Leachco Original Snoogle Pregnancy Pillow Review

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As your pregnancy progresses, your sleep may begin to be interrupted due to a variety of factors. Although you may not be able to control all of the disruptive issues that arise, you can take control of your own personal comfort to keep that from being a source of your nocturnal restlessness.

An ever-changing body through pregnancy can cause many unexpected occurrences, namely that your sleep position may need to be shifted dramatically to accommodate those changes. Back, stomach, hip, and leg support are all common needs through the night, and pillows are an excellent way to help provide that added comfort.

The Sleep Judge has narrowed down some of the best pregnancy pillows out there, and have gathered a team of women to try these pillow out to provide their honest opinions surrounding what each has to offer. The Leachco Original Snoogle Pregnancy Pillow is a total body pillow that we’ve slept with and tried out in order to provide our honest opinions below.

Breakdown of the Leachco Snoogle Pregnancy Pillow

The Leachco Company is a long-standing brand name in the baby product industry that specializes in easy comfort for both mom and baby. Designed by a registered nurse, and mother, the Leachco pregnancy pillow designs are constructed with the various needs of an expecting mother in mind.

Created to take the place of multiple pillows, the Leachco Original Snoogle C-shape allows for back, belly, hip, head and neck support through the entire pregnancy. It even can be shaped for other comforting positions during, and after the baby is born.

Sold through various authentic sellers and distributors, Leachco is a well-known name in the industry and has an excellent reputation for quality and comfort.

Unpacking

The pillow comes tightly rolled in a sealed plastic bag, complete with information pertaining to company customer service. This service is available for you to take advantage of no matter where you purchased it from. Also included in the bag is a “How To Snoogle” visual to help you take complete advantage of the many benefits the pillow has (of which I’m currently taking advantage of ‘The Swirl’ while I write this despite my non-pregnant state).

Since the bag is not vacuum sealed, the pillow comes out ready to use and easily unfolds. Despite it being quite lofty and a bit awkward, it does roll back up very nicely to fit back in its original bag to store or move it with.

Features & Benefits

Before deciding what pillow may be best for you, you should definitely check out the many features each has, and what benefits fit your specific needs. Since each body is so different, and each pregnancy so variable, your own preferences should be a deciding factor in making a commitment to buy a product of this nature. We’ve broken down the major features of this pillow and provided our own opinions in order to save you the time it takes to research each individually.

Shape

The Original Snoogle is a total body pillow that boasts a c-shape with one end being a slightly flatter and wider curve, and the other a tighter hook shape with a more narrow, lofty feel to it. These dual sides allow for personal comfort preferences and differing head and neck support depending on your needs.

Measuring 60 inches in length and 25 in width, it does seem slightly shorter when in use due to the curved ends and measures approximately 40 inches long when placed upon a flat surface. It also has approximately a 7-inch loft, which leaves plenty of material for support where you need it.

When used in its natural c-shaped formation, it can provide both full back support, as well as full frontal support depending on which way you turn it. This also allows you to place the pillow between your legs for added leg elevation to take tension off ligaments and hip joints. When used in such a manner it helps keep your spine in alignment, which is an important detail for proper blood flow and body comfort.

Support Shapes

The Snoogle is also very flexible and can be used in various ways to support reclining positions that can elevate either the lower or upper body to help relieve stiffness, swelling, and the dreaded indigestion of the third trimester expecting mommies.

Back to Back and Belly Basic

When you use the pillow in either of these positions you can take advantage of the long end for either full back, or full belly support. Both provide alignment to your spine, and the back to back provides relief from hip and lower back pain. The belly basic position can be especially helpful after a c-section to alleviate tension in the lower abdomen.

Swirl Around and Donut Deluxe

These uses allow you to twist the Snoogle to allow you to use one side either as a backrest, or a seat cushion. The other end then wraps around the front of you. These are both great uses for sitting in either lounge upon or relieve the pressure of hemorrhoids or for post-episiotomy relief.

Nest Rest and The Swirl

You can also curl the pillow back on itself to use as upper body elevation to relieve stiffness and indigestion, as a lower body elevation to relieve swelling, or just as an excellent backrest to relieve neck and back pain.

