The Sophie Pregancy Pillow: Pregnancy Prone

When I first started doing pregnancy massage, I went for the old "grab a big pillow in side-lying and slide another between the knees" method. I really hated the "pregnancy cushion system" that we had: it seemed to have about a million mysterious parts, none of which wanted to hold together in position.

However comfortable they are, though, side-lying pillows do have their limitations. For one thing, you really can't get in enough good neck work. For another, you spend precious time switching sides and restuffing the pillows into position. And most importantly, the client, doesn't ever get to lie face-down. In interviewing pregnant clients, I found that lying facedown was a much missed luxury, and that they would please-please-pretty-please love to lie facedown for an hour.

Then I got pregnant myself, which decided the issue: we would try a "pregnancy cushion system." I avoided the awful one that I'd first been exposed to, and ended up coveting the Prego Pillow. However, the Prego Pillow retails at about $350, which was too rich for our blood at this time. Instead, we opted for trying the Sophie Pregancy Pillow, which retails for a much more affordable $129. We purchased the professional version instead of the home version, which means it's a little sturdier and made of wipe-able material. The Sophie comes with a bag that covers the entire system: in this way, the fabric itself forms a sling over the structure for the client's belly. However, we found that covering the system with a flat sheet and tucking it loosely around the Sophie works just as well. The Sophie does lack the built-in headrest of the Prego Pillow, but we found that double-stacking unattached face cradles works really well (the instruction videos show the use of a regular bed pillow).

Thus far, our clients are very happy lying on their tummies using the Sophie Pregnancy Pillow. If you too have been coveting the Prego Pillow or another more expensive pregnancy pillow system, give the Sophie a try instead--it may be well worth it for your practice.