Savvy Rest Organic Latex Pillows: great for reading & sleeping

I enjoy reading while lying in bed and spend at least 2 hours each day doing so. I also like using organically grown and processed products--partly for environmental reasons, but also because I'm somewhat chemically sensitive and because non-synthetic, organic products are healthier.

I was excited to have the opportunity to review Savvy Rest's Shredded Latex Pillow. It's made from organic natural latex (which comes from a tree). I already have an organic wool pillow--I replaced my memory foam pillow with the wool pillow and my insomnia problems disappeared. I woke up feeling refreshed and clear-headed instead of tired and groggy. So I'm hooked on organic pillows. It's worth the expense when you realize you're spending about 8 hours a day with your head right next to the pillow, breathing in whatever chemicals it's off-gassing.

Savvy Rest agreed to send me a free standard-sized shredded latex pillow (for review purposes). The pillow arrived 9 days after the order date.

I eagerly unpacked my new pillow, took it to a bed, and tried it out. The pillow has a soft, organic cotton casing and is intentionally overstuffed with a fill of soft, shredded latex. The pillow feels like a gel pad: your head makes a depression that moves as you move. The fill doesn't compress except where the weight is. I wanted to show this off, so I took it to my mom and said, "You try it!" She did and said, "I think this might be what I need for my sore neck and shoulders. Can I try it tonight?"

It's not like I could say no to my mom...

My mom likes to fluff her pillow every morning, so I could see why she'd like a pillow that doesn't need fluffing.

The latex in the pillow had a noticeable smell, but it wasn't bothersome. Both my mom and I have minor skin reactions to synthetic latex gloves, but neither of us has had any reaction to touching or smelling the organic natural latex in this pillow. (More about latex allergy.)

After the first night using this pillow, my mom said that her neck felt a little better, but she wanted to remove some of the fill. The pillow actually has both an outer casing and an inner casing. The zippers for both were facing the same direction, so it was easy to open both and remove several handfuls of fill. The pillow still looked very full, but this fill level felt comfortable to my mom. After the second night, her neck and shoulders were feeling even better and her range of motion for turning her head was much better.

The latex smell was still strong, so we put the pillow outside in the shade on a brisk, windy day to air it out for several hours. When we brought it in, the smell was much reduced but still noticeable.

My mom has used the pillow for five nights now, and she wants to keep it. She said, "For years, I've woken up with a stiff neck and shoulders. It hurt to turn my head very far. But now, that's lessening with each night!"

I've also used the pillow during the day to test it out for reading while lying on my belly and side. I like that the pillow doesn't stay compressed after each use and that it offers nice head and neck support however I lie on it. So I highly recommend this pillow.

A standard-sized Savvy Rest shredded latex pillow costs $79, a queen-sized costs $89, and a king-sized costs $99. You can buy them from Savvy Rest.