The best sleeping positions for better rest
Sleeping well does not only depend on how many hours you spend in bed. The position you adopt during the night also influences the quality of your rest, your breathing, spinal alignment and the appearance of discomfort when you wake up.
If you wake up with back pain, neck stiffness, jaw tension or the feeling that you have not rested properly, your sleeping position may not be the most suitable one for you. In this article, we explain the best sleeping positions, the advantages and disadvantages of each one, and how to adapt them depending on your situation.
Because sleeping better is not about finding one perfect posture for everyone, but about discovering which position helps your body relax, recover and rest deeply.
What really influences sleep quality
Before talking about specific positions, it is useful to remember that good rest depends on several factors acting at the same time. Posture is important, but it is not the only thing that influences how you sleep or how you wake up the next day.
Sleep quality can be affected by the mattress, the pillow, the bedroom temperature, the darkness of the room, stress levels, habits before going to bed and, of course, the position your body adopts during the night. A poor combination of these elements can promote muscle tension, joint discomfort or frequent awakenings.
Small details that are often overlooked can also have an influence: looking at screens just before sleep, eating dinner too late, going to bed with an activated nervous system, or using a pillow that does not adapt well to the shape of the neck. Sometimes it is not simply a matter of “sleeping badly”, but of not giving the body the right conditions to enter deep, restorative rest.
Sleeping on your back: the most neutral position
Its advantages
When this position is well adjusted, it can be a good option for people who suffer from low back or neck discomfort, as it avoids excessive pressure on the shoulders and hips. It also does not compress the jaw or force the neck to remain turned for hours.
When it may not be the best option
Sleeping on your back is not always the ideal position. In people who snore, have sleep apnea or experience breathing difficulties at night, it may promote airway collapse. It is also not usually the most recommended option during pregnancy, especially in advanced stages, as it may compromise venous return and become uncomfortable.
How to improve this position
To improve this position, a thin pillow under the head is usually recommended, one that does not push the chin toward the chest. In some cases, placing a pillow or cushion under the knees can help relieve the lower back and maintain a slight flexion that respects the natural curve of the lumbar spine.
Sleeping on your back can also be useful if you tend to wake up with stiffness on one side of the neck or a feeling of compression in the shoulder, something common in people who spend the whole night on their side. In short, it can be a very good position if it is well tolerated and adapted with the right mattress and pillow.
Sleeping on your side: one of the best options for rest
Why it is often recommended
When sleeping on the left side may be useful
Sleeping on the left side can be especially useful in cases of gastroesophageal reflux and during pregnancy. In many people, this position supports better digestive tolerance and a greater feeling of comfort. It may also be beneficial for people with heavy legs or circulation problems, as in some cases it can support venous and lymphatic return.
How to avoid shoulder, neck or hip discomfort
For this position to be truly beneficial, the key lies in how the body is organized. The head should not be too high or too low. The pillow should fill the space between the neck and the mattress to prevent the cervical spine from being tilted. If the pillow is too thick, it can generate neck tension; if it is too thin, the shoulder bears more load and the neck loses support.
In addition, placing a pillow between the knees often greatly improves comfort. This small adjustment helps keep the legs more parallel, reduces pelvic rotation and prevents the lower back from remaining twisted for hours.
The main disadvantage of this position is precisely the pressure on the shoulder and hip. In very sensitive people or those with pain in these areas, it can become uncomfortable. It may also cause tingling, stiffness or a feeling of numbness if the posture is not well adjusted. However, in general, with a good pillow and proper alignment, sleeping on your side remains one of the best options for most people.
Sleeping on your stomach: why it is usually the least recommended position
What tension can it create?
The main problem is that it forces the head to turn to one side for many hours. This creates a sustained rotation in the cervical spine and can promote neck discomfort, stiffness on waking or jaw tension. In predisposed individuals, it may also increase facial pressure or even worsen habits such as bruxism.
The position of the trunk also contributes. When sleeping on your stomach, the rib cage is more compressed against the mattress and breathing may become less comfortable. It can also increase pressure on the lower back, especially if the mattress is too soft or if the pelvis sinks in.
In some cases, this position also compresses the shoulders and arms, which can promote numbness, tingling or nerve discomfort on waking.
What to do if this is the position that feels most natural to you
If this is the position in which you fall asleep most easily and you have not yet managed to change it, some adjustments can reduce its negative effects. For example, using a very thin pillow, or even avoiding a pillow under the head in some cases, and placing a small cushion under the pelvis to reduce lumbar tension.
