The Queen of Neck Pillows

Thank You Cervical Traction Neck Pillow!

Thanks to my neck pilow I was able to get rid of my neck and shoulder pain in one day. 

Here's what happened - I was watching American Idol, and I fell asleep on the couch in a bad position for my neck.  Maybe if the singers this year didn't seem so BAD, I might have stayed awake...?

Earlier that day I had done alot of driving; very stressful highway driving in bad weather I might add; and I knew that it had started to irritate my neck and shoulder.

Anyway, to make a long story short, when I woke up, I was hurting.  I used an ice pack to calm it down, then I went to bed and slept with my traction pillow...

...Next morning - No More Neck Pain!  Thanks to my pillow, not only did I get to sleep comfortably, but I didn't have to spend the next day in agonizing pain.

How Can The Cervical Traction Neck Pillow Help Correct My Posture?

This is very important.  When your neck posture is poor, that means your spine is also in poor alignment.  The traction neck pillow helps to restore good posture by correcting your neck alignment.

 

The neck roll that is built into the pillow helps to correct and/or maintain the normal cervical lordosis – your neck curve!  This is done when you lay on your back.  Correcting the neck curve helps to eliminate forward neck posture and a military neck.

 

When on your side, the pillow keeps your head level.  This equates to when you look at your posture from the front or back – your posture should be straight up and down here.  The neck curve is seen from the side view.  Too many people sleep with too much pillow, or not enough pillow.  This either cranks your neck up or down when on your side.  When your on your back, too much pillow will flex your head forward and no support will flatten your neck curve.

 

If you use the pillow regularly it works to train your body and spine to stay in good position and normal posture.

Losing Your Favorite Pillow Can Be A Pain in the Neck

Recently I received the following question on my blog, www.neckpainsupport.com:

"For years I slept with a cervical support pillow, and there was nothing better - fell asleep quickly, good support, perfect softness, no pain when I woke up. Unfortunately, someone stole this pillow while I was away on vacation, so I went back to the same chiropractor to buy another. He swears it's the same pillow, but I'm not convinced because the material feels harder and my neck is killing me. Nothing has happened to my neck between then and now. Do our necks change with age?"

Hi Kat, this is a great question. Yes our cervical neck spine can change. Sometimes the change can be for the worse because of poor neck posture. For example, forward head posture. This type of neck posture puts a tremendous amount of stress on our joints, muscles and can cause neck pain, upper back pain etc.

Also, you can get degenerative changes in the joints. Arthritis can develop which can cause a lot of pain and stiffness. Have you been involved in any type of trauma such as whiplash in the last few weeks? This can cause a lot of pain as well, as well as limited range of motion.

Cervical Support Neck Pillows can change with time, depending on the material that is inside them. It is also natural for a pillows to break down over time. The firmness that was originally in the pillow may not be in a few years.

I think that it is going to take some time for you to get used to your pillow. There are some things you can do to help alleviate the pain.

• If you are experiencing soreness in the morning, use moist heat. If this is only happening once in a while, use an ice pack on your neck and upper back area
• Use a natural pain relief gel on your neck and upper back such as biofreeze. This can give you a lot of pain relief and help with range of motion as well.
• Don't use your pillow for the entire night. Start by using it for a few hours. When it gets uncomfortable use another pillow that is softer. You will find that you can sleep longer and longer. It is going to get some time for your neck to get used to
• You may be right. Maybe this is a different cervical support pillow all together. Does the pillow have a different side to it that is softer? Try changing the position of the pillow. For example, I often recommend the linear gravity cervical support pillow has two different neck rolls on it. Once side is softer than the other.
• Have your posture and alignment checked. If you are spending a lot of time on the computer, check your computer ergonomics. Get adjusted.
• Compare the pillow that you had by the size and also the material that is was composed of. Foam and polyester fiber pillows feel very different.
• Do some neck stretches in the morning
• Get your neck posture checked. If you have forward head posture, there are exercises that you can do: Exercises to Correct Forward Head Posture
• Just give it some time. Using a new pillow will take some time to get used to.

Hope this helps you out Kat. – NJ

Additional Reading Resources:

• Stages of Breakdown in the Neck
• How to Limit the Degeneration in your Neck and Other Joints
• Which Neck Pillow is Right for My Needs?
• How Does One Buy a Pillow?
• The Neck Pain Relif Kit

A Neck Pillow Does Much More than Support the Neck …

    In fact, giving the neck adequate support and keeping the nerves in the neck free from pressure will ultimately help lower areas of the body.  The main control center of the body is the brain.  It sends nervous system communication down the spinal cord and out the nerves to every part of the body. 

    If you think about it, all information passes through the neck before it goes anywhere else.  Therefore keeping the communication highway clear (by keeping the neck in place) will allow messages to be sent with no interference. 

    Keeping the neck in good position means the nerves are working with no blockages.  Putting strains on this region can result in neck pain, but also hand and arm problems, upper back pain, headaches, or eventually something worse.

    Using a good neck pillow is one step in maintaining a healthy, pain-free lifestyle from the top down. 

 

I Like Sleeping Without A Pillow, Can This Be Bad For Me?

 

In our last post we talked about too much pillow; using too little pillow or no pillow can be a problem as well.  If there is no support for the neck it has the same effect.  On your back it tends to flatten the curve, on your side your head will be tilted downward.  Simply because there is nothing there to fill in the gap between your head and shoulder.

 

Most people I find that don’t use a pillow are stomach sleepers which is a major problem itself.  Try using a towel roll to give you some support and get you used to having some support.  Then work up to the linear gravity pillow or traction pillow.  The V-pillow or traction pillow also works well to hold you in position.