About this item
REDUCE HEADACHES, NECK, SHOULDER, AND BACK PAIN: Helps provided proper alignment of the neck while sleeping, and is used to help treat a variety of conditions, such as reduction of stress in the cervical vertebra and spine SUPPORT OPTIONS: This pillow has two sized neck rolls which provide support options for different neck lengths, simply choose which roll feels the most suitable for your sleeping position; Raised side areas gently support the head neck while sleeping on the either side; Shaped center cradles the head while sleeping on the back WHY TO CHOOSE FIBER VS FOAM: Fiber is naturally odor free and provides breathability unlike dense foam; Fiber is customizable, providing lasting support; Use the fiber migrating techniques video, “How to Adjust Neck Roll Support in Tri-Core” to adjust the fiber fill to accommodate your body ACCOMODATES DIFFERENT SIZED SLEEPERS: The FULL-SIZE pillow is recommended for adult sleepers who are around 5 feet 6 inches or taller; The MID-SIZE pillow is recommended for adults around 4 feet 10 inches to 5 feet 6 inches tall; The PETITE pillow is recommended for adults who are shorter than 4 feet 10 inches SIZE/MATERIAL/ORGINS/USE: Mid-size 22 x 15 inches; Assembled in the USA of Globally Sourced Materials; No latex; Fits a standard size pillowcase; You may need time to adjust to the pillow over several weeks, immediate overuse may increase neck pain; Alternate between Tri-Core and current pillow while your body adjusts
Core Products Tri-Core Cervical Support Pillow for Neck, Shoulder, and Back Pain Relief; Ergonomic Orthopedic Contour Fiber Bed Pillow for Back and Side Sleepers; Assembled in USA – Firm, Mid-Size Home & Kitchen
$26.82 – $95.51
| Size | Full Size, Full-Size, 2 Count (Pack of 1), Mid Size, Mid-size, Petite |
|---|---|
| Color | Blue, White, Multicolored |
AJJones –
5.0 out of 5 stars
Not Perfect, But Still 5 Stars
Normally I would not give a product 5 stars if I didn’t think that it was perfect, but this product is an exception.In early June I woke up one morning with a sore neck. A day later the area around my shoulder blade was extremely painful. The next day, my elbow started hurting. I’m not someone who usually has aches and pains, so I just figured that I had some kind of injury that would go away on its own. A week later, the pain was no better so I called my family physician to set up an appointment. The soonest that I could get an appointment was a week and half out. Several days after calling for the appointment, the pain was getting worse so I went to one of the immediate care places in the area. The doctor there said that I had three totally unrelated problems – wry neck, an injured rotator cuff, and tendonitis. It seemed strange that I would suddenly go from having no pain related problems to having three problems, but I went ahead and tried the exercises and prescription strength anti-inflammatory that he prescribed. Neither did anything to relieve the pain.The night before I was scheduled to see my family physician, the pain in my shoulder blade and elbow was bad enough that I could not get to sleep. I reached over my shoulder and started to press in various places to try to pinpoint where the shoulder pain was so that I could show my doctor the next day. Suddenly the pain in my shoulder blade and elbow went away. Having the pain go away in my shoulder blade was surprising, but not nearly as surprising as having the pain in the elbow go away. After a few minutes, the pain started to come back. I pressed on the same spot, and the pain once again went away. The next day when I saw my doctor and mentioned this, he said that I had a rhomboid trigger point and that trigger points could cause pain to be felt in areas other than at the trigger point itself. He prescribed various exercises that I could do to reduce the pain.The exercises made the pain bearable for a few more weeks, but gradually they became less and less effective. I researched rhomboid trigger points and found that massage therapy sometimes helps so I booked an appointment with a massage therapist. He gave me an intensive deep tissue massage. That made the pain go away… for two days. I then decided to try a chiropractor. The first appointment helped… for two hours. The second appointment helped… for one hour.I went with my wife to visit family three hours away. While there, the pain was so bad that I had to go back to the hotel room and lay with an ice pack on my shoulder blade to make it bearable. Again, I am not someone who usually has a lot of trouble with pain. I’ve had wisdom teeth cut out and didn’t even need a Tylenol. But this constant pain was getting pretty old. I went to the chiropractor once again, and it helped, but this time the pain relief literally lasted less than five minutes. I called my family physician again, but was unable to get an appointment for two weeks.A few days later, the pain was so bad that I literally could not type or drive for more than a couple of minutes at a time. Since I still had a week and a half to go until I could get in to see my family physician, I went back to the chiropractor and told him that the treatments were just not working and that we needed to do something else. He said that I could have a pinched nerve at the C7 vertebrae. He (and the other two doctors plus massage therapist) had previously ruled that out since I was missing some of the classic symptoms. He said that the next thing was to send me to a spine specialist. Since the first thing that the specialist would probably want to do would be to get a cervical MRI, the chiropractor went ahead and ordered one so that the results would be available on the first visit to the specialist.Several days later, I showed up at the hospital for my scheduled MRI appointment. The pain at that point was bad enough that for the last several nights, I had not been able to sleep for more than a few hours a night. The MRI technician carefully positioned my head and neck and began the MRI. After several minutes of lying on the table perfectly motionless, I started to fall asleep. Anyone who has had an MRI knows that listening to the extremely loud sounds of MRI equipment is not exactly a relaxing experience. The reason that I started to fall asleep was because the pain was gone. After several sleepless nights, I was so exhausted that it didn’t matter that the MRI equipment was pounding in my head. As I lay there on the MRI table, I started to wonder what could have made the pain go away. I’m no expert on MRI’s but I had never heard of them being used for pain relief. It dawned on me that maybe it was the way that the MRI technician had carefully placed my head and neck. As soon as I got home, I went on Amazon and searched for cervical pillows. I found this one and placed an order with overnight shipping.The next day, I got a call from the chiropractor who said that the results of the MRI had come back. I was diagnosed with spondylosis and probable foraminal stenosis. He made an appointment for me with a spine specialist, but the soonest opening was in three weeks. The pillow came in the same day. It was uncomfortable for my neck when I first tried it, but I stuck with it for several hours before going back to my regular pillow. The next morning, I woke up pain free but the pain returned a few hours later.That night, I stuck with the pillow for most of the night. The next morning I again woke up pain free, but this time the pain relief lasted the whole day! After living with increasingly severe pain for two and a half months, I had finally found something that seemed to work. Three weeks have passed since the pillow came in and I finally went to see the spine specialist today. He said that since I had not had any pain problems for the last several weeks, to just keep doing what I am doing and that I did not need to see him again.So what things about the pillow are not perfect? The pillow barely fits into a standard size pillow case. That, in itself, would not be a problem, but I have to use an anti-allergy pillow cover because I am allergic to dust mites. If you put a standard size pillow cover on the pillow in addition to the pillow case, it scrunches up the smaller neck support to the point where it does not work right. I worked around this by ordering a 30 by 30-Inch Allersoft Square Cotton Pillow Cover (also from Amazon). The very loose fit of the pillow cover on the pillow allows for enough extra material that your head can still fit down in the head cradle without scrunching up the smaller neck support. Also, the side sleeping parts of the pillow do not seem as comfortable as my regular pillow. Still, for giving me pain relief after two and a half months of increasing pain, I give this product FIVE STARS!!
110 people found this helpful
Steven Weigand –
4.0 out of 5 stars
Like night and day.
