Neck pain – Sleeping on Your Back

Does your neck hurt when you wake up in the morning?

Do you sleep on your back?

A question that I always get as a Vancouver Chiropractor is: What is the best pillow to decrease neck pain? The simple answer is… there is none. If you are a back sleeper, the perfect pillow is a flat one that keeps your head in a neutral position. Often times I will even suggest sleeping without a pillow as that usually prevents the neck from being pushed forward. Most will say that when our head is forward it constitutes bad postures, so why do that while we sleep for 6-8 hours a night?

Frequently asked questions:

What is a good/proper sleep posture?
Research shows that back sleeping is the best sleep posture because it is the most neutral position for your neck. Often times the problem comes with having too high of a pillow that pushes the head forward and leads to more stress on the neck.

How sleep affects posture?
Considering we sleep 6-8 hours on average, if our neck is in a non-neutral position, it can be like holding your neck in that awkward position which can lead to postural changes. Similar to a poor desk posture, poor sleeping postures can also impact you negatively.