Filling

The poly fill used is naturally hypoallergenic, compresses to help mold and shape to your unique body weight and comfort needs, and is non-clumping- so you won’t end up with a lumpy pillow over time. It is rather dense, which creates a higher loft (described below) but does redistribute well with use to provide support in all the right places.

It can be described as a Firm-plush comfort, meaning it compresses easily but allows for a firm underlying support. With use, it also seemed to me that it ‘relaxed’ somewhat and became a bit softer and shapeable, and provide a more personal comfort experience.

Loft

The loft of a pillow is determined by how high it sits when placed on a flat surface. A mentioned, this pillow has an approximate 7-inch loft, with it being at its highest in the tighter, narrow hooked end. Loftier pillows are excellent choices for head and neck positioning while sleeping on your side, and with a slightly tapered design, this pillow can accommodate a wide range of body sizes to help with this alignment.

With use this loft does relax a bit in the areas you provide the most pressure, creating a much more comfortable surface in my opinion. This doesn’t take long, nor does it seem to flatten out; this seems to be a breaking in of the material that is pretty standard with most polyfill pillow products.

Sham Style Poly/Cotton Cover

The poly/cotton blend cover is a looser weave to allow for airflow, is smooth and soft, and is washable. It also comes in multiple colors, and you can also buy replacement covers as well as different materials and zippered options.

The sham style of the Original Snoogle provides a folded opening to access the pillow and remove the cover. This is found at the more relaxed end of the pillow and peels off easily enough if you take your time and take it one section of the pillow at a time. Getting the cover back on is a whole other story, however, and does take a little bit of maneuvering to keep from damaging the pillow seams.

The cover is probably the biggest con this pillow has, which may be why zippered, more easily accessible covers are available for purchase. Plus these additional covers can fit over the existing one for added pillow protection, rather than a simple cover replacement.

Care

Despite the cover being machine washable, the pillow itself is not really designed to go through a wash. Spot cleaning is recommended, as is a rinse of an area that might need attention, but placing the entire pillow in a washer isn’t exactly feasible in most situations. It can be fluffed and refreshed in the dryer though with no problems.

With that being said, the nature of pregnancy and nursing, washing your pillow may be needed. In my experience with this brand, I found that I did at one point have to wash the entire pillow. I did take it to a laundromat that has large industrial sized washers to do so and washed it on a gentle cycle. I would say that the fill did get slightly lumpy through this process, but after using it again it broke up well and was almost as good as new.

Since extra covers are sold separately, purchasing one for pillow protection would be my suggestion to avoid having to deal with washing such a bulky product.

Consumer Reviews

Consumers basically rave about this pillow, more so the partner of expecting mothers who are excited to find a product that helps their mate finally get the rest she deserves. Hip and back support are two of the mentions made often concerning relieving pressure and pain through the night at any stage of pregnancy, with the belly support being popular in the later stages.

No heat issues really seem to arise with this particular pillow, meaning it sleeps cooler, but the awkwardness of the pillow shape and the tighter curved end has created a few issues with women who would like something that is easier to move with.

The loft of the pillow also seems to be a point of contention with some people. Although it seems to be a perfect height and support for most people, especially after it breaks in a little, some people have found it to be either too flat, or too high. These complaints suggest that comfort may be very dependent upon personal needs and preferences.

Since Leachco is sold only through distributors, returns and refunds are dependent specifically upon each seller. The average return time is 30 days, giving you the opportunity to determine if the pillow is a good match for you.

The company does provide direct product support, however, and can put you in touch with distributors or help you with issues that may arise surrounding your pillow.

Trial Experiences

For our various trials, we used a detailed survey to gauge the needs of our sleepers, as well as comfort level. The stages of each pregnancy, as well as specific problems and wants, were addressed within each survey.

Trial 1: Third Trimester

Our first trial sleeper was approaching the end of her pregnancy and had been experiencing quite a bit of nighttime discomfort. Standing 5’10”, back and ligament pain through her hips was very problematic- of which was hard to alleviate through the night in an unsupported side sleeping position.

Although she had been concerned about the overall length of the pillow, feeling that at first glance it would not support her long frame very well, she did end up liking how well the long side supported her back. By using the more loosely curved end as a pillow, she left herself enough room to pull the tighter end of the pillow between her legs to keep her hips more level. She found that with this position her back and long ligament pain was lessened, as she could recline back against the pillow with ease.

