Never Sleep on Your Stomach
One of the changes I encourage patients to make in their lives after receiving chiropractic care is to stop sleeping on their stomach. A surprising number of people are shocked to hear that this is detrimental to them.
If you don’t believe me, try walking around with your head turned to one side. It won’t take long for you to begin feeling pain, soreness, dizziness or neck/shoulder tension. Your body doesn’t like this standing up, and I promise you that it doesn’t like it when you’re lying face down with your head on a pillow either.
The fact is, wrenching your head and neck in this way for even just a few minutes while sleeping can significantly strain the muscles and ligaments of the spine. Repeatedly doing so every night for years slowly adds pressure to the joints and nerves, contributing to spinal degeneration and allowing for the development of a variety of health problems.
If you’re currently a stomach sleeper, begin training yourself to sleep on your back or side. While sleeping on your stomach may feel good and seem perfectly acceptable, so does picking your nose to a 4-year-old (and then eating the treasure).
They’re both bad habits, and neither of them are okay!
What about sleeping on your stomach WITHOUT a pillow? I’ve been sleeping like this since childhood (I’m almost 65 now) and sleep like this on the floor, too.
Sorry Vicki, there are no exceptions to the rule
What about the idea of sleeping with your neck straight and not to the side? I do this all the time by merely resting my forehead on the edge of the pillow. My mouth and nose stay perfectly elevated off the ground. As for sleeping on your side, isn’t a person even more likely to not only be bending their neck, but also their spine and hip too? It makes me think of the 80% “unexplained” cases of scoliosis lying around.
I believe that there is an optimal level of wear and tear we put on our bodies and the level isn’t zero. Otherwise we would spend our lives far from the sun and sharp objects, wear helmets at all times, and blend all of our food. The reality is I would rather sleep how I want for 60 years than how I don’t wan to for 75. Enjoy your lives people. Treat yourself and sleep how ever you want.
Brent,
Your point, although very existentialist, is not very practical. If we followed your logic, we would eat what we want whenever, smoke and drink whatever and whenever, exercise only if we felt like it, and not worry about any of our actions because we were too busy feeding our ego. I would suggest that this is not the way to attain health. I believe the good doctor’s point is that our bodies have a certain design and framework, and if we respect that design we will get better performance form our body.
I agree with Brent that you should do what you want. We don’t want to waste our short period of existence on this Earth, and we should do what makes us happy. And I’m sure that people have slept on their stomachs for centuries, but it makes sense that it may hurt our spine.
That being said, switching how you sleep is relatively easy. If you just force yourself to sleep on your side or back for a week or two, I’m sure you’ll be as comfortable as you were on your stomach. It’s much like switching from 2% to skim milk. You taste the difference at first, but you will pretty quickly become acclimated. And maybe you won’t notice a difference, but trust me, back problems are not something for the faint of heart. They will follow you your entire life…IMHO
Jon, it sounds as if you’re describing the act of sleeping on your face. I think you’ve accommodated and compensated to sleep this way… It’s unnatural, however, and I do not recommend it.
As for side-sleeping, that opens the door to a whole new conversation regarding mattress quality and pillow type. Water beds or springy/unlevel mattresses that dip, coupled with unsupportive pillows will cause a variety of structural problems as well.
I invite you to read this guest blog post I wrote for a mattress supplier in St Louis. It touches on this topic – http://bit.ly/tiXw5
Hmm.. my chiropractor always puts me facedown on his adjustment table and sometimes I fall asleep waiting for him. Is this a problem?
Joe, I’m assuming your head isn’t turned to one side or the other, and is actually face-down on a specialized headpiece. If that’s the case, no, you’re okay.
I actually sleep on my stomach because I feel like I got much less sleep when I don’t… I feel horrible when I don’t basically.
What about for cases of sleep apnea? Sleeping on the stomach can keep the tongue from blocking the airway because gravity isnt working against you anymore
Chris, in regards to sleep apnea, it sounds to me like a classic “rob Peter to pay Paul” situation.
Hi, I’m a stomach-sleeper myself…. I’ve noticed some chest pain lately (not anything heart-related but rather muscular, my pectoral muscles seem to hurt some). Can this be a product of sleeping on my stomach? is it normal? I haven’t worked out in some time but when I did I noticed that the hardest part for me to work was precisely my pecs… can sleeping on my stomach for years be a product of this? Thanks
Wow I’ve been experiencing exactly the same thing as Daniel described only just recently after sleeping on my stomach for years. It feels like pain on your chest/ribcage. Obviously sleeping on your stomach is bad for you! I’ve been trying to switch recently but it is hard. I tend to roll back into my normal position!!
I used to be a back and side sleeper. My wife started to work a few nights a week and the nights she didn’t work she couldn’t fall asleep as early as I wanted to. She started reading in bed. To fall asleep I started to lie on my stomach and bury my face in the pillow so the light wouldn’t bother me. After a few nights I discovered that when I slept on my stomach I awoke far more rested. Ever since I’ve been sleeping on my stomach. When I slept on my back if I got crowded on the edge of the bed and couldn’t roll over to my side part of the night a awoke with a backache. When I sleep on my tummy I sleep in the same position all night and never awaken with a backache.
I use a memory foam pillow and sometimes I lay with my arms wrapped under my pillow and my head turned sideways and sometimes I sleep with my forehead and eyes burried in the pillow to keep my neck in a neutral position. Either way is comfy.
Brent that is so funny what you said…i am in total agreement
Damiens Its all about INDIVIDUAL choices. if you choose to abuse your body then the consequences will come sooner or later. The information is out there and if its useful to you then you will sleep on your back, if you don’t feel like it then you will sleep on your stomach.. Author your own lives and this is one aspect that the individual has full rights over.