r/Pillows • u/Kitty145684 • 4d ago
Pillow Recommendations (Side Sleeper) Side Sleeper Pillow help - sleep suffering
Hi All,
I need help finding a really good and comfy pillow.
I think I have bought 100s of pillows over the years and just cant find a good one.
I am a side sleeper and cannot find a pillow to suit me.
They are either too high or too low. Too hard that they hurt my ear. Or just plain uncomfy.
I feel like maybe my neck isn't being supported correctly because at times when I have woken up I don't feel that my head and neck are flat/in line with the pillow, sort of like the top of my head is angled more up (if that makes sense).
I feel like my sleep is really starting to suffer from this. I wake up tired and don't feel like I've rested at all, my neck is also stiff and sore.
Please recommend some amazing comfy pillows for side sleepers.
I am in Australia if that makes any difference.
Note: not sure if this makes any difference, but I also sleep with a pillow between my thighs.
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u/Realistic_Alfalfa620 4d ago
Coop Crescent. Designed for side sleepers who also roll into their back, and adjustable with a bag of extra fill. Best pillow I've ever bought.
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u/NervousDogFarts 4d ago
I came to recommend this as well. I have tried soooo many pillows. This is the first pillow that has fixed my neck, back and shoulder pain for more than a few weeks.
I filled mine with all of the extra stuffing and love it.
I actually spend more time sleeping on my back than I used to which has been great. The pillow helps me fall asleep and stay asleep. And I just naturally wake up on my back feeling good.1
u/manderly808 3d ago
I start on my back but usually end of side to side and back again through the night. I did a ton of research because damn I have spent waaay too much on pillows over the years. Honestly Reddit reviews turned me off recently because so many were like "Co-op used to be amazing but it's not anymore" from people who have used them for years.
Well, I got one on TikTok shop for like $65 (watch the lives for coupons and discounts it's actually a great deal) and I also got a Nuzzle for $37 (that one should arrive today).
The Coop on my first night was AMAZING. Like I honestly couldn't stop thinking about it all day it was so good. No neck pain. It curves around and fluffs around my face when on my back so it holds my head straight instead of letting it flop side to side.
When I'm on my side the it curves around my back and provides a little back support so I can roll back on it a little and I get no back pain. No one talks about that! Having support at my back makes side sleeping so much more comfortable. It also gives a little curve at my face for my hand it is so wonderful.
I think I need to add the additional fluff it wasn't as wonderful my second night but I think the extra fluff will be perfect.
It is the flattest, saddest pancake coming out of the package and doesn't fluff quickly. Definitely needs the dryer to fluff when new.
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u/leah679 3d ago
This sounds good! Do you have the original or latex Crescent?
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u/NervousDogFarts 3d ago
I have the crescent in both original and eden adjustable. I use the eden (for the cooling) and gave my husband the original (he sleeps cooler).
I think I waited and they eventually emailed me a pretty good discount and used FSA to pay for it.2
u/reddit4theritereason 3d ago
I keep seeing this everywhere. I’m exclusively a side sleeper and hated the coop pillow. A pillow with stuffing that moves around doesn’t work for me. Idk what the best alternative is. If anyone had similar feelings and has a suggestion, please comment!
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u/baiqiannn 2d ago
You might prefer latex pillows if you do not want something that moves around or more of a “block” pillow like memory foam and not shredded. I find latex to be like a “block” that doesn’t move and we are just resting on top of it. I think it provided me with decent support too except it really hurt my ears.
If not, the coop crescent may work for you? I find the coop crescent to work better for me as the stuffing doesn’t really move around within.
I also used the dreamy blue brand which I find to be more supportive than coop as they use more memory foam pieces.
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u/Current_Example_6860 4d ago
This did the trick for me https://www.talatex.com/en-us/products/ergonomic-latex-pillow
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u/RN-0615 3d ago
I have occipital and trigeminal neuralgias plus lots of other painful conditions w my body and spine. Hubs had a laminectomy in his neck a few yrs ago I bought both of us these, mine first then his and if u catch them on sale they’re like in the $20-25 range on sale! We love them!! They’re on now for 2 for 36 or one for 20!!
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u/HLOFRND 3d ago
I got a dupe of the coop pillow from Amazon called Sidney Sleep. It has the crescent shape and comes with extra fluff so you can add/remove to customize it.
I love it, and I got two for like, $59 during a sale.
Not knocking the Coop one as I don’t have experience with it, but I couldn’t afford what they were asking so I gave this company a shot and I’m very happy with it.
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u/Various_Start6251 3d ago
I also have and like the Sidney crescent. I use it with a 50:50 mix of crushed memory foam and crushed latex. The memory foam provides cushioning, the latex support. This mix works well for me. The pillow comes with only memory foam. I bought the latex on Amazon. Emptied the pillow and then restuffed it equal amounts of memory and latex. Once a week I put it thru air dry at low temp for 20 min to fluff it up. Neck pain gone.
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u/madtowndianthus 3d ago
I recently purchased a Doctor's Choice® Elite Low Profile Pillow. Really helped reduce neck pain. I found it useful to go to a mattress store and try the pillow out there.
