So it’s no secret that I suffer from major insomnia that has been ongoing since the fall of 2011. I’ve done sleep studies, seen every kind of doctor under the moon, and tried all sorts of things to get better sleep. What doesn’t work: lavender (I’m allergic), sleep rituals (my insomnia is can’t-stay-asleep), white noise, tea, meditation/yoga, melatonin or other supplements, nutrition changes…you know what, pretty much “what doesn’t work” equals “everything.” I basically get by using a combination of medications while making sure that outside factors (anxiety, body pain, light, noise, hunger, bladder, interruptions, etc) don’t wake me up more often than I already wake in the night. This is why Jason and I no longer share a bedroom, why I use blackout curtains, why Ash is quarantined in a different room than me, etc. It’s a delicate balance that doesn’t always work, but I do what I can to improve conditions so that the insomnia is the least disruptive it can be.

Enter: pillows. I’m a side-sleeper who had a neck injury at age 20 and was born with crooked feet. Consequently, my neck, upper back, and hips are easily locked up and kinked. I see a chiropractor monthly to help keep me straightened out, in addition to doing lots of yoga, stretching, and massage. Pillows, however, are the worst. It’s been years since I’ve found a comfortable pillow. (Literally, since 2006.) I’ve been getting by with what I can find and just replacing them monthly as they wear out. Yes, MONTHLY. I can easily go through 12 to 20 pillows in a year. I’ve also periodically tried out specialty pillows that are meant to help side-sleepers (pic above): boomerang-shaped, candy-cane shaped, pillows with a hole for your head in the middle, those memory foam ones with the bump for the neck (turns out I’m allergic to memory foam!). Nothing works. Too thick, or the filling becomes less supportive quickly, or it all bunches up on one side, etc.

For the last year or two, I’ve used crap-ass “cooling” pillows from Walmart, which sometimes last eight weeks and sometimes less than one. When Jason recently had to go to Walmart for a new router, he tried to get me a new pillow as mine was old enough to cause severe neck pain. They were all out, though – the entire pillow area was ransacked – so I began a new search for specialty pillows. Ironically, my search turned up no concrete results, but triggered ads on social media, which led me to Infinite Moon and their Everpillow.

The Everpillow comes in several varieties, but I chose the original with mixed latex and silk filling. The pillow is size-customizable by using only the amount of filling that works for you, and comes with an extra bag to hold the filling you don’t need. This extra filling can be added to the pillow over time as the used filling flattens out, and the package includes a coupon for extra filling in the future. I was wary of buying this pillow was it was really expensive ($89 pre-tax), but found out it had a 100-day trial attached and decided to go for it.

The pillow arrived on the 1st. It comes vacuum-sealed and with all the filling inside the pillow. Immediately on pulling it from the packaging, I laid down on the floor with it and felt immediate relief in my whole body. The thickness was perfect, the filling and cover were soft, and there was perfect support. The pillow was much heavier and denser than a normal pillow, while still remaining soft. On moving it to my bed, I found that the thickness was too much (since your body sinks into the bed in a way it doesn’t on the floor!). Over the next week, I stuffed and unstuffed the pillow until I found the perfect size (about half). My neck hasn’t felt this comfortable on a pillow since I was in college!

There’s still a lot of days to go in my 100-day trial, but I’m already considering this pillow to be a success. I can see myself using it for years, replacing filling as needed, rather than cycling through crap-quality $10 pillows every month or so. Definitely worth the cost (and cost-effective in the long run!) and I highly recommend this to folks who suffer from insomnia or neck pain while they sleep!!