Pillow sprays, or pillow mists, are essentially a perfume for your pillows, sheets, or pyjamas, which claim to promote rest and relaxation, and to help lull you into a more peaceful slumber. But do they actually work?
The best pillow sprays are based on the principles of aromatherapy: they’re basically essential oils mixed with distilled water and/or alcohol. According to the US non-profit healthcare organisation, John Hopkins Medicine, aromatherapy can help alleviate the symptoms of anxiety, depression, insomnia, and dry mouth, all of which may hinder your sleep or the quality of it.
On the downside, such sprays can stain your linen, especially if you’ve got silk pillowcases, and they could irritate sensitive skin. The way around this is to spray it in the air rather than directly on your pillow cases or linen.
Apart from that, yes, pillow sprays that use quality essential oils can actually help you sleep better.
But quality is very important here: because essential oils tend to be costly, buying a bottle of pillow spray can sometimes feel like an extravagance. This may lead some to get cheap knock-offs made from non-natural ingredients like synthetic perfumes in their mixes. These can make their scents too strong, disrupting sleep; are more likely to stain your linen; and can have even worse reactions with your skin.The alternative here is to make your own pillow spray, which requires a larger investment at the beginning, but will certainly last you much, much longer. You’ll be able to find plenty of recipes online for this, with our favourite being this by Helpfulnatural on YouTube.