About a couple years ago I began experimenting with pillows, because the standard pillows I had were annoying me in a number of ways. They were too soft, even the supposedly “extra firm” pillows I bought. So when I slept on my side, I’d have to fold the side of the pillow under itself in order to get any decent firmness. And invariably over time even that wouldn’t work, because the material would always wear out. I often found myself sleeping with my arm tucked under the pillow, but that would cause my arm to lose blood circulation. It was really sub-optimal no matter what I tried and no matter what pillow I used. I’m a light sleeper, too, so that made it even worse.Then I tried out one of those memory foam pillows with the two bumps in it. Actually, I think I bought a cheap foam rubber version rather than true memory foam. It was a lot more firm than the normal pillows, so I thought it would do well. Pretty quickly, however, I found myself waking up with a stiff, sore neck. It was so bad that I just couldn’t even turn my head any more than about 20 degrees. And that was every single day practically, for almost a year. Memory foam or latex foam would have done the same thing, I believe.Finally I decided to buy one of these Tri-core pillows. Immediately, the next day my neck pain had completely gone away. I thought it was a fluke, but I’ve had this pillow for about a month now, and so far no neck pain.What I really like about it is its firmness. It’s about as firm as you can get without it being hard. It makes all the regular “extra firm” pillows seem like they’re actually “extra soft”. And firmness is a good thing. Without that firmness, your head just collapses down into the bed, and it causes your neck to get bent at an awkward angle, which leads to neck pain and sleeping problems.On the other hand, you don’t want it to be too firm. That would just cause pain. This Tri-core pillow has just enough give (softness) to allow you to rest easily without pressure points digging into your face, ears, and head. I like that.I’m a side and back sleeper. The instructions say to sleep right on the edge of the pillow if you’re sleeping on the side, and in the middle of the pillow if you’re sleeping on your back. But I don’t always find myself following those instructions. I just naturally find a “sweet spot” somewhere between the middle and edge when sleeping on my side. But sleeping perfectly on the edge is good too. The point I’m making is that there are subtle variations in the depth and angle of the pillow and the way it makes you feel. You may have to play with it a bit to find out what makes you feel the best.I don’t know how this pillow will perform over the long-term, since I’ve only had it a month now. But so far it doesn’t appear to be losing any of its firmness. Or if it is, it’s not enough to really notice. I’m sure it won’t last forever. But at this price, you can afford to buy a new one when that day comes.I highly recommend giving it a try.UPDATE June 11, 2012:———————It has been a while since I reviewed this pillow, and I’ve had a chance to try other pillows since then. It must be about a year and a half or so since I bought this product. I’ve been using it ever since. Here’s an update.First of all, I want to say that the product has held up remarkably well. There’s not much softening, wearing, or indentation of the pillow at all. It remains very firm despite using it more or less continuously the entire time. So that’s very good.But it hasn’t been all good. At first it was great. But little by little the pillow started annoying me in different ways. Mostly, the trapezoidal depression in the middle of the pillow proved more difficult to tolerate than I wanted.I would often wake up in the middle of the night, because I was fighting with the pillow to find the best spot for my head. You can’t just roll over in your sleep, because you’ll end up in the hole with no support whatsoever.It’s great if you never roll over.It’s also good if you only sleep on your back and one side but not the other side. For example, if you go back and forth between sleeping on your back and your left side, but never your right side, then that’s okay. But going from the left to the right side is not going to be easy. And because it’s not easy, it requires some thought, which will actually wake you up.Something else that annoyed me about this pillow was the thickness of the pillow on the sides. I’m all for support. Support is a real problem with most pillows. This pillow has super support. However, the fact that it was too thick for me meant that it felt a bit too firm at times. I wanted to compress the pillow down with my head, but because it’s so firm, I couldn’t.So if I were making a wish list of future improvements, I wish this pillow didn’t have the hole in the middle. I just want a constant thickness throughout the pillow. And I would like it to be a bit less thick. And it would be nice if it had a thin top layer of memory foam or something just to relieve pressure points a bit better.Because of these irritations, I’m now removing one star. I used to rate it at 5 stars. I now rate it at 4 stars.On the plus side, it never caused neck problems. It was great in that respect. It is still a very good and dependable pillow that I recommend trying, especially for its price.In the meanwhile, I recently purchased an excellent pillow that solves all of the problems I’ve seen with pillows. It’s called the IntelliPillow. It’s made with “intelli-gel”. You can find it at: […]That IntelliPillow is much more expensive, but in my opinion at this time, no other pillow beats it. If you’re trying one pillow after another with no luck, it might be better to buy the IntelliPillow and be done with it. Might save you money in the long run. I just wish Amazon was selling it so I could review it.Hope that helps!
189 people found this helpful
DannyDanny –
4.0 out of 5 stars
Have finally ended your quest for the perfect pillow?
Let me guess, a bad neck while sleeping probably brought you here. Me too. Yep, some weeks back I woke up with a painful surprise in my neck. It isn’t the first time it has happened. Usually, I will just deal with it and over time, maybe a few days, everything will work itself out and I am back to normal again. This most recent neck ache would not go away however. I would even wake up at night and find my neck contorted in such a way that I was just making things even worse. There would be no self healing if I couldn’t put my head in a position that would allow it to heal. So, like many of you are probably doing, I went on a quest to find the holy grail of pillows. If you have arrived at the end of your journey…or if you are just beginning, I’ll tell you that there are many pillows out there and all of them claim something magical by resting your weary head on them. You wouldn’t believe how complicated pillow shopping is. I can tell you that no review will help you find the right one. I guess the reason we have so many different pillows out there is because everyone is so different and finicky when it comes to a product like this. There are pillows that will cost you hundreds of dollars, some are filled with water and some with bamboo. There are thin ones, fat ones, misshaped ones, feather ones, cotton ones, memory foam and NASA probably has one filled with cloud vapors. The problem is that you are going to have to try them for yourself and find whats best for you.Being a side and stomach sleeper, I started my quest by narrowing down the search to pillows that claimed support for someone like me. I tried the “wavy mountain memory foam pillow” (that is not the products name…I don’t remember what it is called) that cradles your head and I also tried a flat pillow. Neither one seemed to help. Looking on Amazon, I stumbled across this one and was intrigued by it’s design. It was definitely something that I had never tried before. The good thing is that it wasn’t too expensive and I was getting desperate. I tried to find this particular pillows in some of the big box stores to at least put my hands on it but I could not find anything like it anywhere. So, I guess I was destined to gamble with this thing.Upon arrival, I inspected the quality of the pillow and was pleased with that. The stitching was well done, it was clean, and I didn’t notice any horrible smell. I wouldn’t say this pillow is “soft”. Other pillows that I purchased throughout my journey, had a feeling of sinking right down into them and some were like rocks. This one is firm and it’s innards has that stuffing that you find in craft stores. It feels and looks like that poly-fil fiber. I found some of it stuck to the pillow fabric when I removed it from it’s plastic bag and I can also see it through the white material that holds it all together. The garment tag also states that it is made out of 100% Polyester Fiber. Anyway…if it works…I don’t care if it is made out of seaweed…I’ll try it! Trying it out for the first time was a little odd. I tried the “Larger Neck Support” side and turned it around to try the “Smaller Neck Support” side. The larger neck side actually seems softer allowing your neck to sink down nearly level with the “hole” area. This also enables the lower areas of the pillow to support the sides of your neck a bit more. I decided to use this approach as it seemed more comfortable to me. I also noticed that when I am sleeping on my side that if I angle the pillow a bit that this helps me achieve a more comfortable position as well. I am trying to avoid sleeping on my stomach because I think that is where a lot of my problems are coming from. I’ve been using the pillow for a few weeks now and although I cannot say that I am completely healed, I am doing better. I can now turn my head to back the car out of the driveway a lot more comfortably! So is it the pillow or me being a bit more conscientious of how I am sleeping? Who knows, maybe a combination of both. I found this pillow to be comfortable for me to sleep on. The “hole” area allows my head to rest down and my neck appears to level out when using it. I do angle it a bit for comfort.Well, that is my adventure. There are probably better ones out there but honestly I can’t afford to try them all. This one was more unique than some of the ones that I tried and it seemed to be what I needed. Waking up in the middle of the night, with massive neck pain, and noticing the positions that I was putting my neck in gave me the idea that I needed something to sink my head and help hold my neck in place. Of course, when we are sleeping, some of us toss around quite a bit and we are never truly “settled” into one place all night. I can tell you that I am waking up a lot less at night and after a few weeks of use, my neck feels a whole lot better. I can’t say that I’d recommend this pillow…because we are all different sleepers…but I can say that it worked for me.
626 people found this helpful
Jen Bobell –
4.0 out of 5 stars
Almost perfect
This is the only pillow I can use with my neck. I have RA and it’s super hard to find a good pillow that works. My only complaint is that they seem to go flat after about 8 months of use. So I have to buy another.
