Many years ago, as I was stuck in one of the supersonic sardine cans that airline travel had become, I noticed some of the passengers wearing some odd kind of inflatable ruff that made them look like they were going a futuristic mashup of a the 1980s and a renaissance fair, an inflatable contraption around their necks that looked like an Elizabethan collar.
A travel pillow, you say? Please, why would I want to wear one of those, and look like a dork? (Mind you, I was in my twenties then; young, stupid, and seemingly invincible - I grew out of two of those.) After a few more long plane trips and car rides, ending in cricked necks, sore backs, and some very, very poor sleep, I began to rethink my original assessment.
Those earliest travel pillows, simply a round inflatable ring that went around the neck, certainly did their job, but they weren’t always perfect. For people with thick necks - like me - neck support pillows could be a little tight, and if they weren’t inflated correctly, you’d either get no benefit, or feel like you're choking, which definitely doesn’t lend itself to a quality nap.
Travel pillow technology has come a long way since then. My new go-to is the TravelRest inflatable travel pillow. Instead of an inflatable ring around your neck, the TravelRest is more like an inflatable strap that crosses your body like a seat belt, and works great on trains, planes, and automobiles. It not only keeps your head straight, so you aren’t bouncing around like a bobblehead, but it also keeps your head from falling forward, which was always one of my greatest bugaboos, especially on road trips with a brake-happy driver.
Simply put, if you’re going to be taking a long confined ride in some sort of vehicle, and you want to get something resembling sleep on the way, use a travel pillow. And if you’re going to use a travel pillow, you may want to try a Travelrest.
- Dave Meddish, Live Superfoods
