What side should you sleep on when pregnant?
I find this one very interesting because it makes me wonder if thousands of years ago our ancestors worried about this? Probably not but they also didn't live much past 20 so I'll press on.
You have a large vein (called the inferior vena cava) that carries blood back to the heart from your feet and legs and your largest artery (called your aorta) running down your body so if you're giant pregnant and your uterus presses on them for any great length of time you could compress them. If this happens then a crazy thing occurs, you become uncomfortable, possibly dizzy and breathless and, you know what, you move. Plus, you rarely stay in the same position when you sleep so whether you're trying to stay on or off your back, you're not going to be successful doing either for very long.
What I found interesting is if you pose the question about sleeping positions, the party line is to stay off your back and ideally sleep on your left side to maximize blood flow, etc. but if you're complaining about not being able to get comfortable when you sleep, all this flies out the window and it's whatever works. This includes sleeping on your stomach if you're still physically able to do it.
I was pretty impressed with the level of know how the human body is equipped with so, unless you have some kind of underlying health issue like high blood pressure, preeclampsia, preterm labor or placental insufficiency, it looks like you should sleep and rest in whatever position is the most comfortable. After all if peeing, heartburn, baby kicking, leg cramps, constipation or the general panic of becoming a mother isn't keeping you up, Honey, get your rest.
search: laying on back while pregnant, can't sleep while pregnant, sleeping problems pregnant, inferior vena cava syndrome, supine hypotensive syndrome
17 Comments
Reader Comments (17)
So I'm not going to kill my fetus if I sleep on my back? It seems to be the only way I can fall asleep, sitting up-ish. I mean I wake up like 90 times a night to pee anyways so if its a vein problem I'm getting off it a ton anyways. But man tell people you sleep on your back on a mommy msg board and be sent to the mommy corner of shame and be told why you are killing your unborn or at the very least he'll never grow up and be president or what ever.
At Lamaze class the nurse told us to put a smaller pillow under our belly to support the little baby 'cause they like pillows too! I put that pillow under my left lying belly for both my pregnancies and we all slept better for it!
yes here's another thing I've worried about. I can't sleep on my right side thanks to TMJ and my left side gets crazy sore what with that darn sciatic nerve issue I have, so my back is really the most comfortable. Yet for many a night I tried to sleep unsuccessfully on my left side, only to wake up on my back and fretting I did something wrong. There really isn't much I can do, and like you just pointed out if the body is uncomfortable we will move. Thanks again for your great advice!
I took four pillows and made a square and then settled my belly in the middle so I could sleep on my tummy this worked until I got to big but it was one of the only ways I was comfortable since I had a pinched nerve in my back.
Love this and couldn't agree more! My doc told me left is recomended, but sleep is best. If I can only sleep on my right side....then sleep on it. They want you to be comfortable and your body will make you move if things aren't working right. Thanks for the post.
Great site. I used a body pillow to help me with my left side sleeping.
Haha this one is great i once heard of a pregnant girl that had sewn a tennis ball into the backs of all of her pj's so she didn't sleep on her back and inadvertently kill her child hahaha...
Surprisingly nobody ever mentioned this with my first pregnancy and I never asked so I just slept in my usual position, turned to the right almost on my stomach with my left knee bent kinda propping me from being fully on my tummy, the way i sleep while not preggo...guess what? my 4 year old son is perfectly fine and so was I. Also this pregnancy, I also sleep like that, or on my back, or even on my tummy(since I am 31 weeks and JUST started to look preggo, yes Im the crazy skinny girl who could hide an entire pregnancy in plain site if I wanted to just by wearing slightly baggy tops in the last few months, thanks to my long torso, wide hips, titled uterus and being the kind who actually loses weight everywhere but my tummy while preggo and just gets a tiny baby bump, hate me for it lol) But yeah, sleeping position is the least of my worries as long as Im comfy, I move alot in my sleep anyways, I'm a bed hog and I kick and roll lol
I feel breathless sometimes when I lay on my left side and wind up on my back most of the time for comfort! (I am a stomach sleeper and am missing it terribly now in this 37th week). I trust my body to tell me if I am doing something wrong, and more than likely I am risking hurting myself, more than Baby E.
I can't sleep on my left at all. I'm either on my back or right side. my doc said whatever way I want is fine ahhah so i'll go with that. But with all that we read I always feel like I should be on my left ugh!
The midwives seemed to think this was less of a vein thing and more of a baby positioning thing (in the 3rd tri). Sleeping on your back can encourage a baby to lay posterior. Not that staying off my back kept my little one from trying to get out sunny side up... so even that idea seems kinda bunk.
I slept on my tummy until my seventh month (wasn't very big and we have a waterbed) and then on my left side but that was more because it is a preferred position pre-pregnancy. Never have been able to comfortably sleep on my back.
I was freaked out about sleeping on my back with my first... managed to get through it by using lots of pillows... but I hail from Texas and its SUPER hot in the summers... so hot that body pillows or anything extra make me want to lash out irrationally at anyone and everyone. SO this pregnancy with a new OB who is wise and wonderful I asked if I could use a wedge pillow when I slept (you know one for acid reflux) and he actually laughed and said if it makes you feel better about sleeping on your back. The problem is really the vein gets cut off not allowing the blood to flow through properly. But like you said in the 2nd paragraph you will move when your legs go numb... and or you get a cramp.
Proper body position is very important, even more important for pregnant women who are placing a lot of stress on their bodies. The best position is on your back with a pillow underneath your knees.
This particular fear drives me up the wall...because there is one thing no one seems to consider regarding sleeping positions in pregnancy- although you mentioned it a little. You CAN'T stay in the same position all night!!! Heard of bedsores? They're clinically known as decubitis ulcers and result from the weight of your body cutting off the blood flow to your skin on points where your weight rests. (Hips, knees, heels, etc.) It's highly unlikely you would develop one from determinedly trying to sleep on your left side...the discomfort would cause you to move first. However, some women suffer alot of guilt over waking up on their back or even their right side. Which to me is ridiculous because the human body is not designed to remain in the same position for extended periods of time. Nurses and other caregivers are trained to rotate immobile patients every 2 hours for that very reason.
Got it everyone? Thanks for letting me get that out. ;)
I am constantly being told that I need to be on my left side, and the only way I can sleep is when my body tells me it is finally comfortable enough in whatever position even to let me doze off. To alleviate some of my sleepless anxiety I bought a Boppy wedge pillow that I figured out is great not only for support for your belly for side sleeping but also putting behind you (while on your side) to help you feel supported enough off your belly and not completely on your back. So far so good, between the millions of bathroom trips and thrashing blankets off in the midst of summer hotness :)
I cant seem to stay on one side longer than 30 minutes! Ive never been a back sleeper so i just rotate from right side to left side, all night long I'm turning and tossing. Whatever side I am on, it gets sore and achy and my joints and hips hurt so I turn. Frankly between that and going pee I am losing my mind but i think of it as preparation for baby waking me up every 2 hours!