second, three months and some change is plenty of time to evaluate if the sleeping pillow is the right match for you.