One person found this helpful
Ronnie –
4.0 out of 5 stars
Neck Pain is GONE! Really 4.5 Stars
A little history first just for context. In the last 6 years, I have gone from being well over 350lbs to a more reasonable 240lbs. Along with this weight transformation, my sleeping habits changed from being more of a stomach sleeper to now more of a back & side sleeper. During this transition in my sleeping habits, I always felt more comfortable sleeping on my back or side and always seemed to wake up feeling more rested than when I slept on my stomach. The problem was that sleeping on my back and side was causing a substantial amount of neck pain and a burning sensation on the back of my head from the pressure of a traditional pillow. I still find myself sleeping on my stomach at times but not near as much as I used to.Now about this pillow. This pillow is not the shape of a traditional pillow and has a larger outer rim to cradle the neck and allow the head to rest more naturally position. Whether I am sleeping on my back or side, my neck and head rest more naturally than with a traditional pillow. This more natural position of my head and neck has eliminated the burning sensation and neck pain. Since using this pillow I sleep more soundly throughout the night now more than ever. I still have a traditional pillow that I use to help prop me up in bed when reading or watching tv and do find myself grabbing for it sometimes when I find myself sleeping on my stomach. I would still recommend for this reason to hang on to your favorite traditional pillow. I can still find a comfortable position on my stomach with this pillow but tend to use the outer rim in those situations and not the way the pillow was intended for use.What I don’t like, or think can be improved is the outer rim is extremely firm and a little large for me. I am not sure if it’s just my imagination or not, but I think one side of the pillow is thicker than the other so if the pillow gets turned when making the bed, I might be uncomfortable for a bit until I turn the pillow around. If there were two different sizes of the outer rim and an option on firmness, I think I would be able to dial in a perfect fit. I understand that the firmness is needed to support the neck and I am not saying I’d like a super soft outer rim just slightly less firm so my neck can rest more easily.Overall, I am very pleased with this pillow, and like I said before the burning sensation and neck pain have been eliminated. If any of this sounds familiar, I would highly recommend this pillow.
10 people found this helpful
Cheryl Sulkowski –
4.0 out of 5 stars
Takes a while to get use to
I purchased this pillow to help correct my posture and alleviate jaw pain (TMJ).This pillow takes a while to get use to as it is designed mostly for back sleepers although you can use it when sleeping on your side. I highly recommend alternately using the Core pillow and then your regular pillow every other day for at least 10 days.
2 people found this helpful
Corey –
4.0 out of 5 stars
Hard to get used to
The idea behind this product is great! It’s comfy but it is an adjustment getting used to the dip in the center.
MaggieMaggie –
4.0 out of 5 stars
I’ll admit I was skeptical…
After a 6-day raging tension headache, I took the advice of my doctor and started searching for a pillow with neck support. This one made a lot of big claims, and reviews seemed mostly positive, so I went for it.When it arrived, I was disappointed. It felt way too hard, and not at all like it would be comfortable. I rushed to the bedroom so I could lay down on it, and decided it wasn’t what I had hoped for and was going to send it back. Boyfriend steps in with the whole “don’t knock it till you try it” thing, and I agree to give it a week. Very glad I gave it a try.A few positive notes:1. Yes, it’s firm. They don’t mess around when they call it a firm, full-support pillow. As it turns out, that’s part of why I love it! Soft pillows (and even “firm” ones) that I’ve had in the past usually last me no longer than a month, as my fat head is really spectacular at wearing pillows down to nothing. I have some real faith in the durability of this pillow, even after just the first couple of nights.2. Yes, it’s large. They don’t make that claim lightly either. I would say I have a normal to slightly larger than normal head. There is AMPLE space for it in the indented region of the pillow with some movement to either side befor running into the side-sleeper edges. Attached photos show pillow with remote as well as monstrously large 17 lb. cat for size reference.3. As a multi-faceted sleeper who could go pro in tossing and turning or creative sleeping positions, I find that this pillow is equal parts supportive and flexible (flexible more so in the sense that it gives you the freedom to sleep comfortably in a variety of ways, not so much the nature of the pillow itself) for many kinds of sleepers, from back, to stomach, to side, and anywhere between. My headaches are now few and far between, and I’ve discovered that my neck actually DOES have range of motion after all! Who knew?!And of course, a few qualms:1. Mine, as a few others have noted, had a slight off putting smell to it when it arrived. I have a pretty keen olfactory sense, and the smell of mine was light enough that I could be lazy and go right to sleep on it without any cleaning the first night without any issues. Didn’t even notice the smell after that. My guess is that airing out was good enough, or that perhaps it was the plastic bag that smelled. Who knows. I’m not too concerned.2. Definitely not love at first sight, and that’s why I’ve rated it four stars instead of five. If boyfriend hadn’t made me keep it, I would have sent it back without a second thought. No, it’s not going to be the perfect pillow for everyone, but for some it will probably be pretty stellar if you get as far as trying it out for a week. Don’t give up on it based on your “fresh out of the box” impressions.Hope that helps clarify some of the common concerns.
748 people found this helpful
blessed –
4.0 out of 5 stars
LOVE THIS PILLOW!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I am 5’6″ and this pillow is the perfect size. i’ve been using a smalled rolled up towel to do the same thing. but this is so much more comfortable. ive been sleeping on my side a lot cuz i wake up in the night gasping for air cuz my neck is so straight it closes off my airway. the first night i had this i woke up at around 6 realizing i hadnt slept on my side once that night and i felt soo good. my neck muscles were relaxed and i didnt have a headache!! one word of advice to those who have never used anything like this before even a towel…..if you neck and shoulders are so stiff that you get tension migraines or even headaches you might have to sleep on this pillow sparingly at first. i had to do this with my towel. the reason is your muscles are SO tight that when you address them in this manner it takes them a little bit to relax as they’ve been tight for so long. so take the first few days and lay on your back for 20 mins or so once or twice a day and when you feel you can handle more than do more. this pillow is much softer than a rolled towel so it probably would be easier….it was expecting to do that as its been a while that i;ve slept with my towel, cuz i would lie on my side and have to switch to my regular pillow, and that just got to be a pain. the middle of this pillow cradles the head nicely just so it is barely touching the bed if at all. the sides some may want the larger size pillow as the sides are larger but for me it works fine.. oh and start out on the small side of the pillow. the bigger neck support is for larger people or more support but in my opinion its too much and i am average. also i have broad shoulders and the sides are perfect for me when i lay on my side. the description says for teens and small adults but it is perfect for me and im not small….slightly above avg. i havent tried the side layiing position with the “top” of the pillow as i dont use that side for my neck but that would probably be a great fit for side laying. as it is i love it and will be buyiing one for my kids! I am already sitting straighter and its my second day!!UPDATEnow that ive had it for sometime i have to make a change. as for some reason this didnt cross my mind at the time…. sorry. but true. anyhow the small neck support has now become not as supported as i need it,,you know how pillows loose there fluff. but the side cuz of the design have stayed nice and tight as that is where the stuffing goes to. and its hard to get it back to the neck support part. so now that it is broke in it is a great option for kids and small adults. i do still get support just not as much as i would like continually. the big side still is too big though. its wore down a little but since i dont use it that much as it gives me a migraine from muscle strain/tension, its not enough. and i do wish the sides were a bit wider. but it is still helping my posture and snoring from a closed throat. but i do intend to replace it and give this to my son so my snoring will be non existant as it was before i lost the fluff of the small side. but until then its still mine. i dont know if i’ll ever have a regular pillow again as this one still gives me more comfort.
19 people found this helpful
Hbg7 –
4.0 out of 5 stars
Really too firm
This pillow had a great concept for me because I am strictly a back sleeper and need the continual neck support for misalignment issues that randomly cause severe pain followed by another chiropractor visit. The downfall is that some people may have bonier necks/spines and where “firm” for one person may be “a brick” for another (me). This pillow would be perfect if the interior loft was adjustable and some could be removed to find that perfect level of firm for individual necks. My chiropractor, however, highly recommended this pillow and said it was the best ever for her out of all she has tried, but she is a back and forth side to back sleeper. I literally stay on my back, back of my neck and head on the pillow in mostly one spot for 6-8 hours. The neck roll is just too firm for that type of sleeper with a bony spine and neck like mine. Hopefully I’ve helped others. 🙂
12 people found this helpful
Stacy –
5.0 out of 5 stars
How did I not know this existed?
Due to a neck injury my PT told me I have to sleep with no pillow! I have been doing that for 6 months and while it definitely helped my neck, I get very poor sleep because I wake up from my head lobbing about. I took to wearing large headphones to keep my head up, or using a folded towel to make a cradle for my head and then started thinking about how to design a pillow to have you head in the perfect back sleeping position. Thought it all through then realized someone probably already invented this, and pop there it was on Amazon. It works perfectly. My head is in a very natural posture, not bent forward. I am 5’2″ but got the petite/kids size after much debate and I am glad I did. It fits my head perfectly. My head does not lob side to side anymore and my apple watch is recording the best sleep I’ve had in ages. Also, sometimes I just want to be on my side and the pillow is perfect for a diagonal side position when your back rests on a pillow and your head is in the middle of this pillow but leaning on one side of the pillow, and my ear fits perfectly in that opening so it does not put pressure on my ear. Yay!
