How you sleep can reduce the stress on your neck, or it can strain the muscles and ligaments, leading to new neck pain and stiffness or aggravating an existing neck condition.
As specialists in neck pain, our team at Centers for Pain Control & Vein Care in Hobart, LaPorte, Munster, Valparaiso, and Merrillville, Indiana, understands how easy it is to stress the neck while you sleep. We often evaluate the way you sleep and recommend changes to support a healthy neck. Here’s what you need to know.
Lying on your stomach stresses the spine and forces you to turn your head, putting your neck in an unnatural position or angle. If you don’t already have neck pain, there’s a good chance it will develop if you sleep on your stomach.
Sleeping on your back is recommended, but side-sleeping is also good for your neck (and is preferred by some people).
Experts agree that sleeping on your back is the best position for your neck (and back). However, there are two exceptions: Pregnant women and people with sleep apnea should sleep on their sides.
For everyone else, sleeping on their back is preferred because it puts the least pressure on the spine. As a result, the spine maintains its natural curves, and the supporting tissues can relax without stress.
Muscle imbalances may force your back to arch up slightly rather than lying in a neutral position. The arching can strain your neck, but you can restore spinal alignment by placing a small pillow under your knees.
Pillow placement: The pillow under your head should be the right thickness to support a neutral position. A neutral position is the same as good posture when standing: keeping your head and chin up, eyes forward, and not bending your head.
Your pillow should support your head in a similar position. A pillow that is too thick or thin forces your head up or lets it fall downward. In both cases, your neck bends, straining the muscles and ligaments.
Sleeping on your side is the next best position for your neck. When lying on your side, try to keep your legs outstretched. Again, think about good posture when standing and try to mimic that position.
Many side sleepers curl their legs into a fetal position. This position may feel comfortable, but it throws the spine out of alignment and can cause neck pain.
You can maintain alignment by placing a pillow between your knees. Alternatively, you can put pillows in front of your legs, then bend the upper knee and rest it on the pillow.
Pillow placement: Your pillow should be the thickness needed to hold your head at a height supporting spinal alignment. (Your head should be in line with your spine, not tilted up or down.)
The pillow should also fill the space between your neck and mattress. It’s important to not let your chin drop down and bend your neck, which happens without the proper pillow support.
Memory foam pillows for side sleepers have a curve that fills the space. You can also use a pillow with a filling that lets you scrunch up the area under your neck.
Try to sleep with arms down by your sides, or when on your side, your arms may be slightly in front of you. Placing a hand on or under your head puts extra stress on the muscles supporting the sides of your neck. As a result, you may develop new neck pain or aggravate existing pain.
While you should choose a mattress that you find comfortable, a medium-firm mattress does the best job of supporting your neck and lower back.
A soft mattress allows your hips and shoulders to sink down too much into the mattress. This throws your neck out of alignment, leading to the pain and stiffness of strained muscles and ligaments.
A mattress that’s too firm doesn’t give enough cushioning to pressure points. When your hips and shoulders can’t sink slightly into the mattress, a gap forms between your waist and the mattress.
Then, your abdomen sinks down, causing spinal misalignment that affects your neck and lower back.
Call Centers for Pain Control & Vein Care or book an appointment online today to get help for neck pain or an evaluation of your sleep position.
