Can it be helpful to sleep without a pillow?

I get this question often. What do you think about sleeping with no pillow? Personally, I do not recommend it.

Here is the problem with using no pillow at all: Laying flat is not recommended because you are NOT supporting the natural curvature in your neck. Your natural neck curve is a "C" in the cervical spine- not straight, so you are putting extra stress on your neck (cervical spine) when sleeping with no support. Even if you don't sleep with a pillow, you can also use a towel roll as well (in the shape of a cylinder) to support your cervical spine.

Another suggesstion instead of using a neck pillow at night, create a simple towel roll: this will give you the proper neck support that you need. Dr. Matthew Bellinger in glastonbury CT shows you how to make a towel roll for neck support.

Additional Reading Resources:

• The Bow Tie Pillow for Neck and Shoulder Pain Sufferers
• Neck Exercises for Neck Pain
• Doing Cervical Traction at HOME- Protocol for Neck Pain Relief from a Pinched Nerve in the Neck
• Arc4life Cervical Traction Neck Pillow- Contoured neck pillow that helps neck pain and stiff neck
• The Right Pillow for a Herniated Disc in the Neck