7 people found this helpful
Bryn Basham –
4.0 out of 5 stars
Uncomfortable at first
Please allow several days to get used to this pillow, it’s definitely an adjustment compared to my normal, flat as a pancake, pillow but even after the first night my neck felt better in the morning. Saw this recommended on a TikTok so I wasn’t sure how it was going to fare in reality but it’s really helped to minimize neck and shoulder pain. Hopefully after a few more weeks I’ll feel better and better!
3 people found this helpful
another jenn –
4.0 out of 5 stars
decent
I bought this same pillow at a chiropractor’s office several years ago. It was time for a new one, but I don’t go to that chiropractor anymore. Glad I found it here. Got it for $50 here, pretty sure I paid more for it years ago.
RICHARD ANDERSON –
4.0 out of 5 stars
This Is Fine
I’ve had severe neck pain for nearly a year (details unnecessary; it hurts!). This pillow gives me enough relief to approach sleep. The problem for me is, I’m a SIDE SLEEPER and have been unable to make pillow work in that position. BACK SLEEPERS rejoice: it has worked delightfully for me on my back!
jenny22224 –
3.0 out of 5 stars
4 inches thick is too high for petite people (me anyway)
The pillow is so close to perfect, but 4 inches high is too much – it is the same height as the medium size. My head is tilted and is not straight. The design of the pillow is good, it is a bit too firm, but I would get used to it, if the thickness was right. Sad. I can’t seem to find a good supporting pillow that is made for small people. I like the design of the middle – it does create a nice cradle for the head. Maybe the height will be ok for you. I need 2.5 or 3 inch rise. Please make this pillow but thinner! Please!
One person found this helpful
Sarah Glover –
5.0 out of 5 stars
Relief!
I bought my first one of these ages ago at a chiropractor office, and it absolutely changed my life. I had no idea how messed up my cervical spine was until I started using this pillow. I was so jazzed when I found it here because I desperately needed a new one and I couldn’t remember the brand and had cut the tag off. Thankfully this popped up when I searched for supportive pillows! If you need solid neck support at night, this might be your pillow. It’s obviously not for everyone, and definitely choose your firmness based on your comfort level. I prefer the firm one but it is definitely firm though I find that provides more support than softer pillows I’ve used. It takes a while to get used to, but in my experience it’s completely worth it! Of note, I have the full size standard firmness and I did have to dig out some queen size pillowcases to truly fit it. My full size pillowcase is just weren’t cutting it, which is okay. Totally worth it.
2 people found this helpful
Audrey –
4.0 out of 5 stars
Not sure yet!
I have a cervical radiculopathy AKA pinch nerve in the C7 section. It happened to me in 2020 and now it came back. Not sure, if its because I’m 4 months pregnant with all the changes with my body but boy this ish hurt. I got his pillow because I felt like it was needed. The pillow is fine but tough. I am not used to it yet but whenever I use it I feel a relief. So, will see how it goes and maybe by then it will get a little loose.
4 people found this helpful
Anisia Rodriguez –
3.0 out of 5 stars
Good for a few month
After that your neck starts to ache. Is not too comfy, not that good to sleep on your side
Angela M Dooley –
3.0 out of 5 stars
Didn’t work for me
Everyone I work with bought this and said it helped their neck problems, so I broke down and got one. I am a pillow snob, always trying to find the best for my neck issues. This was just ok and after a few weeks, I went back to my contoured pillow. It needs to be more firm in my opinion, but I’m glad it works for some.
RadioActive1 –
5.0 out of 5 stars
Amazing product – If you suffer from neck problems, get it!!
I suffer from MS and Fibromyalgia. As a result have a lot of issues with my neck, and frequently have debilitating neck pain that takes me down for days at a time.I ordered this pillow after reading some of the reviews on here, but at the same time, I was a little dubious, as often a product doesn’t measure up to all the hype.That was not the case here. From the first night I used this pillow, I had a wonderful, relaxing sleep and woke up with no neck tension or pain. I’m not a back-sleeper; I generally sleep on my side and toward my stomach. But regardless of what position you sleep in, this pillow keeps your head positioned so that it’s not angled and so that your neck is not stressed. There are side cushions that gently cushion your head when you sleep on your sides or your back. The funny thing is that there is a scooped out section in the middle where your head goes, and if you feel the thickness of the actual pillow in that area, it’s pretty thin. You’d think that it wouldn’t offer much support or cushion, but once you lay on it, you can’t get over how comfortable it feels.At the top and bottom of the pillow is an area that gently cushions the neck. Again, whether you’re laying on your side or your back, it supports your neck so that your had stays virtually horizontal. For me this is critical. Other, conventional pillows tend to angle the head up so that the chin is down toward the chest (if you’re on your back) or if sleeping on your side, the pillow angles your head sideways toward your shoulder – this is very bad if you already suffer from neck problems.Since many of us spend a lot of our day looking down at a PC or down at our phones, this is the source of many of the neck problems we suffer from. This pillow does just the opposite, by holding the head at the proper angle.I used to go in once a month to my Neurologist to get triggerpoint injections in my neck because the pain in my neck, and radiating up over my head was so severe. Since I started using this pillow, I haven’t had to go back for any triggerpoint injections.I realize this may not work for everyone, but for me, this pillow has been a godsend.I have so say that I’m really very surprised at how great it feels to lay on – so relaxing.If you suffer from chronic neck problems or even if you just are looking for a more comfortable pillow to sleep on, I highly recommend it.
14 people found this helpful
Jeff Porter –
5.0 out of 5 stars
Tried many. This one works.
I rarely write reviews. However, the tremendous decrease in my shoulders and neck pain leaves me no choice. I tried numerous other pillows. One decreased the pain by maybe half. But this funny-shaped pillow handled at least 90 percent or more of my pain on any given night. I am a back sleeper. It wasn’t comfortable when I tried using it on my side. It’s not designed for that.It took my body a couple of days to adjust to it. Once it did, it was incredible. No more headaches in the morning. Greatly reduced shoulder pain – even if I worked out hard the night before.It may not work for everyone, but it sure worked for me. Hope this is of some help.
One person found this helpful
Marci –
5.0 out of 5 stars
Finally.
My chiropractor recommended this. I’ve purchased at least 15 high priced pillows in the last 2 years. This is a real review with no prompting, gifting, or incentive. If you suffer from neck pain that is likely the cause of being hunched over a computer all day, or just poor posture, and you’ve tried countless other pillows, this is worth a shot. There are two ends to the pillow. One end was too much loft for my neck, but the other is perfect. I am a 5’9 female with a slightly longer neck. Thank you to whomever invented this pillow and I’m about to send my chiropractor flowers for recommending it. Life changing for me.
3 people found this helpful
Christina –
4.0 out of 5 stars
and feeling like my whole body was stiff
I have had back and neck pain for a long time. I wanted to try a pillow that might help before I got a new mattress. I can’t speak for everyone else but for me it has helped in a couple ways. I bought this a couple weeks ago. I had been waking up with a headache, and feeling like my whole body was stiff. I am only in my 20s but I work as a nurses aide and have had two kids, and also have had multiple traumas and injuries as a child, so my body is wearing down quick. All that to say usually when I lay down I immediately feel my lower back throbbing from pain, and again I wake up with a headache, neck pain and stiffness. I bought the firm large pillow and I can say that when I used the pillow for back sleeping I wake up in a hell of a lot less pain. However this pillow is hard to get used to. It feels almost not natural. This pillow gets you more aware of how you are laying. When I used the sides of the pillow for side sleeping I place a pillow in between my knees and notice less pain. However my best results have been from using the main middle part of the pillow for back sleeping. My back and neck feel so much better when I wake up and throughout the day. It is a little firm but I need that support. Overall this pillow helps you lay the way your supposed to, though it is difficult to get used to I would give it a little bit before you just give up. Some reviews say they stopped after a day or two I would honestly try to use it the right way and give it a week or two. With my experience if you aren’t feeling relief within a couple weeks maybe you should try another pillow. But I think this pillow give really great neck support for back sleepers I highly recommend it for people searching on amazing for pillows to relieve pain. I chose this because it was on the lower end price wise and I’m glad I did. I hope it holds up for a while before I need to replace it.
