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Sleeping is how our body recharges and restores energy for the next days adventures. But when a painful back problem interferes, all the joy of getting some rest is lost. Trying to find the best sleeping positions with lower back pain can be quite tricky. Finding the ‘neutral’ position so that the spine follows the natural ‘S’ curve is the ideal position when sleeping at night. Whether you have back pain or not. But maintaining this neutral position can be difficult to train your body to re-learn it the sleeping behaviors. What often happens is tossing from side to side, sleeping up the other end, trying all sorts of positions and still nothing. Frustrating I know, it happens frequently to millions of Americans each and every night.

A lot of people are dealing with lower back pain and most of the time the causes of these illnesses aren’t some serious medical conditions. Instead, they are often brought by stress, bad posture, bad lifestyle habits, and awkward sleeping positions.

Even though the causes of your lower back pain might not be that serious, it can still hinder you from doing certain tasks. Don’t let lower back pain keep you from living the most out of your life. Start using the right sleeping positions now and find relief from the pain using the tips in this article. But first lets look at how to relax the lower back which will encourage a better nights sleep as well as falling to sleep quicker.

How To Relax The Lower Back Ready For Sleep

Besides trying to sleep in a better position to help you get to sleep, the idea of relieving the problem before bedtime arrives is a quite a fruitful one. Using a foam roller on your back before you jump into bed may relieve just enough tension in the region to encourage a good nights sleep.

Another popular method to help relieve lower back pain is through heat therapy. Applying heat to joints and muscles that are sore, tight and painful allows blood to circulate the are better which feeds the areas more nutrients and oxygen. This helps heal the area and relieves pain.

Doing this before you go to bed can be very beneficial if you suffer from lower back pain that’s related to muscle pain. Relaxing the muscles in the back will encourage your body to relax and fall asleep easier. Popular ways of achieving this is via electric heating pads. Simply plug them in beside the bed, place on your lower back and let the magic happen. However, some people prefer microwavable heating pads as they can heat them up, place them on the back and fall asleep like that. No need to worry about tangling up in a power cord.

Ways To Sleep With Low Back Pain

The Fetal Position

Herniated disk or slipped disk is a condition that is more common in older adults. This condition happens when the disk of your vertebrae is displaced or pushed out of its normal position. This will cause the patient to experience weakness and nerve pains. But there is a way to ease the pain while you sleep. Doing a fetal sleep position will open the space between your vertebrae. A fetal position is simple to do.

1. Lay on your back and gently roll over to your side.
2. Slowly tuck your knees to your chest and curl your torso to your knees.
3. To prevent imbalances, switch sides every once in a while.

Using A Pillow Between Your Knees Or Under Your Lower Back

The goal of this sleeping position is to give better alignment for your hips, spine, and pelvis through out the night. However, it’s essential for you to remember that sleeping on one side the whole night can cause issues like scoliosis and muscle imbalance. It would also be useful for you to know that the trick to having a good alignment is not by sleeping on your side but by keeping the pillow between your knees.

1. Let your left or right shoulder touch the mattress as well as the rest of your body’s side.
2. Get your pillow and place it between your knees. It doesn’t matter if you place one or two pillows, just make sure to change sides from time to time.
3. If you feel like there’s a gap between the mattress and your waist, try putting a small pillow for support.

For back sleepers, a small pillow under the arch in your back helps to maintain the neutral position of the spine. This can also be achieved with a rolled up towel.

 

Sleeping On Your Stomach With A Pillow

Do you have a degenerative disk disease? This sleeping position could help relieve the stress experienced by the space between your disks. While most people say that sleeping on your stomach is bad for people who have back pains because of the stress that your neck might acquire, it’s not bad if you are more comfortable sleeping on your stomach. Here’s a way to make everything better for you.

• Get your favorite pillow and place it under your pelvis as well as your lower abdomen. This will relieve the pressure off your back.
• Evaluate how you feel when you do this position. You can put another pillow under your head if you think that it is necessary.

 

Sleeping On Your Back In A Reclined Position

A lot of people love relaxing in a recliner while watching a movie or reading their favorite book. However, a lot of people also know that sleeping on a recliner isn’t exactly good for those who have back pains. But for individuals who have Isthmic Spondylolisthesis, this can be a good sleeping position. Isthmic spondylolisthesis is a condition that is caused when the patient’s vertebra slips.

A reclining position helps create a good angle for your thighs and trunk. Using this angle, the pressure on your spine is reduced. The big question is: How do you get this sleeping position? Sleeping on your back in a reclined position can be achieved by investing in a nice adjustable bed. This kind of bed will provide the best support and position for you.

Aside from these important sleeping positions, having the right mattress is an essential as well. Your doctor might recommend you to have an orthopedic mattress. However, statistics show that people who sleep in this kind of bed have difficulty in sleeping. So instead, get a medium-firm mattress that has exceptional foam and innerspring quality.

Many back pain sufferers have praised the likes of a permanent adjustable airbed. These are not air mattresses as you may think. They are a combination of materials including a air bladder/mattress which offers custom comfort for each side of the bed. They are not cheap, but I have heard some pretty convincing stories in regards to helping alleviate back pain.