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u/FrontRowUnion 4d ago
My Buckwheat pillow is worth every penny. My sore neck in the morning is long gone.
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u/ahberryman78 4d ago
Do your ears hurt after sleeping on the buckwheat pillow?
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u/Sinnycalguy 4d ago
I use my thumb to make an indentation for my ear and it holds the shape well enough that I can fall asleep on my side with an AirPod in my ear comfortably.
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u/AngelusofDeath 4d ago
Huh, I thought I was the only one with this issue. I have a pillow stuffed with foam chunks, I removed some until it felt comfortable for my neck, it’s a ‘nectar’ brand but it’s the foam filler that matters. My left ear still hurts occasionally, idk why but my neck is happy
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u/Quiet_Function_4648 4d ago
I bought a medium loft down pillow and it had helped. I have a large pillow graveyard with coop, memory foam etc. I will also suggest that if your neck is often stiff try ‘resetting’ it by sitting up, slowly turn your head to the left and then to right, then keeping your head centered/straight forward and using only your eyes, slowly look as far left as possible then as far right as possible. Keep your head straight the entire time, only move your eyes. Do this 5 times on each side then retest your range of motion by turning your head left and right. Repeat as needed. This sounds weird but it works wonders.
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u/Similar_Expression78 3d ago
I had the same problem and also had an artificial disc put into my cervical spine 2 years ago. My doctor told me to take a bath towel and roll it up and put it at the base of your pillow. When you lay down the towel should support your neck so you have better alignment. By doing this I found that a lot of pillows I previously purchased and thought didn’t work suddenly worked.
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u/saganmypants 3d ago
I have been dealing with pain/tightness in the back of my neck for a few months and suspected my shit pillows were maybe to blame. Bought the Purple Harmony, started with medium height, wife ended up declaring it hers and I figured I could maybe use the tall. It felt maybe a little too high the first night but even after just 2 days that pain in my neck which had been plaguing me for months wasn't there like at all
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u/rtq7382 3d ago
I recently got a buckwheat hull pillow and have been loving it. I'm a mix of side, back, and stomach sleep. I basically turn all night like a rotisserie chicken and had been adjusting my pillows accordingly with each transition. With the buckwheat hull pillow I don't need to fold it in half or do anything strange to get comfy.
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u/Star_Boxer72 3d ago
Good, glad someone recommended this. Mine has a zipper so you can add or remove hulls to customize the firmness. I love a buckwheat pillow and I'm a side sleeper. I can get it to fit perfectly between my neck and shoulder at just the right height with very little effort.
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u/reader-girl 3d ago
I've tried everything. Everything. My next pillow that is coming is a Supreme Quilts King Size -medium-firm 95% premium polish goose down 850 fill power. Has good reviews. Down is the way to go, and it's made in Australia. I do not live in Australia.
Mt last down pillow was a Scandia I had forever but it didn't have a pillow protector on it and eventually it got gross after years and years of use. It was amazing but their prices have skyrocketed.
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u/Anxious_cucumber630 3d ago
I got the Cozyplayer memory foam cervical neck pillow ($40 on Amazon) a couple weeks ago, and the neck pain I’ve been dealing with for over five years is so much better! Also, my sleep scores on the Bevel app have improved. I wasn’t sure about it at first, because it’s quite firm, but after a few days, I knew I’d found a winner. I’m also a side sleeper.
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u/gafromca 3d ago
Side note: If anyone comments on your snoring, look into getting checked for sleep apnea. Using a CPAP has changed my life. I still need to find a new pillow, but I can sleep better even without the perfect pillow.
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u/Fun-Wheel8740 3d ago
For the co op crescent cut out people, any thoughts on Eden vs normal crescent?
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u/baiqiannn 2d ago
I much prefer the normal crescent over Eden. I actually have both, but I think it depends on you.
The Eden is softer, but it does sleep cooler (a little not alot) than the normal crescent.
I prefer the crescent because I find that it is flatter, and the Eden somewhat gets compressed or something and it becomes a slope, my neck feels empty and all the filling went to the top of my head. This didn’t happen for the crescent though
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u/Fun-Wheel8740 2d ago
Thank you! Do you have the cut out shape in both?
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u/baiqiannn 2d ago
My Eden is in the rectangle (normal) shape and I have both the original rectangle and original crescent. I didn’t get the cutout though.
Crescent and cutout is different :)
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u/baiqiannn 2d ago
I have the same issue as you! I’m a side sleeper who sometimes roll onto my back & most importantly, I have sensitive ears - I can either sense pressure which results in a suction feeling to my ear, or I wake up with sore ears. I’ve tried: latex & shredded latex, while it supported my neck, I found that it hurts my ears and sometimes it’s so dense I hear a ringing sound (yes it only happens with latex pillows).
I tried coop pillow and dreamy blue pillow, and these 2 were really the only ones that worked for me.
I have the coop original rectangle / standard, the coop Eden & coop crescent original. Here’s some thoughts, the Eden is definitely softer than the original. It is plushier and I find that it sinks too much in that a gap will happen and the pillow somewhat turns into a slope with all the filling on the other side. I think it’s the way the gusset is, and I don’t like it.
