Can You Sleep with Too Many Pillows?

For some people, nothing is comfier or cozier than being surrounded by a sea of pillows every night. While trying to replicate a cloud with plush pillows sounds nice, could it actually be a problem?

There’s no hard and fast rule about how many pillows you should sleep with, but sleeping with more than one under your head could be bad.

Have you ever woken up with an aching back or sore neck after a full night of sleep? You might be quick to blame your mattress, but your pillow could actually be the culprit—especially if you’re propping two or more under your head.

Sleeping on more than one pillow can cause your neck to flex forward or to the side. It throws off the natural alignment of your spine, and can cause discomfort while you’re trying to sleep or when you get up in the morning. It can even contribute to tension headaches.

One pillow under your head is all you need to achieve perfect alignment and take away some of the tension from your back, neck, and shoulders.

That doesn’t mean you have to toss the rest of your pillows to the floor when you settle into bed. If you’re a side sleeper, placing a pillow between your knees can also help with alignment and provide more comfort. You can also try sleeping on your back with a pillow underneath your knees to alleviate back pain.

Depending on how you sleep, using more than one pillow between your legs or under your back to keep your spine aligned could be a good thing. But, in general, when it comes to resting your head, a single pillow is ideal.