7 in 10 Say Pain Stops Them Sleeping

7 in 10 Say Pain Stops Them Sleeping:

What Our New Sleep Survey Revealed

How well do we really sleep?

At Pillow World, we spend a lot of time talking to people about pillows, comfort and the things that stop them getting a great night's sleep.

So we decided to ask.

We surveyed 1000 people about how they sleep, what keeps them awake at night and what they really want from a pillow.

And one statistic stood out above everything else:

Nearly 7 in 10 people say aches and pains interfere with their sleep

A huge 69.4% of people surveyed told us that pain or aches stop them sleeping properly.

That makes physical discomfort the single biggest sleep problem identified in our survey.

And for side sleepers, the figure is even higher.

74.8% of people who sleep on their side said aches or pains affect their sleep.

That's particularly significant when you consider that side sleeping is comfortably the most common sleeping position of all.

Did you know?

60% of the people we surveyed sleep mainly on their side.

Another 25% move around between different sleeping positions during the night.

Only 8% mainly sleep on their back, while just 7% are front sleepers.

So if you're a side sleeper who regularly wakes with an aching neck, shoulder or back, you're certainly not alone.

If that sounds familiar, take a look at our pillows for side sleepers, selected with side-sleeping support and comfort in mind. Pillow World's side-sleeper collection includes different levels of support and materials designed to help support the head and neck while you sleep.

More than half of us want our pillow to help with pain

The connection between pillows and physical comfort came through very strongly in the survey.

When we asked people what they actually wanted from their pillow, 52% said pain relief.

That made pain relief the number one pillow benefit in the entire survey.

And amongst people who already suffer with aches and pains, the number increased dramatically:

70% of pain sufferers told us pain relief is important when choosing a pillow.

It seems we're no longer simply looking for something soft to put our head on.

For many people, the pillow has become an important part of creating a more comfortable sleeping position.

At Pillow World, we've created a whole range of specialist pillows for people looking for extra support, including the Ergo Pain Relief Pillow by Seriously Comfortable which has an ergonomic butterfly shape designed to contour around the head, neck and shoulders.

Why can your pillow make such a difference?

Your pillow isn't just there for comfort.

Its job is also to support your head and neck while you sleep.

The right height, firmness and shape can help keep your head in a more comfortable position relative to the rest of your body.

And that's why the same pillow won't necessarily suit everyone.

A side sleeper may need something quite different from a back sleeper, for example.

Our survey backs this up.

Did you know?

74.8% of side sleepers prefer either a medium or firmer pillow.

Only 10.4% of side sleepers said they prefer a soft pillow.

Whereas 30% of front sleepers prefer a softer pillow.

Pain isn't the only thing keeping us awake

While aches and pains were the biggest problem identified, they weren't the only one.

Our survey found that:

42% struggle with sleeping hot or night sweats

22.3% say snoring affects their sleep

10.7% struggle with allergies

44% experience two or more different sleep problems

And perhaps most surprisingly...

Only 14.1% told us: “Nothing – I sleep great.”

That means around 86% of the people we surveyed experience at least one issue that can interfere with their sleep.

Almost 1 in 3 suffer from pain AND overheating

Sleep problems often overlap.

In fact, 30.6% of everyone in our survey suffers from both aches and pains and overheating or night sweats.

And among people who experience pain, 44.1% also said sleeping hot was a problem.

That's a pretty unpleasant combination: trying to get comfortable while also constantly turning the pillow looking for the cool side.

If heat is one of the things disturbing your sleep, our Cool Sleep Collection brings together cooling pillows and other temperature-regulating sleep products.

There are also pillows designed to address both issues at once, such as the Cool Anatomic Pain Relief Pillow which combines a shaped memory foam design with a cooling cover.

Almost half of people don't know which pillow they need

This was one of the most interesting findings of the whole survey.

We asked people which type of pillow they preferred.

The answers were:

43.9% – I'm not sure

33.4% – Memory foam or latex

11.6% – Feather and down

11.1% – Fibre

So the single biggest group wasn't memory foam lovers or feather pillow fans.

It was people who simply didn't know.

And amongst people who move around a lot in their sleep, uncertainty was even higher.

53.8% of people who change position during the night said they weren't sure what type of pillow they prefer.

We think that's really important.

Because perhaps we've been asking the wrong question.

Instead of starting with:

"Would you like memory foam, feather, latex or fibre?"

Maybe we should start with:

How do you sleep?

Where do you feel uncomfortable?

Do you get too hot?

How firm do you like your pillow?

And then find the pillow that matches those answers.

That's exactly why we created our Pillow Finder. You can answer a few quick questions and use our experience to help narrow down the pillows most suited to the way you sleep. You can click here to Find Your Perfect Pillow.

Medium is the nation's favourite pillow feel

When we asked about pillow firmness, people were much more certain.

47.1% prefer a medium pillow.

A further 21.6% prefer something firmer.

Only 13.9% prefer a softer pillow, while 17.3% weren't sure.

So almost 7 in 10 people prefer either medium or firm support.

That goes some way towards explaining why supportive materials such as memory foam pillows are such a popular choice, particularly for people looking for more structured head and neck support.

What do people really want from their pillow?

Our respondents could select more than one answer.

Here's what came out on top:

52.2% – Pain relief

47.5% – Cooling comfort

42.2% – A luxury feel

23.6% – Easy-care or washable

23.6% – Natural materials

What we found particularly interesting is that people don't want to choose between comfort and performance.

They want both.

They want a pillow that feels luxurious and supports them.

They want something comfortable and cool.

And if they suffer from aches or pains, they increasingly want their pillow to do more than simply feel nice.

So what does the Pillow World survey tell us?

Perhaps the biggest lesson is that poor sleep isn't always about simply needing more hours in bed.

For many people, the problem starts with getting comfortable in the first place.

Nearly 7 in 10 people told us aches and pains interfere with their sleep.

More than 4 in 10 struggle with heat.

And yet almost half don't know which type of pillow they actually need.

At Pillow World, that's exactly the problem we're trying to solve.

We're the UK's leading pillow specialist, and we believe finding your perfect pillow should start with you — how you sleep, how you like your pillow to feel and what keeps you awake at night.

So if you're regularly waking up uncomfortable, constantly adjusting your pillow or wondering whether there's something better out there, it may be time to rethink what's underneath your head.

Find your perfect pillow at Pillow World.