Why You Should Never Be Sleeping On Your Stomach
What’s your ideal sleep position? For me, it’s all over the place — on my back … turned on my left side … then to the right side, and again on my back. When I was younger, I occasionally found myself sleeping on my stomach. It was fine back then because I was far more bendy, but over the years, I have made it a point to avoid tossing and turning so much that I sleep on my stomach.
You should avoid it, too. Simply put, sleeping on your stomach is not good for your back — especially your neck and lower back.
The Chiropractic Downer of Sleeping on Your Stomach
As natural as it may be for you to sleep on your stomach, the reality is that doing so puts an incredible amount of pressure on your back. According to the Mayo Clinic AND the Sleep Foundation (see, it’s not just because I’m an overreacting Chiropractor), sleeping on your stomach makes it impossible to maintain a neutral spine position. This is because most of your weight is in the middle of your body, and as your torso sinks deeper into the mattress, your back will naturally arch and stretch. Also if you want to breathe, your neck will be turned to one side all night long.
Consequently, everything will become out of whack.
Just a few of the more common detrimental effects of sleeping on your stomach include the following:
General aches and pains upon awakening
Related pain in your neck, shoulders, and arms
More consistent headaches
Poor sleep quality
Discomfort throughout the day
Maybe sleeping on your stomach isn’t causing noticeable discomfort yet, but why risk it? If you already have underlying postural and spinal alignment issues — and let’s be honest, most of us do simply from enjoying daily life — consistently sleeping like this for any length of time will likely worsen those dysfunctions and cause pain.
What’s the Ideal Sleep Position
The ideal sleep position is on your back. That said, we all naturally gravitate to what feels most comfortable to us — and for you, that may still mean sleeping on your stomach. If you have to sleep on your stomach, here’s some good advice.
Use a thin pillow or no pillow at all for your head. This helps keep you from angling your head and neck too much.
Stretch in the mornings to improve alignment and strengthen supporting muscles.
Stay consistent with chiropractic adjustments.
At Compassion Family Chiropractic, we rely on gentle and specific adjustments that correct the root issues of your pain and dysfunction throughout your entire spine. Making these gentle, specific, and consistent corrections to your spine results in progress every visit, adding up to better health outcomes in the long term. By staying on top of your spinal health, you can head off any small imbalances at the pass before they become more significant issues down the road.
We have had the blessing of seeing so many health transformations in our office — beyond the typical adjustment to resolve back and knee pain — and we hope you will be the next success story!
Call Compassion Family Chiropractic Today!!
At Compassion Family Chiropractic in Lewisville, TX, our goal is for you and your family to feel like a part of ours. On your first visit, you will be greeted by warm smiles and a whole team that is happy and willing to serve you. We aim to provide you with the most thorough and effective chiropractic care available while treating you with unparalleled service all along the way.
We look forward to the opportunity to become your family’s home for chiropractic care in Lewisville!
Call us today at (469) 240-2322. To learn more about Dr. David Ravdin, click here.
