Buckwheat Hull Pillows - Thoughts?

SleepGuy · Post by **SleepGuy** » Thu Mar 08, 2007 2:10 pm

I've been toying around with buying a buckwheat hull pillow and wondered if others might share their experiences.

I've tried to find one at a local retailer (Bed Bath & Beyond and the like) so I could at least feel it in real life but there are none to be found. Must still be too much of a specialty product. I've only seen them on the Net.

In the two years before being diagnosed with OSA I must have purchased 8 different pillows. I knew something was wrong but had no idea about OSA till my good doctor sent me home with an overnight oxymeter.

WillSucceed · Post by **WillSucceed** » Thu Mar 08, 2007 3:08 pm

I've been using a buckwheat hull pillow for years and would not give it up for love nor money.

Some of them have a small narrow neck roll built into the pillow (the neck roll also has buckwheat hulls in it) and by adding or removing hulls from the roll, you can customize the pillow to get the exact amount of support that you need in the crook of your neck.

These pillows are nice and cool, especially on a hot summer day. They are a bit noisy, but I found that I got used to it fairly quickly and the noise only happens when you roll around.

These pillows shape to your head very well. Some of them are crescent-shaped rather than square; I like the crescent-shaped ones the best.

Snoozing Gonzo · Post by **Snoozing Gonzo** » Thu Mar 08, 2007 3:40 pm

My wife and I would rather have no pillow than sleep without our buckwheat. We tavel with them like kids with their favorite stuffed animal. They are very supportive of the neck and shoulders but do take some getting used to as they seem hard and unforgiving compared to synthetic fibers or down. They mold to your shape with a little movement of your head and don't change until you do.

I would suggest the one-half size as I don't think people need the full sized as you move less. HSN has them at a very reasonable price ($20/per?). I recently had two made at a local futon and pillow manufacturer with organic hulls and untreated cloth ($45/per).

Chris

Slinky · Post by **Slinky** » Thu Mar 08, 2007 4:19 pm

I've got one here somewhere - and I HATED it!!! It is NOISY! Mine was noisy even when I wasn't moving around changing positions. It was HARD. NO ONE in my family liked it or will use it.

I love my down pillows and wouldn't part w/them for the world. My mother told me to wash them occasionally in COLD water w/Woolite which I've always done and then thrown them in the drier on cool w/a clean tennis shoe.

I can scrunch my down pillow into any shape I want, scrunch it to provide any extra support anyway I want, and punch a hollow into w/my fist to move it away from my mask or my cheek or my nose.

My husband likes a thicker pillow that doesn't poof down so much so I just emptied a second down pillow into one for him and he LOVES his "double down" pillow better than any pillow he has every tried.

frete50 · Post by **frete50** » Thu Mar 08, 2007 4:45 pm

I tried on and like Slinky, hated it. The main reason was due to my allergies. I woke up sneezing with runny eyes and nose. It was not a good feeling.

Becky

backdoc · Post by **backdoc** » Thu Mar 08, 2007 5:45 pm

I've had a buckwheat pillow for 6 years and wouldn't part with it except to replace it with another one. They ARE noisy but a cpap mask isn't?

I just ran across a link for 2 Sobagawa (the brand that I have) buckwheat pillows the other day on the home shopping network... <don't ask>

http://www.hsn.com/cnt/prod/default.asp ... 011*458297

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Slinky · Post by **Slinky** » Thu Mar 08, 2007 5:56 pm

Why not, BackDoc???

TGregg · Post by **TGregg** » Thu Mar 08, 2007 9:20 pm

I just started on one a few days ago, got a Sobagawa from Target so I could return it if I didn't like it.

It's NOISY, but I got used to that fast. I like it, my foam pillow kept pushing my mask around causing leaks and discomfort (which is why I tried this pillow).

It did take me about 3 nights to start sleeping well on it. I'd suggest using it for a couple naps first. And get one you can take back.

SleepGuy · Post by **SleepGuy** » Thu Mar 08, 2007 10:34 pm

TGregg wrote:I just started on one a few days ago, got a Sobagawa from Target so I could return it if I didn't like it.

It's NOISY, but I got used to that fast. I like it, my foam pillow kept pushing my mask around causing leaks and discomfort (which is why I tried this pillow).

