To facilitate \u2014 and maintain \u2014 the side sleeping position, Dr. Hayden recommends placing a body pillow under your torso to support your upper arm and knee. Dr. Dautovich\u00a0<\/strong>also recommends placing another pillow in between your knees to relieve any pain and help keep your pelvis aligned. Also, your head on the pillow should remain level with the mattress (read: No funky double or triple stacks of pillows that can strain your neck and spine). It might feel more comfortable to rest your head on an incline when you\u2019re reading a book or scrolling through Twitter before bed, but it\u2019s not a great idea to fall asleep with your head on top of multiple pillows, says Dr. Kristina Petrocco-Napuli, Florida-based chiropractor, and president of the ACA Council on Women\u2019s Health.<\/p>\n When you\u2019re asleep, your muscle tone, which protects your joints when you\u2019re not alert, becomes lax. According to Dr. Hayden, if your head, which weighs between 13 and 15 pounds, isn\u2019t level with the mattress and you\u2019re sleeping on your side, stress points develop along the joints in your neck. Your muscles would normally protect those joints from shifting too far in either direction, but while you\u2019re asleep, your brain won\u2019t send messages to your muscles to perform those protective functions. \u201cJoints that are stressed will be eventually injured, and arthritic changes in the joint may manifest at some point,\u201d Dr. Hayden explains.<\/p>\n OK, so you\u2019re probably thinking,\u00a0If I\u2019m asleep, how can I force myself to stay put in a specific position? Be<\/em>yond the use of a body pillow to stabilize your position, take stock of your mattress, because a bad mattress can make it more likely that you’ll toss and turn. A 2011 study from the journal\u00a0Ergonomics<\/em>\u00a0found that participants who slept on sagging, too-soft mattresses\u00a0experienced poor sleep quality. Dr. Hayden recommends a mattress that is firm enough to support the weight of your body, providing only a subtle amount of give.<\/p>\n There is, however, a \u201cwrong\u201d way to sleep on your side. If you have a habit of sleeping curled up in the fetal position, Dr. Dautovich says it can hinder breathing by restricting movement of your diaphragm. It can also place unnecessary stress on your joints and leave you feeling sore the next day. \u201cYou can reduce the strain on joints by straightening your body as much as possible,\u201d says Dr. Dautovich. In addition, avoid putting your weight on your arms while you sleep, since this can lead to circulatory issues like a feeling of numbness or pins and needles. If possible, try sleeping with your arms folded into your chest.<\/p>\n If you\u2019re not a current side-sleeper, you may be at risk for developing soreness the next day. But beyond immediate physical consequences, improper sleep posture can impact your emotional, psychological, and cardiovascular health in the long run. \u201cCertain hormones are designed to ebb and flow during the sleep cycle,\u201d explains Dr. Hayden. \u201cGrowth hormones regulate the production of hormones that we use to repair tissues and heal, [which are] secreted during stage IV of the sleep cycle.\u201d<\/p>\n Ultimately, if you don\u2019t achieve stage IV of your sleep cycle (or rapid eye movement, which occurs 90 minutes after you fall asleep) or it gets interrupted, \u201cyou may find yourself gaining weight, getting sick and staying sick more often, and eventually having changes in your cardiovascular system such as hypertension,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n What\u2019s more is that if you\u2019re tossing and turning all night, you\u2019re likely to wake up feeling like you only slept four hours, even if you were under the covers for eight. \u201cFatigue itself will make you not feel your best,\u201d Dr. Hayden says. \u201cThe physical aspects of your health will spill into the emotional and mental aspects. When you feel your best physically, you\u2019re more likely to have a positive self-image.\u201d<\/p>\n Even if you position yourself correctly, you might still move around in your sleep, ultimately shifting your body out of your desired side-sleeping position. It\u2019s important to look at your stress levels and find a way to\u00a0manage them before bed, says Dr. Hayden, since they might be causing you to be restless at night,<\/strong>\u00a0and ultimately shift your body out of your desired side-sleeping position.<\/p>\n \u201cIf you\u2019re one of these [people who tosses and turns], do something before you go to bed to offload your stress,\u201d he says. Eliminating your stress entirely is easier said than done, but there are small steps you can take to ease yourself into a more restful state. Instead of scrolling through a screen emanating blue light that might\u00a0compromise your circadian rhythms\u00a0and ultimately suppress sleep-inducing melatonin, Dr. Hayden recommends reading a book. \u201cLet your mind go blank, or to a time or place that is relaxing and comfortable. Try a warm bath or shower to relax,\u201d he says.<\/p>\n Look: You\u2019re not doomed for a life of pinched nerves and sore muscles if you\u2019re unable to sleep on your side, and only on your side. At the end of the day, all our experts agree that\u00a0comfort is most important. Other postures like sleeping on your back can also be beneficial if executed properly. If you\u2019re going to sleep on your back, Petrocco-Napuli recommends placing a pillow under your head and under both of your knees in order to support and level the spine. Feel free to experiment with exact pillow placement so as to support the natural curvature of your unique spine.<\/p>\n This might all seem like a lot to think about and remember before you\u2019re supposed to relax and ultimately fall asleep, but rest assured: with a proper pillow, a firm mattress, and an aligned spine, you\u2019ll be well on your way to sleeping soundly \u2014 and waking up relatively pain-free. If pain does persist, speak to your doctor about any underlying issues.<\/p>\n![\"Young](\"https:\/\/imgix.bustle.com\/uploads\/shutterstock\/2019\/7\/22\/6002f982-c7d3-4e3a-b7d7-3b5ed75e286e-shutterstock-225730570.jpg?w=824&h=536&fit=crop&crop=faces)
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