Sleeping Well: Share Your Favorite Mattresses, Pillows and More!
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My husband and I were talking the other day about how we often wake up with a backache… so we may be looking for a new mattress! It got me thinking about how important sleep is — so let's discuss mattresses, pillows, cooling gels, and other products you love to help you get a good night's sleep!
In the past we've talked about tips for optimizing SLEEP itself, as well as pajamas and the best sheets — but not for actual mattresses, pillows and more!
Quick hits: tell us your favorite:
- mattress
- pillow
- “sleep extra,” if any
So do tell, readers — what are your best tips for finding the right mattress? What products have you tried and loved? Have you tried some of the best products that SHOULD work for your “sleeping style” and… not liked them? How many mattresses/pillows have you returned; how many have you just chucked in a closet and said, welp, that was a mistake, and started the hunt anew?
For my $.02, I JUST went through this with a pillow. In the past, I've liked side-sleeping pillows with an indent, but I just got one of the top-rated ones and MEH. (Maybe I just need to take out some of the stuffing. I have a short neck.)
Other products I've heard of that are supposed to be incredible for sleep include some of these (below) — but readers, I'd love your thoughts! What do you swear by for sleep?
Some great sleep aids if you're struggling with sleep issues…
I've heard great things (from both the Corporette readers and Wirecutter!) about how great Tuft & Needle mattresses are — so that's what my husband and I are leaning toward in our mattress research. They start at $445 for a full mattress (Presidents' Day sale pricing).
I am still on the hunt for a great side-sleeper pillow — I love the fill and feel of this one I just got from Nest Bedding, but I feel like the indent for the side gets too big or something when I'm sleeping.
I will also note that all of the cool-gel pillows I've bought in recent years have been really amazing. I have one that's too hard and one that's too soft, so they're sort of “alternate pillows” we keep in the middle of the bed — but if you run hot at night, the cool gel pillows are amazing.
Another product I'll give a shoutout to is a knee pillow. SUPER SEXY, I KNOW. But I got started with these during one of my pregnancies — they're supposed to help your alignment — and over the years changed to one of these more compact versions. (We've bought two of the pictured knee pillow over the years and like them; they're $20 each at Amazon.)
They all come with a zippered outside that you CAN take off in theory, but I find it a pain so I just cover mine with a toddler-sized pillowcase we have left over from when my kids were small (similar to these).
One final product that I'll give a shout-out to (I haven't tried it, though!) is the chiliPAD. My friends who are about 5–10 years older than me and dealing with perimenopause and menopause swear by this, even though it's crazy expensive. From the product page:
We sleep deeper + with increased recovery at a cooler body temperature. Our core body temperature should naturally drop every night, but for lots of people and lots of reasons it doesn't. With Chili, personalize your sleep microclimate.
The system starts at $499 for a half-queen. Amazon has a number of similar options; there are also cooling-gel toppers you can try.
FINALLY, I love my weighted blanket. Everyone in my family has one at this point. It's tough to reconcile the weighted blanket with the need to be cool, so the ones with cooling features do help.
If you've had problems falling asleep because your mind is racing, the weighted blanket is just a big giant hug that helps you calm down and get to sleep. We have two of the pictured versions, one Magic Blanket, and a few random other ones — and I'm drooling over this cooling one from Bearaby.
The pictured one has coupons today (up to $20, it looks like) — the weight should be no more than 10% of your body weight.
Readers, over to you — what are your favorite mattresses, pillows, and more? Do tell!
Looking forward to answers on this. We have gone through so many average/disappointing mattresses (we dislike all foam mattresses compared to QUALITY traditional box spring mattress). The problem is that they are rarely well-made these days. The best kind are those used in hotels like The Peninsula & Ritz, but those are difficult to purchase from the companies as a regular retail customer (I would literally pay anything for a good mattress bc health problems). Love to know hear advice.
The Westin sells their mattresses online, but I haven’t actually bought one. I’ve thought about it though.
Thank you! Will check this out.
I just recently ordered this umiou brand pillow from amzn that is amazing. Its the cervical memory foam pillow. I normally have pretty bad neck pain and it’s been really helpful.
I saw the kitten and all I could think about was: “I’m not a cat”. Thats it.
Ah the perfect thread for my question today! I have ordered several new down alternative comforters, but they are so loud! They crinkle like paper, no matter how much I spend. I read online that getting it dry cleaned will reduce and even eliminate this noise. Has anyone done this? Is it worth it?
I bought an all cotton one, cover and fill. It is warm and quiet.
A plug for silk comforters! With a good weight and hypoallergenic. Also quiet
Yves Delorme cotton sheets with Pacific Coast Down comforters! Better than any luxury hotel I have stayed in.
Not about mattresses, but a sleep-related question: For the last year or so, I’ve periodically woken up with super-dry eyes. Like, “wore hard contacts for 20 hours and then slept in them” dry. Once I blink enough or put eye drops in, it gets better, but right when I wake up it can be painful. There isn’t much of a pattern; it doesn’t seem to correlate with wearing contacts/eye makeup or even the weather. Eye drops before bed don’t do much. I googled around and found that some people don’t close their eyes all the way when they sleep, so even that tiny area of eyeball that’s exposed all night can leave you with morning dry eye. I’ve been trying a sleep mask at night, in hopes of keeping my eyes all the way closed; it seems to help but it’s early days yet. Anyway, this is on my list to ask my eye doctor about, but in the meantime – has anyone experienced this? And what did you do about it?
A humidifier might help.
I have this and have concluded it may be related to perimenopause in my case…I keep lubricating eyedrops on my nightstand and apply them immediately.
Nuts, that could definitely be a factor. Are your 40s just when you can blame anything and everything on perimenopause?
Theratears nighttime gel eye drops — you’ll wake up with a crusty eye but your eyes will feel very soothed. Also your eye doc can help you with other prescriptions (restaysis) or even like tear duct flushes or something
This! My eye doctor recommended it too and it’s odd feeling but works a charm.
I’ve had this. Likely related to something you ate and/or hormones.
I’ve never felt strongly about a pillow until I got the Casper standard pillow. Doesn’t get hot, not too hard, not too soft, fluffs back up easily, etc. I primarily side sleep but also on my stomach and it works in all positions.
I was hoping this post would include Tom Brady’s cooling microceramic under armor pjs.
I prefer really cheap pillows. Once they start to break down, they’re all the same, and I prefer to throw them away and replace them frequently. Washing a pillow is an exercise in futility.
Bamboo sheets and comforter. Pricey, but I love the Cozy Earth brand.
I love The Company Store for bedding, especially their firmest pillow and their Cstudio organic sheets. I’ve used both their down and down alternative comforter and both are top notch.
We have had a Leesa mattress for the last four years, but we need to replace it. My husband is a big guy and we need a mattress that handle his weight. Any recommendations?
Late but I bought the Cuddledown overfilled cambric pillow last summer and it’s still keeping its height. Great side sleeper pillow. I also bought the standard one but found it a bit flat, but still really nice. Maybe a back or stomach sleeper will like it.
We bought a Sleep Number bed six years ago. I still love it. Yes, it’s a glorified air mattress but it maintains it’s shape unlike all my previous mattresses. My mother’s Sleep Number bed is over 20 years old.