One person found this helpful
J Ary –
3.0 out of 5 stars
Just too soft
This was the sturdyest looking pillow i could find, and it is firm, but not firm enough. If i sleep on my side, the corner gets lower an lower through the night. sleeping on my back, the tallest part in the middle is just too soft and doesn’t give much if any support for the ole neck. OH well, just my bad luck
Tony –
5.0 out of 5 stars
I’ve purchased 3 of these pillows
Over the course of the last 6 years, I’ve purchased 3 of these pillows. They’re the only ones I can sleep on nowadays and helps relieve the tension in my neck and back of my head. My only complaint is that they wear flat every couple of years, hence why I’m currently on my third one, but it’s a small price to pay to be able take away some of that pain. I tried several other curved or contoured pillows before this one, but this was the only one that showed an improvement. Give it a shot if you’ve been searching a while.
Holly Cruse-Shepherd –
4.0 out of 5 stars
Supportive
I had to stop using regular pillows a few years ago when I started having trouble with my cervical spine. This pillow is expensive but helps a lot.
bearly –
4.0 out of 5 stars
Great help with neck pain!
Purchased this pillow after reading quite a few reviews, I’m happy with my choice for a first time pick. It was a secondary choice, as the best rated pillow I could find was too costly to justify spending on a pillow. I was in a minor car wreck 3 years ago and I feel that was when my neck issues started, but at 24 years old I want to hang on to my red cape mentality, I’ll save the expensive chiropractic visits for when I’m older and the rest of me needs tlc like that. It was a gradual progression as far as neck problems. In 3 years it went from occasionally waking up with a stiff neck to almost daily headaches, waking several times during the night from pain, and severe neck pain immediately upon opening my eyes daily, and just recently had a revelation that normal people don’t deal with pain and headaches all the time.I never expected such a great difference. I woke up from the first night of use with no neck pain (I had forgotten what that was like) and so much more rested than normal – I actually want to stay in bed instead of racing to get up so I can try to massage my own neck in a hot shower. It doesn’t get 5 stars for two reasons: 1. I’m a back AND side sleeper, about 50/50, but I can’t use it for sleeping on my side the way I like (I got the gentle support and it’s still too firm for side sleeping) but I sleep on my back as well and the pillow works well for back sleeping. 2. The cushioned area that actually supports your neck is a little big for me lengthwise, but I am a very short woman, so I’m sure my neck is just a little shorter than normal. I still get a great night’s sleep. I’ll keep looking for my perfect 5 star pillow, but until then I’m very happy with this pillow, which is still a solid 4 stars and light years better than what I was torturing myself with previously.
10 people found this helpful
Angel –
3.0 out of 5 stars
Too thick and firm for me, quality construction, It might work better for others though.
Why I bought this:I bought this pillow because I have had neck and jaw problems for years. With regular pillows I get neck aches and the back of my head will hurt and even go numb sometimes. My chiropractor suggested some pillows through his office and wanted over twice as much money as this product. I am usually a side sleeper but always wake up on my back with a neck ache.Description: The fabric is soft, the filling is firm enough for support but soft enough that is is comfortable.Size: I am 5’1″ and this size is perfect for me I am going to buy another one for my daughter who is 6 and I think it will work for her too. This pillow also comes in standard size instead of petite so someone of average height would probably prefer that size. I bought a standard size for my brother who also has neck/jaw problems.Overall: I am so glad I bought this! I wake up without neck and jaw pain and haven’t needed to go to the chiropractor as often.Buy it! You won’t regret it!UPDATE: after using this for maybe a week I keep waking up with excruciating pain in my neck (with no other reason to be in pain). I have had to switch to something else. I think the pillow is just too thick for me I am 5’1 and about 120. I know the pillow says its for “petite people” but it is so firm that it is just too thick* I might give it another try once my neck has stopped flaring up in pain but I’m not sure it is worth the risk. The pillow is also smaller in length and width than normal pillows and I would frequently wake to find myself not sleeping on it correctly (most likely why my neck hurts) but I’m not sure how to train my subconscious to use it correctly. The construction and quality of the pillow is great but I would suggest a softer fill and make it standard size with the same “cut out” size in the middle but larger flat areas for side sleeping.
3 people found this helpful
Sonya –
3.0 out of 5 stars
Too big
Got this pillow based on reviews from other people, but unfortunately it did not work out for me. It is way too thick throughout the perimeter of each side, so it keeps my head propped up too high when sleeping on my back.
2 people found this helpful
The Doctor –
5.0 out of 5 stars
I love this pillow
Probably like a lot of people I’ve owned many pillows over the years and tried hundreds at hotels and first saw this pillow a few years ago meandering through Amazon. I thought it looked weird but had good reviews so I bought one and have bought more over the years. I sleep on my side, back and stomach so it gets a workout. On my side I rest my face on the taller wings which is perfect for my body neither creating discomfort from being too high or low. Disclaimer here as I have big shoulders so this may not suit everyone. My ears do not get at all numb in this position. On my back my head rests in the indentation and I’m pretty sure most people would find either long side will suit their body. It doesn’t create any stress on mine. For stomach sleeping I tend to have the side of my head on the edges with my face in the indentation. Again thus causes no discomfort.Yes, it is on the firm side but I prefer this too a too soft pillow as that normally causes my head to dip in an uncomfortable way. I’ve not found the pillow too be too hot or cold so that’s fine. I really didn’t think it took too long to adjust to it’s unusual shape.I saw a review that says it was not stuffed well and I can say that the ones I’ve bought have all been very similar and I’ve not experienced any lack of filling in the ones I boughtI am so used to the flexibility regarding sleeping positions that I would not swap this pillow for anything else.
12 people found this helpful
Amazon Customer –
5.0 out of 5 stars
Husband loves it
My husband loves this pillow. I haven’t heard any complaints from him about waking in the middle of the night or not sleeping well, stove he started using it, about 2 months now.
Glor –
5.0 out of 5 stars
The cover is made of cotton
The Core pillow was very comfortable with the cotton cover. The others that I had purchased was memory foam and had a microfiber cover that kept falling apart and it required that you purchase a silk pillowcase to cover it. I also had an opening on one side for your head which was not very comfortable, I used it only a few times and gave it away. I love the Core cervical pillow because it is comfortable and you can use it on either side.
One person found this helpful
Nina Villagran –
3.0 out of 5 stars
Favorite cervical pillow but
Update: I still like this brand. I just wish they didn’t flat out so fast. And it ripped on one side and the stuff from inside started coming out.So I got this because I have chronic neck pain, my chiropractor recommended this pillow. And It’s such a difference from other pillows. I have tried other brands “ that are supposed to be better and even more expensive “ and they don’t compared to this one, I have bought 3 of this ones, of course you have to change pillows every now and then, but can’t go wrong with this one. Gonna keep buying them. I usually buy them every 7 months, depending on how much support the pillow is still giving me.
One person found this helpful
American Mary;) –
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great pillow
This pillow has a unique design. I’m a side sleeper and it fills the space between my neck and shoulder.
Cathrin –
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great Pillo
I never know what kind of pillows I should buy. I bought really cheap once and really expensive once but … this one is by far the best ever. It improved my sleeping so much. I really recommend this pillow.
RoseFire –
5.0 out of 5 stars
Made just for heads like mine!
I have actually been daydreaming about a pillow that basically has a hole in the middle for a long, long time now. I simply discovered that (thanks to my strangely shaped head) my spine is straight when I lie flat on my bed without any pillow under my head, the last issue being that my neck is desperate for support. I see the chiropractor most every week now, and my neck is one of the main reasons for that. Years and years of pillows that were made for other people have done a number on me, but when I lied down on this pillow for the first time, my neck screamed at me, “Yes! This is what I’ve always wanted!”Indeed, this was made for no other head besides the one that proves to keep your spine straight without any pillow while lying on your bed, this is why I’m INSISTING that you conduct an experiment to find out if you’re one of those people before you ever buy this pillow. So try lying down without a pillow, then think tall and straight, and ask yourself if you’re looking straight at the ceiling or if your vision is slanting towards the wall behind you at all. And if you can, please enlist the help of a friend to take a look at you from the side of your bed and even take a picture of you, use your own experience along with your friend’s and the camera’s perspective to determine how close your spine is to being straight without a pillow. If at least 2 perspectives agree that you need almost no lift at all, then I would recommend this pillow, and I mean only then.It’s so sad that these pillows are getting such bad reviews, usually from people that don’t have the kind of head that this was made for. But also be aware of the fact that this pillow comes in as many as six different sizes and levels of firmness (search amazon for tri core pillow), so try and choose the right one for you if you want this pillow. I got the medium/standard size in the “Gentle” (not firm) variety, and I’m so glad that I did. The “gentle” is actually rather firm and I can’t really imagine someone needing the “firm” variety, but it has worked for some people after all. And I don’t know how small the petite/small size is, but I’m imagining that it would work well for a child, because my standard size would not work for me if it were just one inch shorter, but yes, I must admit that my head is also bigger than most, but it’s still not among the largest of sizes. And I’ve heard that the large size is very, very huge, and I’d probably need it if my head were but one size bigger, as you do want the room when your head is shaped like so. If you’re just plain not sure about which one will make your neck happy, I say be willing to pay for return shipping and try two at once, find out what you do like and what you don’t like.And a final note for side sleepers; I honestly have no problem with shifting to my side on this pillow, but I don’t position it the way that the picture seems to recommend, as I like to put my face in the dip/hole and leave the back of my head with a slight lift from one of the sides. Be sure and give the pillow a real chance before you send it back and try both the upper and lower sides, as well as different positions while lying on your side.
