How To Sleep To Help Lower Back Pain

Rub On Medicated Creams

Skin creams, salves, ointments, or patches may help when your back feels stiff, sore, and tense. Many of these products contain ingredients such as menthol, camphor, or lidocaine that can cool, heat, or numb the affected area.

Put on creams right where you hurt. Ask someone to apply it if you have trouble reaching the spot.

âIt’s not going to be a mainstay at providing significant relief, but it can calm things down,â Ray says.

The Best Sleeping Positions

Not only can lower back pain get in the way of a good nights rest, but poor sleeping posture may make the existing pain worse.

A poor sleeping position may even be the underlying cause of lower back pain. This is because certain positions can place unnecessary pressure on the neck, hips, and back.

It is important to maintain the natural curve of the spine when lying in bed. A person can do this by ensuring the head, shoulders, and hips are in alignment, and that the back is properly supported. The best way to do this is usually by sleeping on the back.

However, many people are uncomfortable sleeping on their back or find it causes them to snore. Everyone sleeps differently, so there is a variety of options for people who want to sleep better and reduce their back pain.

For people experiencing lower back pain at night, trying out the following postures and tips may provide relief.

Stress Best Position To Sleep If You Have Lower Back Pain

The muscle mass, as well as tendons in the back, can tear or extend as a result of excess task. Indicators contain soreness in addition to stiffness in the lower back, as well as muscle spasms. Relax as well as also physical treatment are solutions for these indications.

If the disc proceeds the sciatic nerve, Sciatic nerve pain can come with a herniated disc. The sciatic nerve attaches the spinal column to the legs. Consequently, sciatic nerve pain can create ache in the legs along with feet. This discomfort usually looks like burning, or pins as well as also needles.

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Loss Of Bladder Control

If you also experience bowel or urinary incontinence, in which you lose control of your bladder and bowels, you should seek medical attention at the emergency room as soon as possible for treatment.

These symptoms characterize Cauda equine syndrome. Serious compression of the nerve sac in the lower back creates this syndrome.

Sleeping With Sciatica: Sleeping Positions And Tips

Your sciatic nerve is the largest nerve in your body. It starts on your spinal cord, runs through your hips and buttocks, and continues down the back of each of your legs.

Sciatica is an impact on your sciatic nerve. It is most commonly caused by a herniated disc in the lower back. The characteristic symptom of sciatica is sharp pain along the nerve. The pain can vary from mild to unbearable and typically affects one side.

With sciatica, it can be difficult to sleep well. Lying in certain positions can put pressure on your irritated nerve and cause symptoms to flare up. However, some positions cause less pain.

Learn the best ways to sleep with sciatica.

Sciatica and other causes of lower back pain can have a devastating effect on the quality of your sleep. Studies have shown that up to 55 percent of people with chronic back pain struggle with insomnia.

Finding the best position for sciatica relief can be a matter of trial and error. But as a general rule, its a good idea to stick to positions that maintain the natural alignment of your spine.

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Change Your Sleeping Surface

If you’reexperiencing back pain while sleeping it is possible that your sleeping surfacemay be too firm or too soft. If your mattress is too soft, it won’t provideenough support for your body to maintain its natural alignment and can createextra stress or pain. If your mattress is too hard, it can be painful atcontact points like your hips, knees and shoulders. Adding a mattress topper orpurchasing a mattress with the right amount of support may help address backand hip pain.

Causes Of Pain: Fatigue Injury Illness

In relatively healthy and young people, fatigue and muscle overstrain are the most common cause of unpleasant sensations in the lower back. Then, after a short rest and taking a warm bath, the discomfort passes. Suppose it is a severe and sharp pain in the lower back that has arisen acutely over time. In that case, the causes may be musculoskeletal system diseases, spinal injuries, or problems with peripheral nerves.

Possible lower back pain of a primary nature usually causes diseases associated with skeletal muscles or the spine. It includes osteochondrosis with its progressive degenerative changes in the intervertebral discs. Another cause may be a disease such as spondyloarthritis joint lesions between the vertebrae.

The causes of pain of a different nature are secondary. They can be provoked by scoliotic deformity of the spinal column, infectious diseases localized in the bone tissue of the spine, for example, osteomyelitis or tuberculosis lesion. Often, pain is a symptom of a spinal injury, even if it seems insignificant jumping from a height or falling on your back threatens fractures. Many other reasons can lead to back and lower back pain, which a doctor can understand. The patient needs to relieve his condition during treatment, especially during rest or night sleep.

