When I was pregnant I had to sleep with a pillow between my legs in order to sleep comfortably. After I gave birth, I continue to use this pillow because it's so darn comfortable.

Yes, I’m an adult and I sleep with a special body pillow affectionately known as “Huggy”. It’s the perfect size and fits comfortably between my legs and extends up to fit comfortably between my breasts. Huggy is also the perfect thickness which makes it squeezably soft and oh so comfortable.

I have always been a back-sleeper. I would fall asleep on my back and not move the entire night. My sleep problems started happening when I got pregnant. In the later stages of my pregnancy the only comfortable position was on my side, with a pillow under my growing tummy and between my legs to support my back.

My then-husband (now my ex), was very put off by my need to sleep with a pillow between us. Come to think of it, he was put off by many things that changed during and after my pregnancy, and I felt bad about a lot of it. However, these were things I couldn’t change. I had horrible back pain with my pregnancy as well as overall discomfort and sleeping was becoming a luxury. Sleeping with the pillow helped lessen the pain and allowed me to get a decent few hours of sleep.

After I gave birth I continued to use it. My then-husband did not like it at all. I couldn’t understand why because it’s not like he was an affectionate partner and wanted to hold me during the night.

So many other things changed when I became pregnant but I figured these were things we had to sacrifice for our family. Things change, we just need to adapt, right? I remember him telling me when I was about 2 months pregnant that I was snoring every night. He said it wasn’t a loud obnoxious snore in the beginning but later in my pregnancy and after I gave birth it got progressively worse. It got to the point where he was getting angry because apparently, he had trouble sleeping because of my snoring. But here’s the thing, he snored very loudly (so loud I could hear him through the walls) from the moment I met him and I learned to deal with it. Geez! Plus, I wasn’t getting any sleep either as a new mom so what’s the big deal?

In all honesty, though, “Huggy” is a comfort thing, not a love thing so guys shouldn’t feel jealous or like they’re being replaced.

After my daughter was born I started doing playdates with other moms in the neighborhood. During a mommy-n-me playdate, I overheard a mommy friend of mine telling someone that she sleeps with a body pillow as well and her husband hates it too. Once she started the conversation, other mommies said the same thing. I was shocked that all of their husbands had an issue with it too. I still felt bad that my husband was having trouble accepting the new addition to our bed, but hearing their stories helped me feel more normal. These women made no apologies for their need for a body pillow – btw.

My daughter being born was the happiest day of my life and yes many things changed; some good and some not so good, however, I wouldn’t change a thing. I’m not ashamed anymore and that husband is long gone. I’ve learned to embrace all the things that changed about me during my pregnancy and once my daughter was born. Okay well maybe not everything because my snoring was definitely a problem because I developed sleep apnea and eventually had surgery to correct it. Yikes!

After my divorce (long story) I joined eHarmony and in my profile, under the “Things I Can’t Live Without”, I listed my body pillow. I figured I would put it all out there and let any potential suitors know that if they were lucky enough to share my bed, they’d have to be okay with my pillow because it was non-negotiable.

My current husband was a little put off by it at first but now we laugh about it and he teases me that he’s going to steal Huggy from me. He accepts that when I sleep on my side, I will be hugging my pillow. It’s not like I would hug my husband all night long anyway because first of all he’s much bigger than me, secondly, he’s not mushy and moldable, and thirdly we would most likely spontaneously combust.

So, my take-away from this experience is that we all have little things that make us unique. When I was married, I let my husband (now my ex) make me feel bad about my need to sleep with a pillow for my own comfort. I no longer let people make me feel bad about who I am or how I live my life. It’s truly liberating.   

Google wasn’t around back when I was married the first time, but now there are several studies and articles that promote the use of a pillow between your legs when sleeping to help keep your spine in alignment. Here’s one from the University of Utah.

Do you sleep with a pillow or blankie or something that helps you get comfortable? If so, what type of comfort does it give you? Does anyone make you feel bad for needing it? Share your thoughts in the comments below.

My pillow is not a huge body pillow because I feel like those just too cumbersome so I use a king size pillow instead. Here’s a link to a fabulous King Size Bamboo Pillow (Amazon Affiliate Link: this link is an Amazon link which means if you click on the link and make a purchase, I receive a small commission. If you decide to do that, I thank you for your support.

I also found this pillow Mumano specifically for pregnancy which they didn’t have when I was pregnant. This is NOT an affiliate link however it's a good site for pregnant women.