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Is this a sleep apnea thing because I've always been told you want to sleep on your back?
by Spivak 2y ago
Is this a sleep apnea thing because I've always been told you want to sleep on your back?
- ayhanfuat 2y agoYes, sleep apnea mostly gets worse if you sleep on your back so they suggest sleeping on your side.
- outworlder 2y agoYes, although untreated sleep apnea is dangerous and you shouldn't rely on this if you suspect you have it. It may make it better but you may still be starving your tissues of oxygen.
- jfengel 2y agoConversely, for my case: I was told that my sleep apnea didn't rise to the level of a medical condition needing intervention, but I should try to avoid sleeping on my back to help with the problems that do present.
- fahrnfahrnfahrn 2y agoI have sleep apnea that I treat with a BiPAP machine. The neurologist who manages it said that everybody has sleep apnea to some degree, and, as a matter of fact, with my BiPAP machine, I have fewer episodes than the average person.
- op00to 2y agoStarting CPAP tonight. Wish me luck!
- post-it 2y agoGood luck!
- op00to 2y agoThanks! It went well.
- dotancohen 2y agoHow did you sleep?
- op00to 2y agoJust fine. It was a total non-issue! I slept fine before, but now I’m not gonna give myself a stroke or heart attack.
- elric 2y agoTold by whom? Gravity works against you when you sleep on your back: your jaw falls in on itself, your tongue relaxes down into the back of your throat, stomach acid can flow up into your esophagus with relative ease. AFAIK the left side is generally the "recommended" position. It addresses all of those issues. In some cases sleeping on the stomach might be preferred, as that helps the lungs take in more oxygen, which is why patients on respirators are often kept on their stomachs in hospital. That being said: if you don't have sleep apnea or reflux, any position that's comfortable is probably fine. No one stays in one position the whole night anyway.
- bryanrasmussen 2y ago>Told by whom? I sort of feel my body telling me, my back hurts because I never sleep on my back (because of sleep apnea, or at least horrendous snoring) but when I lay on my back it feels much more comfortable, but can't sleep that way because I will wake up the house.
- jacobgkau 2y ago> my back hurts because I never sleep on my back Try a body pillow. Having something to wrap your arms & legs around and keep your spine aligned counteracts at least some of the discomforts of sleeping on your side.
- 0xEF 2y agoYour back hurting could be a number of factors, but the big two would be your mattress or your posture/overall while awake. Try doing planks and crunches each day to build up core strength, which makes it a bit easier to maintain good posture, though that still takes considerable corrective practice. I have two back injuries, so all sleeping positions suck in different ways for me, but doing daily core exercises helps take the load off my back while awake so it hurts less at night.
- prawn 2y agoI've always been jealous of people who can sleep on their back as it would allow them to sleep on thinner mattresses when camping!