What’s the best position for sleeping ? It’s a tough question, because results will vary depending on who you’re asking. Then when you factor in the modifiers — because it isn’t as simple as just sleeping on your side, back, or stomach — things get overwhelming.
A recent Twitter thread yielded some interesting ideas but no clear answers.
Sleep: we all need it.
While most people probably have a favorite or default sleeping position, most of us switch it up from time to time, especially when we’re having trouble falling asleep.
This tweet kicked off a spirited debate.
The tweet , from a user named Mickey, advocated for this position. Personally, I kind of like it. While I’m not a fan of sleeping on my stomach, bending one leg kind of makes it a hybrid stomach/side sleeping position.
Doing it sarcophagus style.
The whole coffin connotation is the reason I don’t usually sleep like this. If I lie peacefully on my back with my hands folded on my chest, I feel like a corpse, and I don’t want to be a corpse.
This one hits hard.
The only thing this diagram is missing is the angry, frustrated transitions that happen between these positions.
We’ve all been there.
The fetal position is a pretty natural way to lie, but when you modify it and pull your legs up to your chest, things are bound to feel tight. Still, if you’re in a bad place, this is probably one of the better ways to soothe yourself.
Sometimes it just works out like this.
If you’re sleeping on a bed, or even a couch, you’re likely going to find a position more comfortable than this. But crashing on the floor or at an airport or whatever? All bets are off, and sometimes things wind up this way.
Sure, why not?
I think of this as more of a reading position than a sleeping position, and I have no idea who Bertoldt is. Still, I’m going to include it here because @skinniilegend is thinking outside the box.
This.
When I was young, I didn’t have back pain. I didn’t understand back pain. Now that I’m older and have experienced some truly awful back pain, things feel like they’ll never be the same way again.
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Ain’t that the truth.
This one’s in response to the original tweet, but it could realistically apply to any of the replies as well. No matter how well you try to align things when you fall asleep, there’s always a decent chance you’ll wake up with your spine in a different position.
Is there an ideal way to sleep?
If Twitter can’t answer this question for us, can anyone? We’d love to hear your thoughts on sleeping positions, so feel free to share in the comments!