Best Positions for a Good Night's Sleep

Aches and pains require that you sleep a certain way
By Neal Colgrass,  Newser Staff
Posted Jan 20, 2013 5:28 PM CST
Best Positions for a Good Night's Sleep
Not the best position for a healthy sleep.   (Shutterstock)

Getting enough sleep is one thing, but it's vital to sleep in the right position if you suffer from certain pains and medical conditions. The Wall Street Journal sums up the experts' advice:

  • Obstructive sleep apnea/snoring: This condition can cause dangerous narrowing or blockage of the airway—and sleeping on your back only makes it worse. One trick: sew a tennis ball to the back of your shirt so you have to roll over.
  • Heartburn: Sleeping on your back is a no-no again. This condition is caused by gastric contents rising up the esophagus or back of the throat; counteract it by raising your head with pillows or heightening the head of your bed with bricks.
  • Back pain: Flat on your back is often best—not bending forward by sinking into a soft mattress, or flexing forward under a pillow.
  • Shoulder pain: Don't sleep on the side of the aching shoulder, obviously. Stay on your back with a little pillow under the sore shoulder, or on your other side and hug a pillow.

Click for more—including the best position for neck pain. (More sleeping stories.)

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