Even so, it remains a less favourable position than sleeping on your back or side. Rather than forcing a radical change overnight, it is often more useful to try a gradual transition toward other better-tolerated positions, using side pillows or better mattress adaptation.
Sleeping in the fetal position: comfortable, but with nuance
When it can feel comfortable
Sleeping in the fetal position can be especially reassuring during stressful periods or when the body seeks a naturally curled-up posture. Many people sleep this way because they feel it helps them relax more quickly and fall asleep more easily.
How to avoid excessive spinal flexion
The problem appears when this flexion is excessive. If the back is too rounded and the chest too closed, the spine loses part of its natural alignment and breathing may become less free. In these cases, low back discomfort, morning stiffness or a feeling of compression in the trunk may appear.
Sleeping in the fetal position is not necessarily bad, but it is advisable to avoid keeping the body too curled up. A simple way to improve this posture is to relax the angle of leg flexion slightly and avoid bringing the knees too high. Placing a pillow between the legs can also help, as can trying a variation where one leg remains slightly straighter than the other, reducing pressure on the pelvis and improving alignment.
If this position feels especially comfortable for you, there is no need to eliminate it completely. The important thing is to adapt it so that it remains a resting posture rather than a source of prolonged tension.
What is the best sleeping position for your situation?
If you snore or have sleep apnea
Sleeping on your side is often a better option than sleeping on your back, because it helps keep the airways clearer and often reduces snoring and breathing pauses.
If you have gastroesophageal reflux
Sleeping on the left side is often recommended, as this position can support better digestive tolerance and reduce burning or reflux sensations during the night.
If you are pregnant
Sleeping on your side is usually the most comfortable and advisable option, especially as pregnancy progresses. In these cases, using supportive pillows can make a very significant difference to rest.
If you wake up with neck or low back pain
If you wake up with neck pain, it is useful to review both your sleeping position and the height and firmness of your pillow. Very often, the problem is not simply sleeping on your side or on your back, but how your neck is positioned throughout the night.
If the pain appears in the lower back, it may be useful to try sleeping on your back with support under the knees, or on your side with a pillow between the legs, depending on what feels most comfortable and stable for your body.
And if you wake up with jaw discomfort, facial tension or a feeling of general stiffness, sleeping on your stomach or with the neck very rotated may be contributing to the problem.
The best posture, therefore, is not a universal formula, but the one that allows your body to remain relaxed, breathe well and reduce unnecessary tension during the night.
How osteopathy can help you sleep better
It is normal to change position several times during the night. The body does this spontaneously when it perceives pressure, discomfort or the need to redistribute loads. The problem appears when no position feels truly comfortable, or when you still wake up with pain, stiffness or the feeling of poor-quality rest.
In these cases, there may be muscle tension, mobility restrictions or postural imbalances that make it difficult to find a comfortable position and maintain it without discomfort.
Osteopathy can help assess how your body moves, which areas are more rigid, which structures are bearing too much tension and how all of this influences your rest. The goal is not to correct an ideal posture, but to help your body find more options, more mobility and less resistance during the night.
By improving mobility in specific areas, reducing tension and supporting better global adaptation, many people notice that they rest better, change position less often because of discomfort, or wake up with less pain.
In addition, an osteopathic assessment can help you understand which factors may be interfering with your rest: from a cervical restriction to poor tolerance of certain positions, including tensions in the rib cage, pelvis or lower back.
Sleeping well does not only depend on sleep itself. It also depends on how your body is when night arrives.
At Aliantis, we help you improve your rest in Sitges
At Aliantis, we support people who wake up with back pain, neck discomfort, stiffness or the feeling that they have not rested well. Through osteopathy, physiotherapy and a global approach to health, we help you understand what may be interfering with your rest and how to improve your night-time comfort.
If you notice that your sleeping posture causes discomfort or that no position feels truly comfortable, an individual assessment can help you identify what your body needs to rest better.
This blog article does not aim to generate new knowledge; it is based on the reading of scientific publications, blog articles and other texts.
Sleep Foundation – Guías sobre higiene del sueño
OMS – Recomendaciones sobre sueño saludable
CDC – Beneficios del sueño para la salud
Mayo Clinic – Posiciones para dormir y salud de la columna
MedicineNet – Comparación de posiciones para dormir
Healthline – Guía de posiciones de descanso
Osteopathie.org – Beneficios de la osteopatía para el sueño
ClinicalTrials.gov – Estudios sobre osteopatía y calidad del sueño