It did take me about 3 nights to start sleeping well on it. I'd suggest using it for a couple naps first. And get one you can take back.

Great! So Target has these? I'm gonna check it out. Thanks.

Snoredog · Post by **Snoredog** » Fri Mar 09, 2007 12:48 am

buckwheat was that little guy on the Little Rascals with the afro

TGregg · Post by **TGregg** » Fri Mar 09, 2007 8:45 am

SleepGuy wrote:
TGregg wrote:I just started on one a few days ago, got a Sobagawa from Target so I could return it if I didn't like it.

It's NOISY, but I got used to that fast. I like it, my foam pillow kept pushing my mask around causing leaks and discomfort (which is why I tried this pillow).

It did take me about 3 nights to start sleeping well on it. I'd suggest using it for a couple naps first. And get one you can take back.
Great! So Target has these? I'm gonna check it out. Thanks.

Yeah, but maybe not at the B&Ms. I went to a new Super Target figuring they had them so I could take a look before I bought. No such luck, had to order it OL.

And they are heavy compared to foam pillows. If the pillow and I are not positioned well, I'll usually move rather than move the pillow because it's easier. They don't slide well like foam ones.

TGregg · Post by **TGregg** » Fri Mar 09, 2007 8:47 am

Snoredog wrote:buckwheat was that little guy on the Little Rascals with the afro

And he's REALLY NOISY when you sleep on him.

OldHippie · Post by **OldHippie** » Fri Mar 09, 2007 9:37 am

Do I sense a fellow HSN junkie????

Snoozing Gonzo · Post by **Snoozing Gonzo** » Fri Mar 09, 2007 9:41 am

I tried to pay attention to the noise last night. I have slept on buckwheat hull pillows for so many years that it just doesn't register but, for me, neither does mask exhaust noise, machine purring, spousal snoring, the dog moving around, the furnace kicking on, kids watching tv in another room, wind howling outside, etc. I found that you're right, they are noisy when you move. Then I went to sleep.

I have some damage to my lower neck (C6/C7) - another miss-spent youth problem I guess. When I sleep on certain pillows that don't give consistant and firm support to my neck, I have nerve induced muscle problems in my left arm the next day and beyond. For me a pillow has so be somewhat customizable to my neck and head to avoid this.

The heat and pressure sensitive materials work but tend to relax too far during the night. An old beat up down pillow works pretty well. Buckwheat hull pillows work all night, every night but when turning I have to be in the sleeping habit of turning my head back and forth a couple times to create a pocket. Kind of like moving my mask shifts or the hose is pulling, I do it without fully waking.

Chris

birdshell · Post by **birdshell** » Fri Mar 09, 2007 10:47 am

The pillow each of us prefers is a definite personal choice, much as mask choice. That said, here goes:

I very much like the crescent shaped small neck pillow that is filled with buckwheat. I use it to give me more bulk or when I lay on my back. It is intended as a spa pillow, has a little handle and travels well.

I also LOVE my Shapeable pillow obtained from Target. They run about 12-15 dollars, depending on the size. (Knowing how prices work, they may be a bit more since I bought mine before Christmas.)

The Shapeable is filled with a synthetic down substitute, first suggested on this forum by GoofyUT. I LOVE down, but have developed shoulder problems and need to keep my head off the mattress while side sleeping. The Shapeable mooshes into each preferred position, without suffering the matting that the previous down substitutes (such as Comforel) developed. Best of all, it stays in place better than the down and has more body, helping to keep my head off the mattress which keeps my shoulders from being sore.

By combining the Shapeable with my small buckwheat crescent and down pillow in various combinations, I actually have fewer stiff, sore necks. Some nights it takes a while before I get everything situated. It reminds me of a dog circling on the bed and scratching to get the blankets JUST RIGHT!

Good luck to everyone, and share any other pillows. I know that there are Papillows, with a section cut out on each side, and boy--did the first description ever remind me of the Boppy pillows that nursing mothers use. They usually are air filled and are larger, plus could be collapsed for travel and blown up at the destination. My sister-in-law may be missing hers! (Not to worry, my niece is 4 1/2 and weaned long ago.)

Buckwheat Hull Pillows - Thoughts?

Buckwheat Hull Pillows - Thoughts?

I love my buckwheat pillow!

Re: I love my buckwheat pillow!

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