It’s fair to say that I didn’t plan this pregnancy very well when it comes to getting a decent night’s sleep during it. These crazy temperatures mean that everyone has been struggling to sleep – regardless of whether they’re pregnant or not. It’s impossible to sleep when it’s still about 28 degrees in your bedroom, even when you have a fan running and all the windows open. All that means it’s been a bit tough to give the Dreamgenii a fair review until now.

I was fascinated when I first saw the Dreamgenii pregnancy support pillow at Blog On back in May as it doesn’t really look like any other pregnancy pillow that I’ve seen. As well as the familiar curved shape it also has an extra bit added on that I’ll come to in a minute.

How to sleep when pregnant

Firstly, one question that I’ve heard people ask, especially those that have never been pregnant, is why you need a special pillow during pregnancy. It’s true that not everyone does, but all three times I’ve been pregnant my sleep has been disrupted by back ache and also some degree of pain in my hips too.

As well as giving you a whole different body shape, pregnancy also affects joints, ligaments and muscles in different ways and for many women that can result in some degree or pain or discomfort. In previous pregnancies I’ve found that sleeping on my side with a pillow tucked between my knees helps somewhat, but it is bulky, cumbersome and not always perfect.

It’s also worth adding here that NHS guidance is for pregnant women to sleep on their side when pregnant, and ideally on their left hand side. Over the year there have been some frightening headlines about the risks of women sleeping on their backs (and as an aside this useful bit of the NHS website helps you understand the facts behind such headlines) but if you’re used to sleeping on your back it can be a hard habit to kick. Especially when you’re asleep and don’t realise you’re doing it!

Dreamgenii’s design

This is exactly where the Dreamgenii’s clever design can help. As well as having a curved section that works as both a knee support and also a bump support the pillow continues with another section. Joined to the end of the main curve is a flat non-padded comfort panel and then a smaller back support cushion section.

It’s a bit confusing to describe at first, but basically you lie on your side with the flat comfort panel section under your body. The larger section then goes in front of you, supporting your bump, and the curve continues and goes between your legs. This helps to align your hips straight and stop pain and discomfort there and in the pelvic area.

The back support cushion section does very much as the name suggests and rests in the small of your back. This is the part of the cushion that I wasn’t all that sure about at first, but it not only supports your back, but also stops you from rolling on to your back when asleep.

How did I sleep?

Let’s totally separate out this crazy summer we’ve been having. In fairness nothing was going to get me a better night’s sleep when it’s so hot. When the temperatures have been lower though, the Dreamgenii has been an absolute dream. I hadn’t really realised just how much I roll around in my sleep until now, but I’ve found that I can use the Dreamgenii to stop me from doing so and I seem to sleep longer and deeper as a result. For daytime naps in particular it has been amazing. I’ve woken up feeling refreshed and not in pain.

At night time I still find that I want to swap sides in the night and the Dreamgenii stops me from just doing that in my sleep. Instead I tend to wake up completely, reposition myself and the pillow and then going back to sleep. Trying to position it with the back support section whilst half-asleep took a bit of getting used to, but once I’d got the knack it was easy enough. Then once asleep I stay off my back and tend to sleep deeper too.

What I really like about the Dreamgenii is the additional bump support (this time round my bump aches in a way that I don’t remember having before) and also the lack of general bulk. There’s still room to have my other half snuggle up to me without him feeling pushed out of the way by a pillow!

With a retail price around the £49.99 mark the Dreamgenii does work out a bit more expensive that some other pregnancy support pillows on the market, but I think that is worthwhile for the addition of the back support and the lack of general bulk to the pillow.

Feeding support pillow

What I’ve obviously not been able to test out yet is how good the Dreamgenii is when you use it as a feeding pillow. As I understand it, the idea for this is that you have the comfort panel behind your back and the back support to one side of you, almost locking the rest of the pillow in place in front of you. That way it stops it slipping in someway whilst you feed.

The only bit I can’t get my head around yet is how you work it if you decide to swap sides mid-feed. I’ll admit that it’s over 5 years since I last breastfed, but I’m pretty sure my two did swap sides mid-feed and therefore expect this one might be similar. Will this work with the Dreamgenii. I guess I’ll have to wait a few more months to find out.

The Dreamgenii pregnancy support pillow retails for £49.99 and you can buy one directly from them here. Some of the range are also available online via Amazon.

Disclaimer: I was sent a Dreamgenii for the purposes of this review. All opinions remain my own. This post contains affiliate (and non-affiliate) links.