Proper Sleeping Posture for ‘Brain Drain’ | Hacker News Reader

Proper Sleeping Posture for ‘Brain Drain’

americanpostureinstitute.com

29 pointsneverminder23 comments

RATS. The research they cited was done on the sleeping posture of RATS, a quadrupedal, straight necked organism. I doubt it's very applicable overall to the difference between lateral and supine posture in humans so I wouldn't take this article to heart in order to adopt a sleeping position that's bad on your shoulders and sinus development.

link: http://www.jneurosci.org/content/35/31/11034.short

>>"Sleeping on your side with a small pillow between your legs is considered the ideal sleeping position."

What is the rationale behind the pillow between the legs?

At least for me it's comfort - I don't like my boney knees knocking into each other.

Probably to help align the hips and lumbar spine, otherwise the top leg would twist your pelvis and spine with the downward pressure.

And it works wonders. Nothing repairs my tired back faster than a few dedicated nights of sleeping like that.

I have heard before another reason is that it can help keep you from rotating into a different position. That's why I do it. Without the pillow I have 0% chance of staying on my side.

The pillow is probably activating a reflex to press the legs together.

In other news, it's the Stabile Seitenlage [1] from first aid! https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Recovery_position

Hip alignment.

Sleep on the side with a very large pillow (or a human sized stuffed animal!)

It's soft to hug, and it allows to adjust not just the legs as mentionned in the article, but the shoulders as well.

Anyone else able to sleep on their left side just fine but not on their right side? I'm in fairly good shape but for some reason sleeping on my right side just gives me a heavy feeling inside my chest that prevents me from falling asleep. I've wondered what the effects of a lifetime of sleeping on one side could be.

For me it's the opposite - if I lie on my left I can feel uncomfortable pressure against the heart. In decent shape too, lifting weights for the last 7 years.

I attributed side bias to my scoliosis for a long time. But after I switched from a soft bed and traditional fluffy pillow to a more minimal blankets-over-floor with small pillow, this problem went away and I will use either side without difficulty.

Ignoring physical/spine/chest issues it could just be a bit of acid reflux/heart burn.

For those who don’t know what lateral and supine sleeping positions are

https://imgur.com/gallery/OuG6rBc

Shame that people with sleep apnea are advised to sleep on their backs. Though the article does mention that supine is still better than prone.

People with sleep apnea are advised to sleep with CPAP machines.

Right, but also on their back while wearing their masks.

I'd think that sleeping on the side would be better for them.

Not sure about most masks, but the one my dad has would be super uncomfortable to lay on his side

> with sleep apnea are advised to sleep on their backs.

Where did you hear that? I've had apnea and used cpap machines for over 20 years. I've been through 3 or 4 ent docs and none have said that. And I know from experience my whole life that lying on your back makes apnea much worse.

And my mask allows me to sleep in any position, as close to face down as I did without it.

That doesn't make any sense because it's worst when sleeping on your back. Sleeping on your side helps keep your airway clear. (The problem is that people often don't stay on their side.)

Sleeping on my side kills my shoulders.

sleeping on your side prefers a softer mattress then if you sleep on your back for this reason.

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