3 people found this helpful
Sonia –
5.0 out of 5 stars
Excelente producto
La recomiendo esta almohada superó mis expectativas la verdad me ayuda mucho para mi dolor de nuca prácticamente se me a desaparecido el dolor duermo mejor y ya no me duele mi cabeza la seguiré usando siempre gracias a mi doctor Estrada que me la recomendó.
Amanda –
5.0 out of 5 stars
Superb Pillow For Neck Issues, Apnea, Sleep Disturbances, etc.
In total I have purchased three of these pillows. One for myself and two others for gifts due to my happiness with the pillow. I decided to purchase this pillow based on the reviews I read on Amazon. I had already tried soft, firm, memory foam, contour memory foam, water, and water-base pillows. Nothing really did the trick. I suffered major whiplash in an accident over 10 years ago and to this day the muscles in my neck have yet to figure out that they can relax. I would wake up with headaches every morning (if they didn’t wake me up in the night). I would wake up gasping for air because my airway was constricted by my poor sleeping posture. I even had a sleep study done, thinking I had sleep apnea, only to find out that I did not.So I was at my last straw when I finally decided to “gamble” on this pillow. In comparison to how much I had spent on other pillows, the price wasn’t bad. Compared to a cheap $10 pillow at Wal-Mart, it may seem expensive. However, I was worried that I would be spending the money on yet another “gimmick” that wouldn’t work. I decided to try it and haven’t looked back since. Other suggested a break-in period, so I was armed with my water-base pillow to use as a backup when my neck got sore from the new pillow. I only had to use it the first two nights. After that, I haven’t had to go back. I take it whenever we are going to be away from home and I find that if I don’t, I end up with a neck ache or a headache. Recently I was sharing a hotel room with a friend who asked the next day if my boyfriend and I had gotten new pillows. I told her we had and asked why. She said she had come prepared with ear plugs (due to previous experiences with our snoring and tossing and turning) but didn’t have to use them. She said we both slept peacefully on our sides with barely a murmur.I highly recommend these pillows for anyone that feels they need a more supportive pillow. The side cushions are great for when you want to sleep on your side as they are the right height to comfortably match your neck. The inner pocket is perfect for when you want to lie on your back as it cradles your head, while supporting your neck. I don’t find I have to make any effort when I switch positions, I just roll to one side or the other as I would with a regular pillow. However, I don’t toss and turn nearly as much with this great pillow. The one downside I have found is that it is not very good for stomach sleeping in my opinion. The high sides and low middle make it difficult to find a comfortable position for your head in the stomach position and if I ever roll to my stomach while sleeping I wake up with a neck ache from straining my neck. So if you are a back or side sleeper, I would say go for it. If you prefer to sleep on your stomach, I would probably look elsewhere.
7 people found this helpful
L. Knouse –
5.0 out of 5 stars
Relieves pressure, keeps you in a low-stress position at night
I bought this pillow after I started having chronic neck pain that was exacerbated by poor positioning during sleep. This pillow not only supports my neck but also, as a back sleeper, keeps my head and neck in a position that’s low stress during the night. If I do wake up during the night in a less favorable position, I can just settle my head back into the center depression and “reset,” so to speak. I like that the pillow fits a standard pillowcase and has two “settings” for neck support height.
One person found this helpful
Linda Cox –
3.0 out of 5 stars
Not so sure!
This pillow works great for sleeping on your back which is recommended for helping your neck. But if you are a slide sleeper, and I am, then when I need to sleep on my side it just doesn’t quite fit right. It’s a very sturdy pillow and of good quality. My verdict is still out. I am still trying to get used to it.
2 people found this helpful
Angel Amaro –
5.0 out of 5 stars
Fue entregado. Recibido. Gracias
Muy bien.
Cornelius Qualley –
3.0 out of 5 stars
Side Sleepers Beware, Not For You!
Okay, so I felt like this was a product that definitely deserved a review, because I’ve read dozens of reviews on pillows to try to find the best neck pillow (for lack of a better term). I don’t have any major spinal problems or anything to that extent, but I have had minor neck and back pain for a while. Additionally, about a year ago I had an injury which caused a pinched nerve in my lower neck, which causes some random pain and tightness. So, I’ve been trying to find a pillow that alleviates those pains, although maybe there isn’t such a thing.Let’s talk about the pros first. It’s stuffed very nicely and offers good support. It’s nice and large and works pretty well for back sleepers. It doesn’t (or hasn’t after a month), lost it’s firmness. It MAY have had some impact on my neck pain, but I really can’t say that with much confidence as I feel essentially the same after using it for a few weeks now. It’s reasonably priced when compared to some other pillows out there.The cons. I’m a side sleeper, despite really trying to sleep on my back. No matter how hard I try, I end up on my side, so why fight it? On this pillow, I was honestly confused when I received it as far as how I was supposed to use it on my side. I mean, there are obvious labels in the picture that say “comfortable side sleeping”, but when looking at the actual pillow it just seems odd. From the picture, it appears that there are large areas on each side of the center to use for sleeping on your side, not so much. My head literally will barely fit on either side of the pillow.Why is that a problem? Well, for starters I have to carefully balance my head on what feels like a tiny vertical pillow roll. If I’m sleeping on my left side, I have to slide all the way to the right of the pillow to use the very outside of the pillow. Nearly every time I wake up in the middle of the night, I find that my head has rolled back in the center area, off the side, or is in some weird halfway between position. Then, if I roll over to my right side, I have to shift all the way across the pillow to the other side, otherwise my face will roll in to the center area. It’s just really odd to not be able to sleep in the middle of your pillow and to have to do some balancing act with the edge.What’s worse, the side of the pillow really doesn’t offer anything different than any other normal pillow. It’s basically flat. Yes, it’s stuffed nicely and is supportive, but so are a lot of pillows. I mean, sleeping on your back in the center has an obvious purpose, to keep your neck in the correct position. But if the correct position for side sleepers is just a properly stuffed pillow, than what’s the point of paying for a cervical pillow?So, in short, I would say that if you’re a back sleeper, it’s a nice pillow and worth the money. Side sleepers, I really just can’t recommend it because it really has so many issues for no benefits over a normal pillow.
Brian C –
3.0 out of 5 stars
Very firm
Pillow is very firm and unforgiving. Wish it had a little more give.
