Your Favorite Sleep Position Could Say A Lot About You
If youre born under the sign of Taurus, youre likely to be determined. And if youre the only child, youre probably independent. But do you know what your sleeping position says about your personality? Research has found that the body language you have in your sleep often relates to personality traits you portray when youre awake. Lets explore six common sleep positions and what they might mean about our inner selves.
1. Fetal
Sleeping in this position can imply introversion, sensitivity and shyness, and a desire to protect oneself. People who sleep in this position are known to be tough on the outside, but big softies on the inside. BTW: This is the most common sleep positon reported in a nationwide survey.
According to WebMD, the fetal position is a pretty safe way to doze off, because it allows your spine to rest in its natural alignment.
2. The Log
Lying on your side with your arms by your sides may be a sign that you can just roll with whatever life offers. Youre a social butterfly, according to the UKs Sleep Assessment and Advisory Service. Log sleepers are thought to be friendly, carefree, trusting and popular, but are also known to be quite gullible. Plus, according to a Better Sleep Council survey, log sleepers are more likely to consider themselves to be healthy.
Sleeping on your side is recommended, because youre able to rest more comfortably and it reduces the likelihood of interrupted sleep.
3. The Yearner
4. The Soldier
5. The Starfish
And Then Theres The Neck
Unless youve somehow figured out how to breathe through your pillow, you need to turn your head to the side when you sleep on your stomach. That puts your head and spine out of alignment, twisting your neck. You might not notice the damage this causes after one episode of stomach sleeping, but over time neck problems can develop.
The neck problem you really dont want is a herniated disk. Thats when theres a rupture of the gelatinous disk between your vertebrae. When this gel bulges out from the disk, it can irritate the nerves.
What Is The Best Mattress For Stomach Sleepers
Stomach sleepers should sleep on firmer mattresses. Softer mattresses conform to the contours of your body, making it feel like youre sleeping on a cloud. Sleeping on a soft mattress as a stomach sleeper, however, could exacerbate the potential pain-inducing effects of sleeping on your stomach. While soft mattresses may be appropriate for side or back sleepers, belly sleepers would do better with mattresses that provide extra support.
As a result, wed recommend the Panda Premium mattress to stomach sleepers. Not only is this mattress a significant upgrade from our Panda Classic Mattress, but it also has an additional layer of memory foam to provide enhanced firmness. While the Panda Classic has a firmness rating of 6/10, the Panda Premium mattress has an 8/10 firmness rating. That extra firmness will keep you comfortable throughout the night.
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Avoid Big Meals Before Bedtime
Remember that your digestive system needs time to rest and heal, so dont overload it with a heavy meal right before bed. If youre hungry at night, eat a small snack like an apple with nut butter or a slice of avocado toast.
Better yet, consume most of your calories earlier in the day so that your body can take a break from digesting food at night.
Learn more: Risks of Eating Before Bed
How To Avoid Stomach Sleeper Neck Pain And Lower Back Pain
- Sleep on your stomach with a pillow under your abdomen: dont throw away that old pillow thats flattened from use, it will work perfectly under your hips to aid spine alignment, and to relieve some of the pressure off your back
- Depending on how the position feels: you may or may not choose to use a pillow, if you experience pain, use a slim pillow under your head to avoid sleeping on stomach neck pain
- Invest in a pressure relieving mattress for stomach sleepers
- People who have degenerative disc disease may benefit from this position using additional pillows, it could relieve stress on the spaces between the discs
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Ultimate Guide To Sleeping On Your Stomach
Stomach sleepers are like the Loch Ness Monster, sightings are rare but when encountered, youll either disbelieve belly-down sleepers are comfortable or youll be jazzed to try it yourself.
Many say, sleeping on stomach should be avoided as it can cause back and neck pain, this is true if youre sleeping on an inadequate mattress. But, sleeping face down can ease snoring, sleep apnea, and can prevent tossing and turning all night, resulting in more restful sleep. Sleeping face down must be performed correctly to be effective, lets learn how.
To sleep facing down comfortably without back or neck pain, ensure youre sleeping on a pressure relieving mattress
What Your Sleep Position Means
Jay Summer, Staff Writer
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Many people have wondered if their preferred sleeping position reveals aspects of their personality. Very little scientific research about sleep positions and personality traits exists, and recent studies find a tenuous connection between the two. Although there is some research linking sleep position and personality, study methods and definitions of different sleeping positions vary widely, and thus far researchers are unable to convincingly explain the logic behind the connection.
