Have you heard the saying, “sleep is the best medicine”? But getting an effective night’s rest requires more than simply hitting your pillow at a set time each night.
Sleep positions and bedding choices can have an enormously detrimental effect on overall health. Certain positions have been shown to reduce bone, muscle, and nerve injuries over time.
1. Sleeping on the couch
At least once in their life, most people have fallen asleep while watching television late at night or staying with friends and family. Yet some individuals frequently opt for using the couch as their sleeping area rather than bed, leading them down a path toward long-term sleeping problems.
Sleeping on a sofa regularly may result in neck pain, stiffness and leg discomfort due to insufficient support from their seat or from sleeping posture issues while lying down. This may also contribute to lower back pain as your spine might not receive sufficient support during rest time – leading to nerve or muscle injuries in extreme cases.
People often turn to sleeping on the couch for various reasons, including wanting to distance themselves from their partner or avoid conflict in the relationship. Sleeping there could also help with difficulty sleeping as it provides an unfamiliar space where relaxation and restfulness can take place more easily than other sleeping arrangements.
An occasional night on the sofa won’t do any lasting harm, especially if it serves as an opportunity to recalibrate before falling asleep. But it is important to be mindful of its impact on your sleep health and aim to create an ideal bedroom environment – Oura members can use their Sleep Score tool to gauge this impact and create optimal sleeping environments.
2. Sleeping on your side
Although sleeping on your side may be the most popular sleeping position, it can often cause issues. Most notably is shoulder pain caused by tension-inducing muscle strain in your neck area when carrying additional weight around on shoulders. A pillow or blanket between knees may help ease soreness and tension; but for optimal results it’s essential that a thicker pillow be chosen that matches up with distance between neck and shoulders.
As a side-sleeper, it’s also crucial that you keep your spine aligned as you sleep – which is where log sleep position comes into play, promoting good posture while helping reduce neck strain.
Another advantage to switching to the log sleep position is its effectiveness against snoring and acid reflux. When sleeping on your back, your tongue and jaw may drop down, crowding the airway and leading to snoring. On the contrary, sleeping on your stomach may result in an uncomfortable throat pressure sensation known as capillary crush, which could be an indicator of sleep apnea or GERD.
3. Sleeping on your back
Many people are used to sleeping on their stomachs or in fetal positions on the bed. If you’re willing to change this pattern of sleeping, back sleeping (also known as supine sleep) has many advantages that include healthier spine and reduced health problems.
Sleeping on your back offers many advantages for improving back and neck pain relief, particularly given the increasing incidence of backaches over recent years. Furthermore, it helps alleviate symptoms caused by poor circulation or compressed nerves – symptoms which can occur as you turn over in bed during the night.
Sleeping on your back has another advantage – relieving sinus headaches by elevating the head and allowing fluids to drain from the nose and throat, reports Nine. Most headaches, particularly cervical spine misalignments that cause them, can be resolved through sleeping this way.
Back sleeping can still cause snoring and worsen sleep apnea for those already suffering from it; however, this can be mitigated by placing a small pillow between your knees to realign hips, pelvis and spine while on your back. Also try sleeping on both sides of bed as imbalances may develop over time.
4. Sleeping on your stomach
Sleeping on one’s stomach, commonly referred to as the freefall or skydiving position, is an ineffective sleeping posture that often causes back and neck problems. It places pressure on the middle of the body forcing the spine into overarching position which destabilises alignment; furthermore it forces neck twisting in unnatural ways which causes nerve irritation, numbness and tingling sensations which further complicate matters.
This position should never be recommended, as it does not support the natural curve of your spine and can cause overarching that puts strain on muscles, joints and ligaments. Over time it can even lead to herniated discs (particularly during pregnancy). Furthermore, this position can exacerbate acid reflux symptoms, increase snoring rates, obstructive sleep apnea conditions as well as obstructive sleep apnea symptoms.
Change is hard at first, but soon becomes second nature and will result in better sleep overall. To help with transition, try placing a pillow under your knees and another at your head as support to reduce back strain and allow easier sleeping; this can lead to restful nights and less pain when awakening in the mornings.