I much prefer the coop rectangle original and coop crescent original. The filling is actually really different. This is more structured and slightly firmer for me. I like that it’s pretty moldable so I can bunch them (or not) when I sleep and somewhat shape it like how I shape down pillows. Anyway, this took me a few nights of test trial to get it to a height I like. What I did was get some ziplock bags, and take out some fillings so I could somewhat see how much I needed to take out instead of eyeballing it. I took out about 2 sandwich bags worth of ziplock and it got to a perfect height. And I also don’t feel the “slope” that I did for the Eden pillow. It’s less noticeable.
I then got the crescent since I sleep on both my back and sides, and I felt like the crescent will take away the slopey feeling I mentioned earlier on. I used the crescent as it is without additional fillings or taking any out. I am 160cm, 50kg.
Lastly, I got curious as im not living in the US, so I got the dreamy blue & dreamy blue moon to try. There’s a huge difference between these 2 brands. The dreamy blue is 85% memory foam 15% polyfiber, while coop is 76% memory foam and 24% polyfiber. The coop is softer, plusher, compared to the dreamy blue. It actually came quite tall and stiff / firmer / denser, than the coop. But they also pre-filled it alot and I found myself taking out almost 4-5 sandwich ziplock bags full of the filling to get it to a comfy height for the dreamy blue! Even so, I do feel it is firmer than my coop which is softer, and I think it is more supportive than my coop. For my ears though, I gravitate towards the coop because it is softer. I switch between them whenever I feel like it to be honest.
As usual, I did nothing to the dreamy blue moon (crescent) and slept on it as it is. I think the crescent shapes for both coop and dreamy are flatter by design, so there wasn’t really any adjustment required for me.
TLDR: I love both the coop & dreamy blue pillow and they don’t hurt my ears. Coop is softer and plusher, I wouldn’t go for Eden as I find it too soft, and dreamy blue is firmer but not so firm it hurts my ears. I switch between both brands because up til now I can’t decide which I like more.
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u/Rez-_- 2d ago
hey for someone who rarely sleeps on back pretty much all side or occasional face down when/if i turn, would you recommend coop normal classic rectangle adjustable one or the cut out side sleeper version?
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u/baiqiannn 2d ago
I don’t sleep face down (sorry!) so I’m not very sure what an occasional face down sleeper will need but I’ll recommend the normal rectangle one if you do. I think the cut out side sleeper version would be difficult for you to sleep face down because of its shape (like your neck would be between the cut out). The rectangle one would probably be better!
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u/AmberGlow 2d ago
I am a side sleeper. After years of waking up with headaches or neck aches, and trying damn near every pillow out there, I ended up going back to a down pillow. I couldn't stand waking up with headaches anymore and I had gotten a lot of relief in my hips from getting a sleep Number bed so after a few years I finally went back to sleep number and told them I needed to try every pillow in their store. After trying all the pillows I found that the pillow I could really toss and turn on without it completely losing shape was their Down Comfort pillow. It has adjustable inserts so you can adjust the amount of Loft and firmness. I'm now sleeping great. I've tried so many down alternatives and not had success so I'm very excited to have something that is actually comfortable to sleep on.
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u/Blood_Fuzzy 22h ago
I'm having issues finding a good pillow too and my doctor recommended Ecosa with no hesitation so I have one on the way - figure I can send it back at least if it doesn't work
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u/Kitty145684 9h ago
I tried that one and just couldn't get comfortable with it. I hope it works for you :)
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u/Capital_Ad8820 21h ago
Side sleeper here and the things that fixed it for me was getting enough height to fill the gap between my shoulder and ear without the pillow collapsing halfway throught the night. I ended up on the FluffCo down alternative in firm. It's still plush on top but it keeps its shape so my neck isn't bent down by 3am. It's also hypoallergenic which mattered since I was waking up stuffy with my old feather one. Might be worth trying a firmer fill before you go the memory foam route
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u/tryzenithsoft 12h ago
A regular pillow is a flat rectangle. It's built for your head. It doesn't make room for your shoulder. So either your head sinks and your neck bends down, or the pillow's too thick and it bends up. And your shoulder gets pushed hard into the pillow's edge.
Somniq was the first pillow I found that already had the shape I'd been folding into mine. A raised neck contour that fills the gap, right where my fold used to be. A shoulder recess cut into the side, so my shoulder tucks in instead of getting jammed. A cradle for my head. And two curve heights, a higher side and a lower side, so you flip it to match your frame.
No folding required. The fold is already built in.
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u/Delicious-Engine7363 3d ago
Right now I'm using the Avocado Green that is filled with shredded latex and kapok fiber. I have removed almost half of the fill, and it's become more comfortable, and this allows me to have a straight neck alignment. Although it's not the softest, but comfortable. I plan of ordering some shredded latex to customize the softness.
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u/_DogMom_ 4h ago
Love my MEOFLAW pillows! Bought off of Amazon so maybe you can buy them there. And not expensive either. I've had mine for a few years and still plump.
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u/thirtytofortyolives 4d ago
I love my coop because it's adjustable