Casper Sleep Essential Pillow - King Size Cooling Memory Foam Pillow for Side, Back & Stomach Sleepers - White Bed Pillow for Neck Pain Relief & Better Sleep - Perfect for Home, Hotel & Travel Use

In the past few months, I've tried every kind of pillow imaginable to help alleviate the neck pain I experience at night. Finally, at the recommendation of my sister, I tried this Caspar pillow. On my first night, even though I still had some neck pain in the morning, I wasn't awakened by it and slept through the night. It's only gotten better since then. The pillow is firmer than a down pillow, but it still has a fluffy (not thick) feel to support me whether I sleep on my side or on my back. I can fold it around my shoulder or tuck it under my chin or against my cheek. The center of it, where my head rests, feels firmer than the sides.Until my neck pain started, I preferred a relatively flat, firm pillow. I hated too much loft, whether by stacking pillows or sleeping on a super-stuffed one. When my pain entered its second week, I started experimenting. Memory foam and cervical neck pillows kept my head from moving, which turned excruciating two hours in. Alternative down pillows from other known mattress companies, even those pillows labeled "soft," pushed my head too far forward due to their thickness, also making the pain worse. Even though I'm allergic to feathers, I almost tried down pillows, but fortunately I found this Caspar first. It has a lot of loft, but the weight of my head sinks better into it than with other pillows. It doesn't keep my head from moving, either. It just feels fluffy and soft and gentle.I went back and forth between getting the Essential Pillow or the Original Pillow. Since they sounded similar, I finally settled on the Essential because of the price at the time. After all, I had already spent a lot on trial pillows. It must be dry-cleaned, however, while the Original does not.The pillow comes tightly rolled inside a compact box. Immediately, when removed, it fluffs up to the size and shape it should. (The company says to wait 48 hours before full loft -- I didn't find a lot of difference after the first couple of hours.) It is not a memory foam pillow; it does not have that squishy feel. Instead, it feels as close to down, with a supportive middle, as alternative down can get.-- Debbie Lee Wesselmann