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How To Relieve Lower Back Pain While Sleeping What You Can Do

Do you want to know how to relieve lower back pain while sleeping? A good nights sleep for more than six hours is essential to your overall health and wellbeing. However, when you have lower spinal pain, it can affect your quality of sleep and disrupt your day-to-day life.

Over 31 million people in the U.S suffer from lower back pain. Ongoing discomfort and pain can leave you awake at night and uncomfortable during the day. How to relieve back pain while sleeping? In todays article, we will give you some tips. Read on!

Why Does Sciatica Hurt More At Night

Numerous factors can make sciatica worse when lying down.

Because the lower back curves inwards more than usual, there might be extra pressure on the lower back.

Additionally, lying down can pinch the sciatic nerve, causing back pain to spread from the lower back to the thighs.

During the day, your body gets used to certain back positions. Therefore back pain becomes more pronounced at night when you lie down.

As a result, it is essential to use pillows to provide additional back support and knee and leg support.

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With A Towel Or Pillow Under Your Lower Back

Placing a towel or thin pillow under your lower back can help keep your spine in a neutral position by reducing the space between your back and the mattress.

How to set this up:

Side Sleeping: A Solid Runner

Side sleeping with your legs straight is the second-best position for avoiding back and neck pain. Its also a good position for snorers or anyone with sleep apnea because it keeps your airways open. If you can, stretch your legs out straight and tuck a pillow between your knees to keep your spine in a neutral alignment.

Another type of side sleeping with your legs bent upwards is less ideal for your back. Known as the fetal position, it may be the most popular sleep style, but it promotes an uneven distribution of weight that can cause back pain and sore joints. Try straightening your body into a relaxed position by untucking your chin and adjusting your knees. If youre pregnant, its a comfortable way to take the weight from your back.

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On Your Stomach With A Pillow Under Your Pelvis

Sleeping on your stomach has a bad rap when it comes to back pain. It can cause excessive curving of your spine, Dr. Womack says. But, he adds, this position is doable if you place a pillow underneath your pelvis . You can even skip the pillow under your head if youre comfortable with it, to further keep things in alignment.

The Ideal Sleep Position: On Your Back

The best position to avoid back pain is lying flat on your back. Even so, many people find it the hardest way to enjoy deep sleep. For optimal spine alignment, place one pillow underneath your head or neck and another underneath your knees. If youre pregnant, however, you should avoid this position because it decreases blood circulation to the heart and baby.

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What To Look For In A Pillow

Your pillow should cradle your head and neck and help to support the upper portion of your spine.

If you sleep on your back, your pillow should completely fill the space between your neck and the mattress. If you sleep on your side, try using a thicker pillow to keep your head in line with the rest of your body in this position.

Whatever you do, dont place your pillow under your shoulders.

For back sleepers: You may do best with thinner pillows and those that have extra padding in the bottom to support the neck.

Memory foam is a good material that molds specifically to your own neck.

A water pillow is another option that gives firm, all-over support.

For stomach sleepers: You should aim to use the thinnest pillow possible or no pillow at all. In fact, you may try sleeping on your side while holding a body pillow. The body pillow will give you the feeling of something against your stomach while helping to align the rest of your body.

For side sleepers: You may want to look for a firm pillow. Better yet, try to find one that has an extra-wide gusset that will help with the space between your ear and shoulder. And dont forget to place a firm pillow between your knees. You may even substitute a rolled towel.

While youre at it, remember to change your pillow every 18 months or so. Those pillow protectors can be a good barrier, but pillows still hold lots of allergy triggers like mold and dust mites.

Sleep On Your Side With A Knee Pillow

Chances are you’ve slept on your side many times. Unfortunately, this sleeping position can take your spine out of its proper position and strain your back. The good news is there’s an easy fix. All you have to do is put a pillow between your knees so you can raise your upper leg and restore your natural alignment.

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How Does Back Pain Affect Sleep

Acute and chronic back pain can cause insomnia, a sleep disorder characterized by trouble falling and staying asleep at night. Back pain disrupts the sleep cycle and prevents you from reaching REM sleep , the fifth and deepest stage of sleep. Missing one to two hours of quality sleep sends you into sleep deprivation, and can affect your brain function, mood and overall judgment throughout the day. The Center for Disease Control and Prevention recommends seven to nine hours of sleep for the average adult. When thinking about your normal sleep schedule, here are the guidelines to keep in mind: If chronic back pain is inhibiting your sleep, you may not notice sleep deprivation in the first half of the day while pounding coffee, battling traffic and meeting work deadlines. But as the day goes on and the lack of sleep sinks in, the body begins to slow down. The longer you deal with insomnia, the worse its side effects become. While sleep statistics reveal the good, the bad and the ugly about our sleep habits, all hope is not lost! Here is our list of the best sleep positions for back pain.