The loft felt slightly too low for her shoulder width, but with a thin pillow, she was able to prop it exactly where she wanted it and claimed the filling distributed well to allow good head and neck support. She also enjoyed using it to recline upon and liked how well it provided a way to raise her legs to alleviate swelling and discomfort of her ankles.

The only complaints she had was that it was slightly warm to sleep with on warmer evenings, and since she is normally a hot sleeper (which has been exasperated through the pregnancy) she claims it wasn’t a comfortable pillow to sleep with without the fan on.

Trial 2: Second Trimester

Our second trial sleeper was had just completed her first trimester and was starting to feel the burst of energy that often comes around the second semester. Standing at 5’6”, she really wasn’t experiencing much nighttime discomfort yet but was frustrated with her inability to sleep on her stomach as comfortably as before. To help get more comfortable at night, she had been using pillows to lay against to mimic the feel of her stomach sleeping position.

She used the longer length of this pillow to the front of her body to support her head, neck, shoulder, hips, and leg by using it as a body pillow. She did feel that the loft was a bit too high for her head and neck, but by shifting her body upwards she was better able to rest her shoulder upon the pillow as well and declared the pillow a huge success when used in this manner.

Another favorite use was to curl it around on the couch to lay against and have one of the curves cross over her upper legs and belly for support while reading. The firm filling was perfect for this use and provided good cushioning without flattening out.

The biggest problem she had with the pillow was that since the long length of the pillow was turned to the side she got in and out of bed on, crawling over it was a pain. She also was frustrated with the tight seam on the one end that didn’t quite curl up as wide as she wanted when the pillow was used with the long side to the front.

Personal Opinion

Despite not being currently pregnant, these pillows are also promoted for use through injury, surgery, or joint support and recovery- so I tried them out myself as well. I used a similar pregnancy pillow from this company through two pregnancies and afterward, and so I was curious to see how well this one compared to the one I had used. I had chosen mine originally due to the excellent ratings the company has received and was impressed with the quality of the workmanship and the thought behind the shape to provide all body comfort and versatility.

As a natural stomach sleeper, I am always looking for products that can help me sleep more on my side for better nighttime positioning. This c-shape was very helpful to provide head, neck, hip, and leg support to allow me to rest with my spine in better alignment. I also LOVED how I could take advantage of it curled up or folded, in a lounging position.

At first, I felt the loft was a bit too high for me, but with some shifting, I was able to get into a comfortable position with the pillow between my legs, and I also noticed after a few nights the pillow softened a bit to take on my weight better without being too high. My only complaint is that the ‘hooked’ end is sewn very tight and is not very accommodating to movement. As mentioned by other consumers, this can result in tearing with use, or when trying to remove the cover (which really is a pain to get on and off).

The tightly curved seam and difficult to place cover takes our 5 stars down a bit, but the awesome versatility of the Leachco Original Snoogle Pregnancy Pillow makes it a top pregnancy pillow contender according to The Sleep Judge standards. How well it worked for various stages of pregnancy, and different body shapes and sizes is an important detail to note since discomforts may change through a pregnancy- and having a product that can address each one as they arise helps save money and time in the long run.

Although there is a slight filling break-in time, the loft and shape work well to help alleviate the many aches and pains common to the added weight of carrying a growing baby. The pillow is easy to use for back, hip, and belly support; once you have taken the time to find your perfect comfort, the pillow helps keep your back aligned to support a more restful night’s sleep.

Our trial pros far outlasted the cons that arose, which has us highly recommend you take a closer look at this product to see if it could be a match for you. It also was an excellent sleep support match for non-pregnant sleepers, providing uplifting comfort, as well as an aid to proper spinal alignment through the night.

Conclusion

A pillow that features a supportive filling and loft, as well as a shape that helps support multiple areas of your body, should be at the top of your list if you suffer from nighttime discomfort caused by poor sleep positioning. We found that the Original Snoogle provided joint and ligament relief, as well as a plush comfort for the back, hips, legs, and belly depending on your choices of pillow positioning. If you have been on the hunt for a pregnancy pillow, or even a simple body pillow for nighttime comfort, The Leachco Original Snoogle Pregnancy Pillow is definitely worth considering.