Sleeping With Pain
Sleep is essential for overall health and well being. Sleep is even more important for pain recovery. Sleeping while in pain can be difficult and this can create significant anxiety around the thought of getting to bed or trying to sleep.
The first aspect of good sleep is having a good mattress. It is generally advised to replace your mattress every 10 years. When selecting a mattress you want something that is not too firm and not too soft, something right in between. If your mattress is too soft this will put your joints in awkward maxed out ranges of motion that can increase pain. If your mattress doesn’t have enough give it will not conform to your curves and produce some abnormal stresses that can increase pain.
If you are a back sleeper, putting a pillow under your knees when you sleep may be beneficial. Placing the pillow beneath the knees puts you in a more spine neutral position and can take stress off your low back. When laying on your back try to pick a pillow that doesn’t force you to flex your head forward too much. Having too many pillows or a pillow that is too firm will over stretch the muscles in the back of your neck as you’re trying to lay down.
If you are a side sleeper, putting a pillow between your knees will keep your pelvis in better alignment when sleeping. This better alignment will keep you from stressing your hips, low back, and pelvic joints. Also, when laying on your side you want a pillow that keeps your neck in a neutral posture. If you have too little or too much support for the neck you can over stretch the muscles going into your shoulders and increase neck and shoulder pain.
It’s generally not advised to sleep on your stomach due to the awkward rotation it creates in the neck. However, if that is the only position you can get into putting a pillow under your abdomen may help with your low back pain. This pillow puts the spine in a more neutral position and takes stress off the joints in the back.
Anyone who is in pain wants to find a position to get out of the pain. This sounds simple, but sometimes that is not the case. We can help and teach you sleeping positions that will help reduce pain when you are trying to lay down. Schedule a consultation at our office today to find out more. Call us at 716-947-5106.
