Waking Up With a Stiff Neck? Check Your Pillow

If your neck feels stiff when you wake up and loosens through the morning, your pillow is one of the first things to check. You spend hours in the same position, so even a small bend in the neck adds up.

Signs the pillow height is wrong

• Stiffness is worst right after waking and improves within an hour or two.
• You wake up with your arm tucked under the pillow. People often do this to add height to a pillow that's too low.
• You keep folding the pillow in half, or pushing it away.
• Your pillow is more than two years old and has lost its shape.
• The stiffness started after you changed pillows or mattresses.

Too high or too low?

The fix depends on how you sleep:

• Side sleepers most often have a pillow that's too low, so the head drops toward the mattress. See how high a side sleeper's pillow should be.
• Back sleepers more often have one that's too high, which pushes the chin toward the chest.
• Stomach sleepers need very little height. Any thick pillow forces the neck to bend backward and twist.

Quick fixes to try before buying

• Fold a towel and put it under your pillowcase to add height for a few nights.
• If your pillow is too tall, try a thinner one you already own and see if mornings improve.
• Put a pillow between your knees if you sleep on your side. It keeps your hips and lower spine level, which helps your upper body stay straight too.

If a towel test helps, that tells you roughly how much height you were missing, and it's worth getting a pillow that gives you that height on its own.

When it's not the pillow

Pain that lasts all day, gets worse over time, spreads into your arm, or comes with numbness, tingling or headaches should be checked by a doctor or physical therapist. A pillow can help with comfort, but it can't fix an injury or a medical problem.

LoftFit gives general sizing guidance, not medical advice. If you have neck or shoulder pain that lasts more than a couple of weeks, numbness or tingling in your arms, or pain after an injury, see a doctor or physical therapist.