Hi folks, just a quick question - I know I need to sleep on my back post breast surgery and know it will be hard to stay that way for 6 weeks as I normally sleep on my side. I’m looking at making a kind of supportive nest of pillows to prevent me rolling onto my side and hopefully to get into a comfy (as possible!) position. I struggle with finding comfy pillows at the best of times…and know it’s kind of a personal taste thing…have seen an array of advice here…
Looking to see if any consensus on what works best…
Wedge pillow?
V-shaped pillow?
U-shaped body pillow?
Pregnancy full body pillow?
Any old pillow stuffed around to stop falling over?
Yours confused!
Any tips welcome. Trying to get prepared so when I come from hospital I am all set and can try to get some kip!
Many thanks.
hi there
I had a double mastectomy in 2022 and so with 2 drains needed to sleep on my back for sometime, and I was always a side sleeper so worried i wouldn’t sleep at all. I bought a V pillow and it was a godsend. I slept in the V and it stopped me rolling to the side. As I recovered I used it to hug, so I don’t fall to far foward and can sleep on my side hugging it. Even now when I go away I use a second pillow to hug and keep me stable on my side.
I’ve also been told it’s helpful for those who suffer with bad backs to sleep hugging it on the side to keep the spine in line.
good luck wishing you all the best
Hi I had a lumpectomy in May and I got a v shaped pillow and an underarm pillow which helped me enormously hope this helps x
Such great advice! Thank you so much for sharing. I confess I’m already a pillow hugging gal even before the surgery, so that makes total sense to me.
Any favourite V pillow for you? Some are a bit floppy I find while others seem stiffer, I was thinking maybe memory foam mix…
Wishing you all the best too! Take care x
Thanks so much for sharing your tips - really appreciated. Seeming like the V pillow is a smart move! Many thanks and hope you’re recovering well. Best wishes. x
You cannot have too many pillows ! After my mastectomy I found the wedge really helpful as you don’t want to lie flat on your back for a few weeks, especially with drains . The V pillow is also great for getting comfy on sofa once youre up and about more.
Best of luck and sending lots of healing vibes xx
You sound like my kind of woman @caron - a pillow maximalist! Even before the breast cancer diagnosis I had amassed quite a pillow collection. I think now there is a serious risk my hubby won’t fit into our bed once I’ve added a few more to my collection! Like the idea of a bed pillow and also a sofa pillow for a bit of Netflix R&R time! Thanks a lot and all best to you. I hope you stay well x
Yes to a V shaped pillow. Invest in some extra pillow cases so you can change often. I found also tricking my body into feeling better was to have a small pillow for the sides of my head - so my brain thought it was sleeping on the side. Works for me.
I used a V shaped pillow and wedged normal pillows underneath it. I’m a side sleeper too and thought I’d struggle but I managed ok 
Thanks for taking time to send advice and encouragement- very nice of you. Best wishes 
Hi. Had a double mastectomy end of July. I bought the wedge a few weeks earlier in order to get myself used to it. I did get THE BEST mastectomy pillow on Amazon which was the talk of the nurses station. It’s Homezone Center Mastectomy Pillow. Not cheap but amazingly comfortable whilst travelling in the car and sleeping with it as well. It comes with another cover for when you finish with mastectomy one. I also have the V pillow. I think in total I had 6 pillows including the wedge. It did help and you’re right, your hubby may not fit in the bed!! 
Wishing you all the best and comfort. It’s amazing how quickly the time goes by and on road to recovery.
Hi thanks for all your hard-earned wisdom. Practising with the wedge seems a good idea - some of them look very steep! Do you mind me asking what kind of wedge you got?
I’ve ordered a kind of V pillow with extra bits - we shall aww what arrives
I’m not actually having a mastectomy, I’m having therapeutic mammoplasty to remove the tumour from one breast and reshape it at the same time, while also reducing and reshaping the other breast at the same time. Though different surgery, it still involves sleeping on my back while the wounds and incisions heal. So all advice gratefully received. Many thanks and hope you’re recovering well. 
This was one of my biggest concerns before my mastectomy and bilateral reduction - I’m a side sleeper, and a bit of an insomniac one at that! I’m two weeks out of surgery now and have successfully used a v pillow with loads of normal pillows around it (so basically sleeping sat up) and it’s been fine! Actually sleeping better than normal though I think a lot of that’s due to the post surgery exhaustion and the meds. But it’s been better than I expected. Hope all goes well for you!
So glad you’re sleeping well! That’s good, hopefully will help you heal. I’m also a fellow side-sleeping insomniac so I totally get it.
Sleeping very poorly just now as I find waiting for surgery hard, messes with your mind in the wee small hours. It will be almost 9 weeks from diagnosis to op, feels like a long 9 weeks, though only 3 still to go now.
Best wishes 🩷
Hello @pearly1960
Another side sleeper here who went for a v-pillow. Very comfortable and used an ordinary pillow to lengthen my operated side so my whole arm was supported. This also helped with my drain in the first few days.
I’m not sure i was back-sleeping for 6 weeks. I do remember the v-pillow helped as I gradually got back to side sleeping. I moved it around to support me as I got more and more on my side.
All the very best.
Thank you! A big thumbs-up for V-pillows from most people it seems. Very helpful of you! I hope you’re back to getting some good sleep now. Best wishes 🩷
I invested in a Wedge pillow as I am normally a side sleeper.
Its been a godsend but having read some of the responses I think i’ll also get myself a V pillow.
However i’m using the word sleep very loosely 
havent had much of that since surgery.
Hello! I’m going pillow mad! If you’re happy with your wedge pillow - do you mind me asking what type you have? Some of them look like rigid slopes which I can’t imagine being at all conducive to sleep?
Best wishes. 
🩷
I wish you all the best with your sleep mission! Not easy at the best of times, brain whirring etc, so it’s good to share any tips.
Look after yourself 🩷
I got mine from amazon … yes it is a rigid slope but I bulked it with pillows on top & it was ok . I’ve got used to it now. 