Mhackel:
The buckwheat pillow has been my EDP (Every Day Pillow) for at least the past 10 years. I have a history of neck and back problems including fusion of some neck vertebrae. I need firm support of my head and neck, or there isn't going to be any sleep going on for me. I got lucky once and found the buckwheat pillows on clearance at one of the better department stores. I decided to take a chance and I bought 3 of them. I took 2 of the pillows and combined them to make 1 big pillow (it weighs about 14-15 lbs.), and then left the smaller pillow alone (it weighs about 6 lbs.). This has been my set-up for at least 10 years, and it works great - except when you're traveling. I will sometimes bite the bullet and carry the pillows with me, especially if I'm staying for 3 or more nights, but it ain't no ride on no pink duck. Trying to carry 20 lbs. of pillows with you is no fun, but not getting any sleep is worse. They take up quite a bit of space in your luggage, and 20 lbs. - well, like the mountain climber say: "...ounces become pounds". If I'm lucky enough to have advanced notice, I can Fed-Ex the pillows to the hotel, and then return ship them to my house. My boss doesn't like me doing that, but so far he hasn't told me to stop doing that. Besides the firmness - the big pillow is like putting your head on a sandbag - the buckwheat pillows are hypo-allergetic, which is a real plus if you suffer from allergies. My understanding is that the buckwheat pillows are widely used in Japan, but I don't know if it's true or not. Finding the buckwheats may be difficult - of all things, I once found them for sale at Harbor Freight! If you are interested, you might try a store like Macy's, Dillard's, or Nordstrum. I really like mine, and hope they will work for you.
Best of luck,
Dave