Despite the lack of rigorous research on sleep position and personality, contemplating your preferred positions could still be interesting and useful. Research about sleep position can provide helpful insights into your health and sleep, as people often consciously or unconsciously adopt certain sleeping positions to help relieve uncomfortable symptoms.
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Searching for the right position and pillow for your needs? Try a MedCline Relief System our Sleep Specialists will help you tailor the product and your position to achieve those high-quality zzzs youve been yearning for.
References
Sleeping Positions And What They Say About Your Personality
From foetus to starfish, find out yours…
What does your sleeping position say about you? New research has just uncovered what your snoozing habits reveal about your personality. From foetusto starfish, find out yours…
Our sleeping positions go beyond simply lying on our back, front and sides. Some people sleep best on their sides, while others will favour stretching out across the bed.
Research conducted by British towel manufacturer, Christy England, took a deep dive into some of the most popular sleeping positions and what they all mean. The way we sleep during the night can reveal a lot about our personality traits, so take a look at the various positions below.
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Which Is The Best Sleeping Position
Sleeping on your side or back has more advantages than sleeping on your stomach. Side sleeping, in particular, is one of the most popular positions with many benefits. Sleeping on your side can open up airways for ease of breathing and potentially reduce pressure on your lower back. Additionally, sleeping on your left side is considered optimal for blood flow, making it the ideal position for pregnant women.
If youre not prone to snoring, sleeping on your back is a good position because it distributes weight evenly. Unlike side sleeping, an added benefit of sleeping on your back is that it promotes circulation, which means you wont wake up in the middle of the night with a sore or tingly arm.
Pillows For Belly Sleepers
As weve mentioned, sleeping on your stomach may mean not using a pillow. You can keep your neck aligned with your back when you sleep right on the mattress.
But old habits are hard to break. And pillows are a comfort for many sleepers.
If you want to continue to sleep with a pillow, make sure youre being selective. You want a flat-ish pillow that still supports your neck. Its a tall order, but its not impossible. Ideally, youll be able to adjust the height of the pillow by removing some of the fill as needed.
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Best Sleeping Position For Snoring And Sleep Apnea
To minimize the risk of snoring, it’s usually best to sleep on your side. Sleeping on your back may aggravate snoring, but for a smaller number of snorers, back sleeping helps them feel more restful the next day.
Tips to Stop Snoring
If you snore, but still want to sleep on your back, try stacking a few pillows underneath your head to reduce the risk of snoring. If snoring wakes you up or if you wake up gasping or feel tired during the day, it’s time to see your doctor.
Sleep Apnea
Severe or loud snoring may be a sign of sleep apnea, a condition that causes you to stop and start breathing while you sleep due to airway obstructions. Sleep apnea is associated with high blood pressure, heart disease, and stroke.
If you have sleep apnea, the way you sleep is well-known to influence how sleepy you feel throughout the next day.
One large study found that most patients with obstructive sleep apnea slept better on their sides, experienced less interrupted sleep, and were more wakeful the next day. However, this same study found that people with severe OSA actually felt sleepier the next day if they slept on their sides, as compared to their backs. Ask your doctor for sleep recommendations if you think you might have OSA.
Pros And Cons Of Sleeping On Your Stomach
Lets get the good news out of the way first. The advantages of being a stomach sleeper may not be extensive, but your favorite sleeping position has some merit.
The main benefits of sleeping on your stomach are that it might prevent snoring and reduce the milder effects of sleep apnea because it can help keep the airways open.
But beyond that, sleeping on your stomach is mostly bad for you. Here are some of the risks associated with being a stomach sleeper.
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Risks Of Sleeping On Your Stomach While Pregnant
During the first trimester of pregnancy, you might sleep comfortably in your normal sleep position. As your stomach grows, however, sleeping on your stomach might become uncomfortable. This discomfort could interfere with sleep. Over time, lower-quality sleep can lead to sleep deprivation. Sleep deprivation during pregnancy can increase your risk of experiencing premature birth, longer and more painful labor, and postpartum depression.
Instead of stomach sleeping, healthcare providers recommend pregnant people sleep on their left side. This position keeps pressure off the liver as well as the vein that carries blood from the legs back to the heart. It also improves blood flow to the fetus, uterus, and kidneys. Using a pregnancy pillow to support the abdomen and cushion the legs can make side sleeping more comfortable.
