People who have chronic back issues know that feeling when the pain strikes right after they wake up. The body is supposed to rest during sleep but when you wake up aching all over, you don’t really feel rested. What’s the problem? How can your spine hurt when you were just laying all night?
The way you sleep means a lot. It’s important to provide yourself with a comfortable sleeping place even when nothing about your health bothers you. For people with spinal issues, it becomes crucial. Uncomfortable sleeping can make your pain worse and the quality of your life will also suffer.
1. Choose the Right Mattress
The first thing you should have is a quality orthopedic mattress. It should be firm and resistible for athletes, teenagers, and overweight people. People with spinal diseases are sometimes even recommended to sleep on the floor as a part of chronic back pain treatment. For the elderly, sleeping on a soft mattress is better.
What to do if your back pain is unsteady? You can buy a mattress that combines both. You can turn it on the firm or soft side depending on how your body feels today. Your feelings are the most reliable marker.
But it’s not the only condition for proper sleep. If you don’t pay attention to other factors described below, you may face an aggravation of your back pain regardless of the quality and price of your mattress.
2. Dress (or Undress?) Properly
Tying a wool scar over your sore spine is a popular way to relieve pain but it can work only if you are awake. Your body should be relaxed while sleeping and nothing should interfere with its relaxation. This is why laying down to sleep in regular clothes is a bad idea.
Your clothes for sleeping should be comfortable and loose so as not to limit your movements. Or you can sleep without them at all if it’s not too cold in your bedroom. Nothing should squeeze your blood vessels and reduce your blood flow.
3. Pillow Is Important
Sleeping without a pillow is not good, especially if you have neck issues. Your upper spine needs support when you sleep. If you don’t give it this needed support, your muscles need to do the pillow’s work. They become tense and your body won’t rest properly. Such sleep can cause pain even in healthy people and it most likely will be felt immediately by people with chronic back pain.
4. Listen to Your Body
If your back pain doesn’t let you sleep properly, you can take several pillows to help your body stay in a position that will relieve pain. As soon as the strain over your lower back will be reduced, you will feel it getting better. If you prefer to sleep in positions that overwhelm certain areas of your spine, you may use pillows to compensate.
5. Be Careful With Sleeping on Your Stomach
Some people prefer to sleep on their stomachs. It can have some benefits because when you lay on your stomach, your spine straightens and doesn’t squeeze your inner organs so they can function properly. This position can be quite comfortable but creates additional risks for your neck.
Your head needs to be turned to the side to let you relax and fall asleep. But this means that one side of your neck will be tense all night long. This won't let your brain get proper blood supply. If you feel discomfort in your neck after sleeping on your stomach, try to get rid of this sleeping habit.
As you see, these tips can be useful not only for people with chronic back pain but for everyone else. You can be sure that your chances of having back pain will reduce significantly if you follow them.