The 33 bones of the spine are fairly durable, yet still vulnerable. Supporting muscles, joints, and tissues are also susceptible to strain. If you’re not being mindful of how you sleep, you could find yourself experiencing some degree of back pain during your waking hours due to added muscle stress and spinal misalignment. Professional spinal surgeons in Newport Beach, CA discuss some of the ways your sleeping position can affect your spine health.
Going Against Natural Spine Curvature
Your spine is made to bend and move a certain way. Some sleeping positions, such as lying on your stomach, can flatten your spine’s curvature and create added strain in the process.
Aggravating Already Strained Muscles
If you’re not paying attention to your posture while awake, the natural tissue healing that occurs while sleeping can repair some of the tissue damage. However, sleeping in twisted or contorted positions is only going to add to the strain and may result in morning aches and pains.
Lack of Spine-Neck Alignment
Your cervical spine isn’t meant to be independent of the rest of your spine. If you’re sleeping on a pillow that’s not supportive or are in the habit of drifting off to sleep on a stack of pillows, you’re probably throwing off your spine-neck alignment.
Too Much or Too Little Support
A mattress that doesn’t provide the right support for your spine is likely to make you toss and turn and place your back in awkward positions. When selecting a mattress, take your time to test it beyond a simple polite sit-down in a store. If you have persistent back issues, a mattress that can be adjusted to accommodate the support you need may help.
Medium firm mattresses tend to be best for back sleepers, and added softness can cushion shoulders and hips for side sleepers. Stomach sleepers to tend to fare better on something a little firmer, although you’ll want to use a thinner pillow under your head and one under your knees to prevent throwing off your alignment.
For additional tips on finding the right sleeping position to prevent spine pain, get in touch with Dr. Hamid Mir M.D. Whether you need minimally invasive spine surgery or nonsurgical procedures like spinal injections, Dr. Mir can help find the solution to relieving your pain. Call our office today at 949-860-7498 to schedule an evaluation.