Pregnancy is a long tough road… but all worth it in the end when you see that bub.
(So they keep telling me)
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Anyway! Something I decided I had to try as I got more uncomfortable in my late pregnancy was invest in a body pillow! I love sleeping on my belly so pregnancy has got tougher and tougher the further along I have got!
So solution! Pregnancy Pillow……
There are actually a range of pillows that can be really beneficial for helping you with comfort during your pregnancy. Especially as you near the end and your discomfort increases! Today I will be focusing on the body pillow which I have tried myself but I also have a couple of other recommendations before to that may be the right option for you!
- Tri Pillow
- Pregnancy Pillow
- Body Pillow Review
- The Idea Of Body Pillow
- First Impressions
- Why I love it
- Pros
- Cons
- Things To Improve
- Do I Recommend It?
The first is a pillow I have! Tri pillows… so comfy and you can use it for sitting up or for feeding! They are just a cozy supportive feeling pillow which can be great throughout pregnancy!
Having the ability to use this as a feeding pillow and a normal pillow is a great benefit as nursing pillow really are only practical for that exact purpose.
The second one I haven’t actually tried but it is similar to the body pillow and I would guess it has even more positives and features!
The pregnancy pillow is a u shaped pillow that supports you from every angle! Especially as you get to the third trimester and things get really uncomfortable.
It allows you to lie either side with belly and leg support which is so essential, especially of you struggle with night cramps in your legs being able to find a position to sleep in that is comfy and allows you to stretch out and avoid those painful cramps!
THE BODY PILLOW REVIEW:
The body pillow is designed to help with support in the lower legs and hips which is so helpful when your ankles start to swell and pressure may be put on to your sciatic nerve.
Sciatic nerve pain can be really horrific and hard to manage so taking steps to help your pain is really important!
Supporting your legs from the hips down to the knee and ankles! It takes pressure off your hip bending inward and stops pressure on the sciatic nerve! Avoiding this pain can make life a lot easier during the third trimester.
You can also utilize this pillow in supporting your belly if your a stomach sleeper (like myself) it can allow you to lean like your on your tummy but protect bubs at the same time!
Also it can be great for back sleepers (also me) because later in pregnancy you are advised against lying on your back, leaning against the body pillow again prevents me from rolling on to my back and eliminated the nerves regarding sleeping on your back!
First Impression of body pillow: My first impression of this pillow was wow that is packed into a small bag! But size wise the pillow does not disappoint!
Straight away I was like yess this is so great! When I pulled it out it was almost as tall as me and I stand at about 5″11! This pillow is exactly what it looks like!
Taking it and putting it on our bed it almost reaches from top to bottom! I honestly couldn’t help thinking yes this is fantastic!
I struggle with leg pain when I am not pregnant which means I have on and off battled with bad sciatic nerve pain through this pregnancy.
One thing I have always done is used a pillow either under my knees or between my knees and ankles! It works amazingly just simple elevation for dealing with leg pain.
So my first thoughts with this pillow were “Where has this been all my life?”
Plus as a kid I used to love my bed against the wall and I would sleep on one pillow and have one set up so I couldn’t ‘roll’ out of my bed. So this pillow is like a giant barrier!
Why its so good: I love this pillow so much for a range of reasons! It is my dream pillow without a doubt… the reason it is so great is to help leg pain.
The best pregnancy pillow in my eyes for various reasons but definitely because of its ability to help manage leg cramps and sciatic nerve pain.
For me I either sleep on my back (spika casts teach you to sleep on your back) or sleep on my tummy, so now at 34 weeks pregnant when I can’t sleep either of those ways.
This pillow solves that problems! I can sleep ‘leaning’ on my tummy so baby has space I’m comfy my leg is lifted and the weight is taken off it making me so much more comfortable.
Or… I can lean against it on my back so I am propped up so I am not on my back and not limiting any blood or oxygen supply to baby! It means it is super easy for me to prop myself back up if I wake up on my back during the night!
If you want to know more on back sleeping during pregnancy this is a great resource: BACK SLEEPING WHEN PREGNANT
For me having a pillow long enough for me to cuddle into at the top and to support my hips, my knees and my ankles means I am sleeping sounder!
I am only a couple of weeks in and I look forward to updating this review post in a few months time to see if the benefits have continues!
I have had no sciatic nerve pain since starting with this pillow. Touch wood of course, the pressure being taken off that nerve is a super important part of the recipe for avoiding sciatic nerve pain.
Overall I am in love with the benefits of this pillow but I do have a few bits of feedback…
Pros: So lets look at the pros of this pillow!
- The ability to support your legs – Leg support especially during pregnancy is so vital!
- Support for lying on either your back, or on your tummy!
- Helps with sciatic nerve pain
- Opportunity to cuddle the pillow/hang on to it – helps with anxiety
Cons: Now lets look at the cons of the pillow…
- Length- the length of this pillow is both good and bad! Its length makes it difficult to shift inside your bed but makes it so much more functional so its a win/lose I guess!
- Bulky – Again similar to the above point this pillow is bulky to move in the middle of the night when your half asleep!
- Runs away! When you lose this pillow in the middle of the night it really sucks but cause it is so large I have never actually had it fall completely off!
- Putting the pillow case on- Putting the pillow case on is a bit of a mission make sure you have some water near by for after! lol (It isn’t that bad)
Things I would change: Overall this is seriously a great pillow for leg pain and I am so glad I have it, I am stuck on what I would actually change. I guess I would make it slightly thinner so maybe easier to move but again this doesn’t really solve it cause then it might not be so so so comfy! But oh my gosh the pros out way the cons so in the end its great!
Do I recommend it? Yep, I sure do! This body pillow is great for anyone who may be pregnant, thinking about getting pregnant or even someone managing leg pain, I will continue to use this pillow even after bub comes! It will be helpful to when I am feeding and up late and its flexibility makes it work for a range of situations.
Get your own pillow with the link below!
Have you tried a pillow during pregnancy I should know about? Let me know below!
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