Photo: Pixel-Shot (Shutterstock)
You don’t have to be a “bed-rotter” to appreciate the perfect pillow: Many of us have carefully constructed our sleep space, from how many pillows (and what kind and where they’re placed), to the temperature of the room and the texture of the sheets. To throw a gigantic U-shaped wrench into the picture, I present to you: the pregnancy pillow.
A note on marketing language: You do not need to be pregnant to get a pregnancy pillow. In fact, I, a determinedly childless person, am here to advocate for anyone to consider trying one, pregnant or not.
What is a pregnancy pillow?
Remember those gigantic stuffed animal snakes they had at carnivals? You’d see people walking around with them wrapped around their body, the only possible way to carry them. That’s the basic concept of a pregnancy pillow. These life-size “U”- or “C”-shaped pillows go entirely around your body as you lay down to completely support you.
If you’re a side sleeper, they support your back and give you the perfect pillow to wrap both your arms and knees around. On your back, they can create a hammock for you, so you’re cradled. You can contort them any way you want to support you, so you can even wrap them around you while sitting up to provide lumbar support and a place to rest your arms at the same time. Here are the different types:
The U-shaped pregnancy pillow: U-shaped pillows are designed to offer full body support because you can effectively support the spine, belly, head, neck, and knees. It takes up more room because it’s bigger, but it has more versatility because there’s more pillow to contort.The C-shaped pregnancy pillow: A smaller pillow, C-shaped pillows are designed for specific support areas, rather than the whole body. Mostly, it helps with alignment and spinal support of your back. A C-shaped pillow tends to hold you closer, by design, rather than the U, which has two loose ends. For that reason, it can’t be contorted the same way as the U.J-shaped pillows: These variants provide support to one side of your body, depending on your use. You wrap your lower body around them, for spine alignment, but you can either adjust the stem of the pillow to support your back or front.What are the best pregnancy pillows?
As a non-pregnant person, I still have found myself becoming quite on top of my pillow game as I get older. One U-shaped pillow replaced most of them. I also like how it feels supportive in a way a partner doesn’t; the way it envelops you on all sides is weirdly comforting, too. But here are some options for you to explore:
How to take care of a pregnancy pillow
Most pillows come with washable covers, so simply taking it out and making sure to put it through a wash cycle, according to the directions on the pillow, is all you need to do.