R. Hardy –
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great product – addressing the “Firmness” comments
The Tri-Core pillow is really quite good. Worth every penny to me to help get a good night’s sleep. It really does help with that for me. I like it so much, I bought one for when I am travelling for work and keep it at the hotel. That way, I have the same type pillow most of the time.The comments on the firmness of the pillow are fair. It’s a therapeutic pillow that attempts to encourage your neck in to a proper “Cervical Lordosis”, that’s that small inward curve in the neck. I’ve had neck problems for years, and I remember the shock I felt when I started using products to address the lordodis. It just feels different.My read of the firmness comments (and all due respect to their experience) is that most of us with neck pain have gotten so used to having such bad posture, that good posture just feels funny. This type of pillow “insistently encourages” (my words) to keep your neck in good posture while you sleep. With the proper posture established, your neck can actually relax.To me, it feels like when I am at the chiropractor and they are gently tractioning and pulling up on the neck, which feels great, to me. The pillow allows me to sleep in that state.Here are my thoughts. If you are looking at this product, you have neck or back pain. First off, I recommend educating yourself on the spine, how it works, why things go wrong, and what you can do about it. Robin McKenzie’s book
7 Steps to a Pain-Free Life: How to Rapidly Relieve Back and Neck Pain
, is a classic. I give those away to work and client colleagues I hear have back pain. That book is actually the best money I ever spent. It’s been that instrumental to managing my spine. You can read my review from a couple of years ago.Further, several years ago, my chiropractor recommended the Core Product Dual Core pillow,
Double Core Select – Pillow
. If you are new to cervical pillows, this may be a better starting point to ease in to what it feels like to actually have your neck in a state of good posture. It has two levels of firmness, so you can play around. The reviews of them wearing out are pretty fair. It’s made of foam. But it is good.Personally, and this just me (and follows my overall experience over the past several years), I would get the book, the dual core and the tri core. First you have to understand what good posture is. That’s the book. Then you have to get a pillow that works for you. It may be the dual core, may be the tri core. You may take to the tri core right away. If that’s the case, give the dual core to a friend with neck pain – spread the goodness. If you take to the dual core, use it and keep the tri core. You can use it on the floor while relaxing for 10-15 minutes, and you may just end up using it as your primary pillow.Just my humble thoughts. I wish you the best managing your neck pain.Luck,R
47 people found this helpful
Michael La Ronn –
4.0 out of 5 stars
Its not perfect but it is almost there
I bought this pillow after doing a lot of research. I have had neck problems all my life and nothing seemed to work. I was really close to getting trigger point injections until now. So, I bought this pillow 2 month ago, I got to say that when it says its firm, its FIRM. The first night that I tried it, I woke up with a huge headache and neck pain within the hour. I threw out of bed and swore it was a piece of junk. My husband and I were going to go to our Honeymoon, and my neck was killing me. So, I decided to go to my NUCCA Chiro before we left, and ironically, she had them in her office. I told her about my experience and she told me I had probably bought the wrong size. So, she actually fitted my for the pillow. I’m 4’11” and 135lbs. We found that this was my size but I felt comfortable with the gentle, not the firm. I bought the gentle from her thinking I would return the firm. The gentle is not as gentle as you would think but I was advised I would break it in. However, after trying the gentle my neck still hurt. Long story short, I decided to take the firm pillow to our honeymoon as a travel pillow. Best idea ever. I packed the pillow, jammed it in my suitcase and so it went. When I got to our hotel I used it for naps only, and it was still very firm, but towards the end of the week, I found that after a short nap my neck did not hurt any more, and did not crack as it has always done after I wake up with traditional cervical pillows. I then jammed it back in my suitcase for the ride home, and used it the first night back home. I woke up with NO neck pain. I have tried the gentle as well, but I feel that my firm is actually now more gentle than my gentle 🙂 So, lesson—it is very firm, until today my head sometimes does hurt when laying on it, it is very ackward to sleep on its side for the first month, but then you get use to it. It does its job, if you do not want anymore neck pain or headaches, try it–I would recommend getting professionally fitted for it though. I do not give it 5 stars because just like I have said–it did take a long time to break it in, it is unconfortable for the first few weeks, but then you’ll wake up one day and like magic your neck is gone!
13 people found this helpful
Mamma –
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great support
It’s firm and took a little getting used too. I’ve had this pillow for a few months and I love it so much I’m trying to figure out how to take it on vacation with me. A combination of PT and this pillow has finally given me a pain free neck, something I haven’t known for years. I’m scared to not have my pillow for a week so I might just take it on the plane and buy a clean new one for when I get home.Btw, I bought one three times more expensive that claimed to be a neck pillow and it left my neck at a bad angle. This pillow is perfect for keeping spine and neck strait. Highly recommend, obviously.
2 people found this helpful
Carrie S. –
4.0 out of 5 stars
Repeat Customer – 5th Pillow!
This my 5th CORE PRODUCT Pillow … and it’s NOT because they wear out.I will not enumerate the MANY reasons I LOVE this pillow — many other reviews do this already. Instead, I will explain why I KEEP COMING BACK for MORE.My FIRST Core Pillow was a D-Core that I received from a chiropractor. It changed my sleeping life for the BETTER. It was only later, when I LOST my pillow that I realized that there were MUCH BETTER pillows by the same company.My SECOND Core Pillow is the same as this item, a TRICORE, only STANDARD SIZE. In TRUTH, it was TOO BIG for me. I STILL RECEIVED the BENEFITS that TriCore pillows offer, ONLY I found myself WAKING TO ADJUST the placement of my pillow when I turned on my side to sleep. The side walls were too far away for me to just turn over onto them. Alas, I lost this pillow, too, in a move – but I came to find out it was for the better!My THIRD and FOURTH Core Pillows were also TRICORE, and ordered at the same time. I was DELIGHTED to discover this pillow came in THREE DIFFERENT SIZES, so a smaller, BETTER FITTING version was available. My ONLY CONCERN was which size to choose; MIDCORE or PETITE. So, I went with both. I STILL USE BOTH of these pillows. I started out with the MIDCORE as my PRIMARY pillow. However, I STILL woke OCCASIONALLY when switching from back to side sleeping. I started using an additional squishy pillow either on top or underneath the TriCore to get MOST COMFORTABLE. Finally, I pulled the PETITE SIZE out of storage and TRIED IT. I was a little wary because it seemed SO SMALL. I was STUCK on the idea that a pillow should be a certain size. Luckily, I was proven wrong. The pillow “FITS” my head. Instead of WAKING and ADJUSTING my pillow when I TURNED from my BACK to my SIDE, I simply turn WITHOUT WAKING. It’s GREAT!!! My only regret is not recognizing that SIZE DOES MATTER, and this pillow is made in THREE DIFFERENT SIZES for a reason.My FIFTH and MOST RECENT Core Pillow Purchase is the PETITE TRICORE. I was OUT OF TOWN for an extended period of time, and FORGOT TO BRING my pillow. I tried to hang in there, but the HEADACHES, SHOULDER and NECK PAIN were too consistent to ignore.My ONE COMPLAINT is that it feels a LITTLE AWKWARD when I lay on my BACK. The top of my head hits EXTENDS SLIGHTLY outside the “cradle-area” and when I’m restless, this really draws my attention.Bottom Line: I recommend the Core Tricore Pillow, but choose your size wisely.
142 people found this helpful
James Ellsworth –
4.0 out of 5 stars
Complex Features that Work When Understood
Oh for those days when I just ‘hit the hay’ and slept soundly! Almost any pillow could be made to work well enough by folding or pummeling or turning edgewise.These days, sleepers look for pillows with dust-free fill; for pillows that maintain their ‘fresh from the package’ loft; for pillows that don’t have an aroma. The Core 200 Tri-Core Pillow Standard Support model does fine on each and every one of those factors. But wait!…there is more to consider. Pillow shapes are becoming increasingly varied and refined: oblong or square or (almost) free-form; carved in or carved out special support areas. Core 200 provides a durable fiber fill pillow that retains its loft well with repeated use. It adds complex features around the edges and it even matters ‘which side is up’ when it comes to finding the best possible combination of features for a given sleeper. The objective this pillow aims for is to create a comfortable spinal alignment along the neck between the head and shoulders. It does so by offering two cervical support ‘rolls’ built into the ‘top’ and the ‘bottom’ edges of the pillow. Smaller people, for example, might use the smaller diameter support roll and larger people might prefer the larger diameter roll. The head is also cradled in a pocket formed by equal-height side rolls. The head is more likely to remain in the pocket even with turning from side to side during sleeping. The bottom of the pocket is suspended in the pillow in such a way that you can choose a ‘deeper’ or a ‘shallower’ pocket to hold your head by turning the pillow over. The key is that ‘mechanical’ features built into the pillow provide for a wide range of minor adjustment to sleeping posture.My long-time temper-foam pillow just wasn’t giving me a comfortable rest lately so I was ready for the new approach offered by this fiber-filled item. It is working well for me. I also like the ‘squarish’ shape since it is more compact on the bed and the support stays with me as I move during sleep. This will not please ‘body pillow’ lovers who sometimes turn a king size pillow to substitute for a sleeping partner.
2 people found this helpful
E. Pfanner –
5.0 out of 5 stars
Be patient, you will love it too.
