I get SO many questions about pillows. And I’m glad when I do! Most of the pillows I see are HORRIBLE! The vast majority of them are too thick and put your head in a severe, very-dangerous forward head posture/ syndrome (FHP) if you’re on your back. FHP is a very common cause of neck pain and myriad disabilities.
And think about it: when we’re trying to correct alignment and posture through exercises, adjustments, and traction but you’re in bad posture fully one-third of your life as you sleep, it might make it harder! For example, if you’re 45 years old, you’ve been on a pillow on average for 15 YEARS! I don’t know about you, but my mom always said, “Don’t frown or your face will stick like that!” Same with jamming your head forward on a pillow for 15 years!
If you’re a patient in my office, please bring your pillow in and have us look at how you’re sleeping on it and how suitable it is for you! If you’re not a patient but you live in the California north state, come on by anyway! I’ll be happy to take a look.
One test I’ve been sharing for years to know if your pillow at home is too thick is when you stay in a hotel, try their pillow. If you like their pillow, YOURS IS TOO THICK! In the rare event, I forget my pillow when traveling, I do not use a pillow. No thanks! Sooooo, YES a pillow can cause neck pain!