Side Sleepers: Keep Your Hips Stacked

If youre a side sleeper, place a firm, flat pillow between your knees.1 The pillow will align your lower spine with your hips and prevent the leg on top from creating pressure on your lower back and/or pelvis. This position also helps relieve stresses in your lower spine, creating room for your spinal nerves.

Use a head pillow to slightly raise your head so that your shoulders are in alignment.

See Best Pillows for Different Sleeping Positions

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Sleeping On The Front With Pillow Under The Stomach

Lying on the front of the body is usually considered the worst sleeping posture. However, for those who struggle to sleep in another position, placing a slim pillow underneath the stomach and hips can help improve spinal alignment.

Sleeping on the front may also benefit people with a herniated disc or a degenerative disc disease.

To adopt this sleeping position, a person should:

What Can I Do

Do you deal with lower back pain? Youre not alone.

The Global Burden of Disease study named lower back pain the leading cause of disability across the globe.

Whats even more interesting is that most back pain isnt caused by serious medical conditions, like cancer or arthritis. Instead, its often brought on by stress or strain from bad posture, awkward sleeping positions, and other lifestyle habits.

Here are the best sleeping positions to try if you have lower back pain, as well as some other things you can do to get a better nights rest.

If lying flat on your back feels uncomfortable, try shifting over to your side:

Whether you use one pillow or opt for two, you should resist the urge to always sleep on the same side. Doing so many cause issues like muscle imbalance and even scoliosis.

How does this position help? Sleeping on your side alone wont make you feel better. Its using the pillow between your knees thats the trick. The pillow will keep your hips, pelvis, and spine in better alignment.

If you have a herniated disc, you may want to try sleeping on your side curled in a fetal position:

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Get A Heated Mattress Pad

Image: AmazonHeat therapy is a go-to treatment for many types of arthritis pain, including nighttime back pain. One way to get even heated coverage throughout the night is to buy a heated mattress pad and put it underneath your fitted sheet. This will prevent it from bunching or slipping during the night. Many models come with automatic timers if youre worried about sleeping with it on all night or if you only need the heat to help you fall asleep.

Avoid Sleeping On Your Stomach

If you suffer from sciatica, you should avoid sleeping on your stomach. Stomach sleeping is considered the worst sleeping position.

This unpleasant position flattens the spines natural curve, and when your head is tilted to one side, it strains the neck. Its better to avoid this position, even if it relieves sciatica so that you do not suffer future back or neck trouble.

In case you can only sleep on your stomach, place a small pillow under your abdomen. Those with degenerative disc disease will find this particularly helpful.

Back sleepers and stomach sleepers can be at greater risk of lower back pain. A possible cause of this is an increase in pressure in the small joints of your spine.

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Try Gentle Yoga Stretches Before Bed

Research has shown that yoga or intensive stretching can help reduce low back pain. It can also help reduce your stress and make you sleep better.

Talk to your doctor about which poses are safe for you to practice and which ones wonât make your pain worse. It might be helpful to start off using yoga props like blocks and bolsters for added support so that you can hold poses comfortably. And taking a few yoga classes with an instructor to be sure youâre doing the poses and breathing correctly — which is key to relaxation — isnât a bad idea either.

Best Sleeping Positions For Neck Pain

The best sleeping positions for the neck are on your back or your side. The back in particular is recommended just make sure to use a pillow that supports the curvature of your neck and a flatter pillow to cushion your head.

If you sleep on your side, use a taller pillow under your neck so your neck aligns with your head. This will relieve any strain on your neck and keep your spine straight.

The trouble with sleeping on your stomach is that you have to twist your neck to keep your head on its side, which puts pressure on the nerves. You can try to retrain yourself to adopt another position, using pillows to coax yourself and to support you in a side or back-lying position. If you must sleep on your stomach, use a thin pillow or no pillow, trying to keep awkward angles at a minimum.

For all sleep positions with neck pain, you should use a pillow under your neck that provides support, such as a rolled towel or cervical pillow.

There is also such a thing as neck pain from sleeping wrong. Sometimes you wake up with neck pain. Sleeping at an awkward angle, sudden head or neck movements during sleep or neck strain from injury may cause neck pain. In addition to utilizing treatments to relieve this neck pain, make sure that future sleep includes a good pillow for neck support.

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