After suffering for weeks with a stiff neck every morning after getting out of bed, I determined that I needed a better pillow that would provide more support. After needing to have my neck adjusted twice by my Dr because I couldn’t move it to do simple daily tasks, I researched cervical pillows. This was not the first one that came up in my search but one similar that was 3x more expensive. After reading the reviews, I was convinced I needed to try it.One of the reviews I read was from a chiropractor who suggested starting out with the ‘gentle’ version of this pillow. I took his advise and that’s what I purchased. At first it was very uncomfortable to sleep all night with the new shape of this pillow. But I remembered reviewers said to give it at least 2 weeks to adjust to the new shape and support. I continued using it and began to realize that it was better shaped for my head and neck than any other pillow I had ever used. The quilted center section allowed my head to rest comfortably without needing to push against extra foam or fillers that I didn’t need on my head. At the same time the neck rolls are just enough support for my neck that I don’t wake up with a stiff neck or sore shoulders in the morning….and my morning headaches are gone too!There are 2 different levels of support for your neck based on your needs – my can change from day to day so I appreciate that I can flip it around and get more or less support without needing to get a 2nd pillow. The tri-core foam offers support and comfort all rolled into 1 affordable package. I can now sleep on my back (which I normally never do) without experiencing any back or neck pain because my head is cradled and my neck is supported with this pillow.I highly recommend that you try this if you are in need of some neck support to alleviate stiff or sore neck or shoulder muscles. Just take heed…it will take a little while before you are adjusted to the shape and support offered by this pillow. I have been using mine for about a month now and it’s the one pillow staying on my bed! The price point is perfect and if you can get free shipping that’s an even better deal that you won’t regret…you can once again get ready to face your morning with a spring in your step because you had a great night sleep!!05/11/13 – update – still using this pillow and loving it! I have not needed to make a trip back to the Dr to have my neck adjusted since I began sleeping with this pillow. I like it so much that I have been suggesting it to friends I work with that suffer from neck pain. Great product at a great price…you can’t go wrong with this purchase!!
5 people found this helpful
Jeanne –
4.0 out of 5 stars
Firm
I’m a petite person and this pillow doesn’t provide enough neck support. It’s better than a standard pillow though. It’s also a filled pillow so I imagine it will get lumpy at some point.
Amazon Customer –
3.0 out of 5 stars
Great at first…
I am a chronic neck and back pain sufferer and have been looking for a supportive pillow that works for both side and back sleeping. My chiropractor recommended this pillow to me after I was lamenting another failed pillow situation. I liked the price and thought it wouldn’t be too bad if the pillow did not live up to my expectations. The first night, I slept on the narrower side and the support was awesome. However, after the 3rd night I noticed a distinct difference in the amount of support the pillow offered. I noticed that all of the fluff had migrated out of the middle where my neck resides and squished out to the sides. I tried squishing it back to the middle, but by the end of the night it was all but empty again. So I switched to the fatter side of the pillow. Again, it offered amazing support. I slept great and woke up pain free for 3-4 nights, but slowly the stuffing started squishing out to the sides more and more, and now there is absolutely no neck support whatsoever. It’s been 2 1/2 months and I am calling it quits on this one.I guess if your ok with replacing this pillow every 3 months then it’s a great option, but for me, my search for the perfect pillow continues.
3 people found this helpful
Kathy Gaither –
4.0 out of 5 stars
Love the Gentle/Firm for support
As far as a cervical pillow, it fits my frame, it is a gentle/firm which gives support without hardness, and yes it does take adjusting to the pillow as stated in the description. The change is giving relief to my neck!
electronics guy –
4.0 out of 5 stars
Very firm
I’m not used to this pillow. I tried sleeping on it a couple of times and didn’t sleep very well. You need at least a full size bed for one person to use it. If you’re sharing a bed, you need a king. To sleep on your side, you’re supposed to sleep on either the right or left side of the pillow. You need a lot of room to do this. Good for back sleepers.
One person found this helpful
Stina A. –
1.0 out of 5 stars
Painful Pillow and Proceed With Caution Because You Can’t Return It
I was recommended this pillow after researching for a new one. Decided to give this a try since I had been having a hard time sleeping due to experiencing pain in my upper and lower back, and the base of my neck. I read all of the reviews and decided it would be worth trying. I should have paid more attention to the review: “Buyer Beware…” This pillow caused me more pain than my previous pillows. As a back sleeper and side sleeper, it contoured my head but did not cradle it with support to relieve any pressure. This pillow is so stiff and hard, the first night took me an hour to fall asleep and I ended up only sleeping 3 hours from how difficult it was to sleep on it. The following time, the pain was so unbearable, I fell asleep only after I threw it to the end of my bed and tried to get some sleep without any pillow at all. I was scared that I was going to have to return it if I didn’t like it, so I had covered it in 2 cotton pillow covers and 1 satin one before sleeping on it. Even the pillow covers did not help to soften it one bit. It was not like the description and not gentle at all. I tried to go through Amazon for a refund and to return it, but Amazon wouldn’t allow me to continue with the return saying it was not eligible for one. I then contacted the company, Core Products, and explained that I was unhappy with it and wanted to return it. At first, they gave me the run around not understanding why Amazon wouldn’t fulfill the return since I was well within the return limit of days. I sent them screenshots about the ineligibility, and they continued to respond as if they were dumbfounded Amazon wouldn’t fulfill the return. They then said that in order to get a refund I’d have to ship it back with tracking (USPS Priority, UPS, FedEx) and *I* would have to be responsible for paying the shipping in order to receive a refund. After spending a day in line at the post office, the shipping via USPS Priority was going to cost me MORE than the pillow itself. Not worth the hassle. Contacted Amazon and explained the situation through Customer Service and was finally able to get a refund and resolve the issue, which made me happy; however, now I’m stuck with a pillow I do not want. Be prepared to stay stuck with this pillow if it doesn’t help you, and go through hoops to get a refund.
5 people found this helpful
Matt Chaple –
4.0 out of 5 stars
Second chances are everything
So, full disclosure, after 1 night on this I requested a return and refund. Once realizing that I wouldn’t get a full refund, which I understand why having previously worked in a similar industry, we decided to try and sell them locally. I looked at them again on here to see what I was missing with this and saw where it said to ease your way into using this pillow. So my wife and I tried it again, and we’d switch back and forth from our old pillows to these. After a couple of weeks of this, while feeling the the old pillow was more comfortable, the quality of sleep was vastly different. After a couple of weeks of going back and forth, I’ve realized that the nights I sleep on the old pillow, the next day I have a headache and feel dizzy and spaced out. It’s time to retire the old one and stick to the tri-core only, the quality of sleep we get on these pillows is so much better than we ever could have imagined.
One person found this helpful
Francie –
4.0 out of 5 stars
Less neck pain
The pillow would be perfect if it were a bit softer , more giving.
One person found this helpful
Algie GregoryAlgie Gregory –
3.0 out of 5 stars
Not What I Expected
The pillow was a lot larger than I thought it’d be. In the photo I have a picture of it next to a regular sized pillow. I thought it’s be much smaller since I imagined it would fit right in the crook of my neck. It does not. I wish bottom of the pillow where your neck lays was smaller so that my head more comfortably rested back. Since it’s too big I actually am unsure if my neck pain is the same or worse. I kept it since I just needed something immediately but would want to try something different for sure.
Brooke –
5.0 out of 5 stars
Game changer
I didn’t even realize that my quality of sleep was so affected by my neck issues, but now that I have this pillow I sleep so deeply. My neck is so much better and I’m sleeping so much better. Highly recommend, but fair warning, you’ll want to sleep all the time!
Freda B. –
5.0 out of 5 stars
Great pillow
To get better sleep
Amazon Customer –
4.0 out of 5 stars
Smart design
I bought the tri-core full size gentle pillow to help with neck and shoulder pain. The pillow is soft, like a regular cotton or polyester fiber filled pillow, but the multi-chamber design provides perfect support and keeps my neck in proper alignment, regardless of whether I’m sleeping on my back or side. I was concerned that transitioning from back to side sleeping might be awkward. I had previously slept on two pillows, so it took a night or two to get used to resting with my head at a lower level, but I adjusted quickly. The center section is not too deep or to wide. It cradles the head well, and, when I rolled onto my side, my head naturally rolled onto the side raised portions and it didn’t interfere with my sleep. There are two neck support sections located at the top and bottom of the center cavity. One neck roll is small and one is larger. I tried both, but prefer the smaller neck section. The larger one provided stronger neck support, which felt good at first, but it turned out to be a bit too intense for me. The large neck roll seemed to increase my shoulder pain, so, I decided to only use the smaller section. The only issue I have with the pillow, is that the small neck portion has compressed after only a short time and doesn’t seem to be offering as much support. On a final note, it was advertised that the pillow will fit in a standard pillow case, but all pillowcases are not made the same (or at lease mine aren’t). I first tried a thinner “cheaper” pillowcase, which I wanted to use because it was cooler, but it was a tight fit and wouldn’t allow my head to sink easily into the center cavity. I tried a thicker, higher quality “standard” pillowcase and the pillow fit perfectly.
4 people found this helpful