Do you fidget and roll around with back pain at night in a desperate attempt to get comfortable?

Or

Wake up several times only to rise with a stiff neck, back pain or headache?

If so we have some great information to share with you to make sure that you don’t spend your time frustrated with back pain after sleeping when all you want to do is sleep.

When we think of back pain and how to look after our backs, we often consider it in terms of what we do whilst we are awake. However, what happens while you sleep is also critical for preventing and resolving back pain at night and ensuring you get a restful nights sleep.

For some of you, a good nights sleep is a rarity, as bed and comfort don’t necessarily go hand in hand. If you have ever suffered with back pain sleeping, you probably know first hand how crippling and uncomfortable a bed can be if it is not supporting you correctly. In fact a poor mattress and/or pillow can be the primary cause of strain and weakness to your back.

All being well we should be spending 7-8hrs in bed each night. That’s almost a third of a day! Plenty of time for a poor sleeping posture to affect your body.

What should your bed and pillow be doing for you to prevent back pain after sleeping?

Ultimately we want our spines to stay in the correct alignment as much as possible. Yes you may move around a bit (or a lot) in your sleep, but your mattress and pillow should always be supporting you as you change positions.

By support we mean giving a little to adapt to the weight and contours of your body, but not sinking away under your weight creating a hammock effect!

A poorly supporting mattress and pillow will create incorrect pressure in the spine. If this pressure is maintained for 7-8hrs whilst you sleep it will be stretching some muscles and ligaments and simultaneously squashing and shortening others. These tension differences can cause weakness where tissues are being stretched something called creep. Also structures held in a short position can get tight and then have reduced function. Over the nights, months and years this can build up and create quite a strain on that area of your spine eventually resulting in back pain at night.

Within the neck it can lead to tension headaches, tightness in the shoulders and a loss in the range of movement. In the back this can cause weakness that puts you at risk of injury and back pain.

How to assess your mattress

When checking your current mattress (or indeed looking for a new one), take someone with you so they can see what happens to your spine when you lie on it.

Be sure to lie down for a good 10-15 minutes first so that you are fully relaxed into the bed. Also this gives time for the mattress to adjust to your weight, body shape and temperature, giving a much truer representation of how it will behave during the night.  No time to be self conscious here, a new bed is a huge financial investment and something that should last you for the next 10 years or more.

You need to be sure that the mattress is giving the right support to keep your spine level. To check this lie on your side and have your friend/partner look for the following:

  • Does the bed sink too much at your hips causing them to tilt forewords or backwards?
  • Is there a curve to your spine like a smile? This shows the mattress isn’t supporting your body throughout.
  • What is happening at the shoulders? Does the bed give a little to account for the extra width there?
  • You should see a nice straight line through your spine from your neck right down to your pelvis.
  • If you lie on your back does your body dip anywhere – often at the pelvic area? Again this indicates a lack of support.
  • When lying on your side can you slide your hand under your waist area.  This indicates that the bed is too hard and will cause pressure points for your shoulders and hips.

Don’t forget the pillow

The pillow really is an extension of the support offered by the mattress. Here it is all about broadness! Your pillow needs to just fill the space between the mattress and your head. This will keep your neck in a line continuous with the rest of you spine. A badly fitting pillow could be the cause of your back pain after sleeping at night, as poor support of your neck will cause compensations further down your spine.

If you sleep on your side and have broad shoulders, you will need a thicker pillow than someone of a narrower build. This is where contour pillows work really well. The lip created by the contour shape fits nicely into the neck. It fills the gap of your shoulder width and then drops away to cradle the head and keep that level too. The same is true if you lie on your back.

Try to check a new pillow on the mattress you use at home. Also if you are looking for a new mattress, take your pillow with you to try with it. They need to work in relation to each other so should be checked together.

General Considerations for a Great Nights Sleep

  • Sleep on your back or side. If you sleep on your front you will need to turn your head to breathe. We often turn the same way when we do this, out of habit. This causes tension within the neck as some muscles are being stretched while others are always scrunched up.
  • Changing sleeping habits takes time. Be persistent with this and you will reap the benefits in the long run.
  • Turn your mattress regularly – ideally each month. Some should not be flipped over due to their construction e.g. memory foam but you can always turn them through 180 degrees. This allows areas that are always supporting the heaviest parts of your body to rest. The material can recover and the main strain is focused elsewhere for a while. Doing this will keep your mattress working for you much longer.