Pillows are part and parcel of our sleep accessories. They’re introduced to us at quite an early age which makes you get used to sleeping on a pillow and very difficult to sleep without it. However, is sleeping on a soft fluffy pillow with a light fluffy cover the best thing for you? If you sometimes wake up with a headache, chest pains, anxiety, or a sore neck for no reason, these could be signs of poor quality sleep which can be caused by the quality of your pillow. You may have heard that sleeping with a pillow isn’t the best for you and with good reason. According to research, sleeping without a pillow can have a lot of health benefits.
Sleeping at a neutral position
According to sleep experts and chiropractors, it’s good if you find a neutral position to sleep in. This means your neck and spine will be properly aligned when sleeping without any curving or tilting of your body. However, your sleeping position will be the determining factor on whether you should sleep with a pillow or not. The way you place your pillow can help in keeping your neck and spine aligned while you sleep. The fact is none of us can maintain a neutral sleeping position the whole night. You toss and turn changing your sleeping position severally throughout the night so you need to place your pillow at certain points to help keep your spine aligned while you sleep. If your body isn’t properly aligned when you’re asleep, you will wake up with aches and pains.
Benefits of sleeping without a pillow
- Prevent acne and wrinkles
If you sleep sideways, you most probably rest your face on your pillow. Your pillow cover can contain dirt, dust, and bacteria that can stick to your skin which can cause breakouts and acne. When your face is pressed against your pillow, there is no room for your skin pores to perspire and breathe. This increases perspiration and a buildup of grease and oil on your face. Your face pores also come in contact with dust and other impurities on your pillow’s surface that causes blackheads. You can also get wrinkles because of the pressure from your head resting on the pillow the whole night.
- Prevent back pain
One of the main reasons why you suffer from back pain is because of bad posture and the wrong pillow. A bad mattress is also a contributing factor to back problems. Using many pillows or overstuffed pillows can cause your body to have an unnatural sleeping position. You can sleep without a pillow, but for some sleeping positions, a thin pillow will be better. For example, if you’re a back sleeper and experience lower back pains, you’re advised to sleep on a firm mattress like a Tempurpedic mattress with little contouring and a thin pillow to support your back.
- Improve your sleep quality
According to research, sleeping without a pillow is said to improve the quality of your sleep. If you don’t use any head or neck support while sleeping, your body is able to find the best natural sleeping position to rest. When you sleep you shouldn’t strain your muscles, your body should be able to rest and relax so that it can recover from the stresses of the day. Sleeping without a pillow prevents sleeping problems like insomnia, nightmares, and waking up regularly.
- Prevents stress
Sleeping in the wrong position using the wrong pillow can cause you to constantly wake up during the night. This causes you to be irritable and stressed out the whole day because of lack of adequate sleep which also messes with your mood. Sleeping without a pillow can help improve the quality of your sleep, reduce your stress levels, and prevent your risk of mental and physical illnesses.
- Improve your energy levels
You may wonder how sleeping without a pillow improves your energy levels, but it’s simple. Once you get rid of your pillow you no longer experience neck or back pains. Your body is able to get all the rest it deserves and replenish all the lost energy. With quality sleep and rest, you wake up the following day feeling well rested and energized.
- Helps with bone alignment
The daily activities you carry out every day can cause you to adopt a bad posture most of the time. Sleeping without a pillow can help bring your posture back to normal and align your bone structure. This will reduce bone problems like the humpback and other bone-related problems.
- Prevent neck pains
The pillow you use should align your neck parallel to your mattress without bending it up or down. But, most pillows don’t offer the right support which makes your sleeping position worse causing neck pains. If you don’t use any pillows, your head maintains a natural position which prevents any nerve damage and strain on your neck muscles.
- Enhance your creativity and memory
Getting good quality sleep can help to improve your memory and creativity. When you’re asleep your mind is able to sort out all the information you’ve gathered during the day and store it. This strengthens the emotional part of your memory and increases your creativity levels. Sleeping without a pillow will help you sleep better and your body will get enough rest which is good for your mental and physical health.
- Helps repair damaged body cells
When you’re asleep it’s the only time your body can heal and repair any damaged cells caused by stress, the sun’s rays, and other harmful exposures. The healing and repair process is more effective if you get uninterrupted sleep the whole night. When you’re asleep your cells produce a protein that helps to repair the damage done and sleeping without a pillow can ensure that you get quality sleep to give your body a chance to heal itself.
Final thoughts
Sleeping without a pillow has many benefits, but for people who sleep on their side, snore, or have glaucoma this isn’t the ideal position. For everyone else, it’s a great position to sleep on to improve the quality of your sleep and your health in general.
