pillow recommendation?

[kris]

<span style='font-size: 11'> <span style='font-family: Georgia'> </span> <span style="color: #6600CC"> dialysis is become it's own form of torture. i have to sit in hard & VERY uncomfortable recliner.....they insist we are reclined to maintain blood pressure. i simply cannot watch the tv or read my book while laying back like that ~~~ precisely why i've always hated recliner. so there i sit with-my neck at a very awkward angle which quickly becomes quite painful. i've been searching & searching for something that will relieve this.

basic requirements:
~~~ must be fairly firm
~~~ not to big/bulky as it must be transported back & forth
~~~ shape doesn't matter
~~~ not to expensive of course

i found one on amazon but you put water in it which would make it to heavy to be portable. i also found one of those homedics shiatsu pillows that massage & get warm. actually sounds like heaven, but try as i might i can't find out if it's battery operated or you plug it in. no wires in any of the photos lol.

i've also looked at those memory pillows but i heard they tend to get forgetful after awhile HEE & this is definitely a commitment situation.

kris </span> </span>

 

[hearts and roses]

I bought H one of those memory pillows and he liked it at first, but then he said it felt to stiff under his head. I use it when my back goes out to put under my knees or between my knees when I lie on my side - and it's a lifesaver. They are lightweight also. I have a friend who loves hers!

 

[kris]

<span style='font-size: 11'> <span style='font-family: Georgia'> <span style="color: #3333FF"> i just realized what exactly i want this pillow/back support to do. bring my neck/head/shoulders to a regular sitting position while still supine & taking the strain off said head/neck/shoulders. tall order, i know.

kris </span> </span> </span>

 

[meowbunny]

Would the u-shaped car pillows work? At least it's relatively cheap to try one.

 

[Hopeless]

Kris - I had an anterior cervical fusion surgery in 2002 and I have used an orthopedic memory pillow ever since. It is shaped funny, but it really helps support my head and neck area. I use it on the couch or chair on occassion when I am reading or watching TV too. I think mine was around $60 but an investment because my surgeon said no more than one pillow when laying down and it could not be a "thick" pillow. The price has come way down since 2002 on these type of pillows.

 

[flutterbee]

I vote for the memory foam, too. I would love to have a whole bed made of that stuff, but can't afford it. When I sit on one, immediately my pain is eased.

Another thought is a long body pillow. I don't know if you have to be on your back for dialysis or if you can kind of turn on your side a bit, but those are good for curling up against.

 

[Stella Johnson]

There is a chain of stores all over Dallas called "Relax the Back". I'm not sure if they are in Florida or not though. They are usually around or in malls. THey have ever type of pillow known to man. Might try there but I have to warn you they are pricey.

steph

 

[ctmom05]

<span style='font-family: Courier New'>My husband - who has back pain - has a Wamsutta Magic Gel Pillow that he really likes. Of course, the term "magic" is a ha ha. </span>

 

[Marguerite]

The problem with a gel pillow or water pillow - gravity. it's OK if you're lying flat, but any sort of slope at all and the sag downwards.

I bought a memory foam pillow and find it is too firm for me. It's not bad if it's plumped up, but the problems begin when the pillow case and the liner inside get a bit twisted around the pillow. You need to give such a pillow room to relax itself. If it's confined too tightly, it doesn't rebound properly and you get a really hard pillow. The same thing happens if the liner or the pillowcase gets twisted. The trouble is, the latex these are made from 'grabs' at the fabric of the liner, and it twists around it really easily.

It can be managed, though. We just unzip the pillowcase then unzip the liner. We straighten it all out and make sure it's all lined up with plenty of room for the latex pillow inside.

I need a really SOFT pillow. So after having my neurologist continue to nag, I finally bought a down pillow. Not cheap, about the same price as the expensive memory foam, but it's good. The only problem - it packs down after a while and you have to grab it and fluff it up again. it does fluff up easily, though.

Shiatsu - only for the tough. I had a shiatsu massage which left me bruised and I blamed the masseuse for overdoing it. Then a few weeks ago I sat in one of those shiatsu massage chairs and had to lean away from that massage thingie on my back. Even so, I was left bruised (again). I hate to think what I would have been like if it had not been set on "gentle" and I hadn't leaned away from it!

Another pillow possibility - those 'squishie' ones. They are filled with very tine polystyrene beads which mould to your shape. The fabric is usually stretchy. I bought a log-shaped vibrating one (battery powered) for $10 - the price was right) and we use it to massage feet, back etc but I also keep it in the car so I can rest my head on it when I'm catnapping in the car. difficult child 3 uses it too. Very comfortable. And small enough to not be too badly affected by gravity.

Strong recommendation - try before you buy. And try it in the recliner (or similar) so you know how it will feel.

Marg

 

[busywend]

Kris, I use the memory foam and Marg is right - it gets twisted. I also do not think it would be what you are looking for.

You need something like a wedge I think. That is thinner at the back and gets thicker as it reaches your head so it supports and lifts the entire back/neck/head at an angle.

How about these?

http://about.pricegrabber.com/search_get...about_heartburn

http://www.onlinesports.com/pages/I,MKM-...easy child-_-MKM-COR195

http://heartburn.about.com/b/2006/08/25/wedge-pillows.htm