Comfortable sleeping.....
 

Hi,

Im just after a bit of advice about sleeping....or more to the point, how to sleep comfortably!.

I use my electric head pad a lot and usually fall asleep on it, however as the weather hots up im not able to do this and getting to sleep is difficult. Before TOS i used to sleep on either my side or stomach....cant do either of those anymore and it took me a long time to adjust sleeping on my back.

I have tried a memory foam pillow but it was uncomfortable...

Just wondering if anyone has any suggestions?!

We have a waterbed and put a memory foam topper on it saves on the heating and the topper really helps with extra comfort.
We added the topper when hubby hurt his back and really liked it.

the topper retains body heat so that is a nice plus

and a memory foam type curved pillow

be careful sleeping with heating pads you could get burned if it malfunctions:(

many of the others prop themselves with extra pillows

Thanks Jo,

Im going to have a look for waterbeds but im not sure i can afford one at the moment. I have got a memory foam matress topperk, it has made some difference but not a lot.

I also wake up in the morning in really awkward positions, like on my stomach or neck at an angle - which leaves sore, this is something i just cant control....dont think that there is anything i can do about that though!

I have just found this website which sells something called a mediflow pillow - part water filled and part soft fibres....

http://www.inpeakcondition.com/products/mediflow.html

it looks pretty good to me and they are cheaper on ebay!

We bought a sleep number bed. It was $ 5000 for a king here in Canada. That should come to a nice $2500 in the states. I also got myself a u-shaped pillow which helps a lot. I am also going to get some other pillows to help. Anyway got to go get my daughter to dance.

Tracy- I just posted something in the TOS Tips for Comfort thread: http://neurotalk.psychcentral.com/sh...281#post286281
it might be of a lil bit of help :confused:

Thanks Di,

I've not ever tried using anything that cools the area...i will google the products you mention - i live in the Uk but im sure i can find something similar here....or on good old ebay!.

I did get a little worried about heatpads after i read on here about the small amount of radiation that they give off.....

Thanks for that, what a good idea!! Im going to make one of those later....

Hi Tracy,
 

I just wanted to say, I use a heating pad for pelvic pain and the way I deal with getting to hot is putting a fan at the bottom of the bed to keep me cool. It does work. I have done this for years. All through my TOS era and what I am going through now.

Ada

Have you tried ice or the cool gel packs ? I know they can cause more problems for those who also have RSD (maybe what caused my RSD ?) but I could not live without ice packs.

I can't sleep on my back............embarrassed to say, but I'm a snorer. I sleep on my non affected side with pillows to support my affected arm from leaning forward. I have a good memory foam pillow that is higher than some of the cheaper models that I have seen. It cradles my head/neck just perfect sleeping on my side, but I don't find it comfortable if I lay on my back (to read)

sleeping on my back used to be difficult for me, too. I generally go to sleep on my heating pad, it has a timer to turn off after an hour. In the warmer months i just put it on a really low heat setting, however i am in CA where it is very rarely very hot.

I have found the use of a pillow under my knees really takes the pressure off my low back- you know how at the PT you lay on the table and they have the wedge thing that they put under you legs that is so comfy....well i try to mimic that feeling with a pillow. It also helps me be comfy enough not to want to roll over.

I also really like my buckwheat pillow. You can mold it exactly to your head, and then it doesn't move, you just stay supported in exactly the comfy place. I learned in feldenkrais how to do it correctly, to make sure your head is supported at a flat level instead of at an incline. I have found that i can mimic this with the buckwheat pillow. It can be sort of hard, though, so if i have any amount of headache (like 50% of the time), I have a really soft and fluffy goose down pillow which serves a very similar fun tion but is super soft.

Actually, the fluffy soft goose down pillow has been a favorite for years....especially when i have a bad headache, it just feels like my head is on a cloud.

i also find that my needs and preferences change over time, so no solution is one size fits all :)

i do like the rice sock, i have been meaning to make on of those but haven't gotten around to it.

thanks finz!

I hate sleeping on my back too - before TOS i used to sleep on either side or my stomach and would love to be able to just drop off to sleep like i used to....now sleep has become a mission and just getting in the right position takes forever- its such a pain!. I havent tried ice packs yet - i have always found heat to be so soothing - i am going to get some asap to give it a try though....

thanks johannakat!

i also use my heating pad on a very low heat at night time to fall asleep on....it does switch off after 90 mins - but more often than not i have switched it off when i feel im on the brink of nodding off!.

i have just found something called a mediflow pillow - soft and fluffy on the top and waterfilled underneath (which can be part filled or fully filled depending on your comfort!) sounds really good to me - it does cost £40 (approx $70?) I think im going to invest in the most expensive pillow ever!!....im going to look into a buckweat pillow too now.

back sleeping
 

I had to learn to sleep on my back as well so as to avoid my arms going numb. I used a memory foam pillow under my neck and something rolled up between my shoulder blades. But it wasn't until I experimented with pillows that go under the knees and ended up with a 6 inch memory foam knee pillow that I was finally able to successfully sleep on my back.

Hi i have a water pillow it is great i don't know what i would do with out it. It is heavy there for you can't get your arms under it like if you were to sleep on your side so now i have had to sleep on my back. I am glad that comp got it for me they are a little expensive. I just wish i could get comp to bye me a bed lo lo

since Biofreeze was mentioned as something to try I would also recommend Chinagel. chinagel.com I use lidoderm patches too but the OverTheCounter topicals are a lot less expensive.

Hiya,

Thanks for all the advice- think im going to give the water pillow a try seeing you've had sucess with it....think i'd pay anything at the moment for a good nights rest!

Also have ordered some cool pads to give that a go too!
x