It Can Cause Neck Pain
Sleeping on your stomach is arguably the worst sleep position, according to sleep specialist Michael Breus, PhD, author of The Power of When. And that’s because it often causes some pretty bad pain and soreness, especially in your neck.
Often, when people sleep on their stomachs, their neck is elevated too high. Plus, your neck is twisted to one side throughout the entire evening. As a result, many experience neck pain the morning after sleeping on their stomach, Breus says.
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Should You Change Your Sleep Position
If you sleep on your stomach and experience stiffness or soreness, you might want to try a new sleep position. Research shows stomach sleeping is the worst position for back support. Sleeping on your back or your side offers significantly more health benefits and less discomfort than sleeping on your stomach. For example, one study of sleepers with back pain found that those who switched to side or back sleeping reported significantly less back pain.
How To Tweak Your Sleep Position
Unfortunately, training yourself to sleep in a new position isn’t so easy, Breus says. A sleep expert can offer a personalized plan to help improve your sleep posture and position. But a lot of the DIY tricks don’t usually help much.
With that said, there are tweaks that can help make stomach sleeping more comfortable for your body.
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What Stomach Sleeping Might Say About You
What does sleeping on your stomach say about you? Personality assessments based on sleep poses could be somewhat like horoscopes. You either believe them or you dont.
But, no matter where you fall on the scale from scientific to an avid horoscope enthusiast, its interesting to consider what sleeping on your stomach might say about your personality. As it turns out, you may have some things in common with other people who also choose to lay down stomach first.
What does sleeping on your stomach and personality traits have in common? There may be some patterns that connect the two. According to Robert Phipps, a British body language expert, people who sleep prone have some shared traits. These traits/habits include:
If You Sleep On Your Stomach:
Youre probably a bit more private and perhaps even a tad closed off, says W. Christopher Winter, MD, sleep specialist and author of The Sleep Solution: Why Your Sleep Is Brokenand How To Fix It. Its a “secure sort of position,” he explains, thoughjust a little FYIits not the best choice for your airway or lower back. People who sleep on their stomach are “very stoic,” Glass adds.
“You kind of feel covered and protected, like a turtle with your shell,” Winter explains. You may be also “more inward-looking than outward-projecting,” he notes, which makes sense, considering your body is **literally** turned inward.
Sure, your sleeping position says a lot about you, but it can also affect your quality of sleep:
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The Side Sleeper In The Full
This side-sleeping position is quite common and visually resembles the position of the embryo in the womb. The knees are drawn up towards the chest, the head is bent forward and the arms are often wrapped around a pillow. This side-sleeping position is often recommended for pregnant women and snorers. People with back and neck problems, on the other hand, should find a position that puts less strain on their back like sleeping on the back, for instance?
Considerations For Choosing The Right Sleeping Position For You
Choosing the right sleep position depends on a number of factors. These include personal preference, as well as physical and medical factors such as:
- Age
- Snoring
- Pregnancy
It is often challenging to change personal sleeping positions. Once we’re asleep, we may find we revert to what is familiar. The use of pillows and back supports may help keep you in your new position during the night.
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Is Sleeping On Your Stomach Healthy
There are conflicting opinions regarding the potential health benefits and risks of sleeping on your stomach. If its true that stomach sleeping indicates something negative about your psychology, sleeping in a different position could possibly change how you feel about life. Its also possible that sleeping on your stomach could pose risks to your health.
According to the Mayo Clinic, sleeping on your stomach can lead to neck and back pain. Other sleep experts suggest, however, that stomach sleeping is only harmful if youre sleeping with your head on a pillow. Dr. Stephanie Estima, for instance, insists that sleeping on your stomach is the healthiest way to sleep as long as you ditch your pillow for good. According to Dr. Estima, sleeping on your back can lead to reduced blood oxygen levels while sleeping on your side robs you of the head-turning action that is, according to her estimations, one of the best benefits of stomach sleeping.
Not enough research has been conducted into stomach sleeping to develop any firm conclusions regarding the relative safety or danger of sleeping in this position. If stomach sleeping feels right to you, try it without a pillow, and if you experience back or neck pain, try sleeping in a different position.
Tips For People Who Sleep On Their Stomach
Not prepared to change to a different sleeping position in the near future? If you simply cannot sleep in a different position, please dont feel guilty about the poorer ergonomic posture. Your sleep is also about mental recuperation, and it is not the case that your body does not recuperate at all when you are lying on your stomach. Experience teaches us that sleeping on your stomach is just not ideal and may contribute to back and neck problems over time.
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