With 8 hours sleep under my belt I can take on the world, there is fire in my belly and I am ready to make change in people lives. If I have a disturbed night, I'm a different animal. My focus is gone, my clarity of thinking is dampened, my get up and go is gone.

This week I had a patient who had been sleeping in a chair in his living room for 3 weeks; the reason he had been sleeping there is because of his low back pain and couldn’t lie down. Life was not pleasant in his house, because he wasn’t sleeping, his wife sleep pattern had been affected and she wasn’t sleeping, their tempers had gotten a little shorter and things are a little like world war 3 at their house.

What is the best way to sleep?

There are actually two sleeping positions that are OK and a third that is absolutely taboo.

• No. 1 way to sleep is on your back. Now if you cannot sleep on your back because of low back pain you might want to consider a pillow or two under your knees. Ladies, if your husband snores while he’s on his back one swift dig in the ribs usually corrects this problem.
• No. 2 position to sleep is on your side. Either right side or left side - it doesn’t matter. Again if you are sleeping on your side and finding it uncomfortable you might want to consider a pillow between your knees.

The worst sleeping position to be in is on your stomach. If you lie on your stomach while sleeping you have to turn your head. That decreases the blood and nerve flow. On top of that you are lying on your lungs. Your lungs then have to lift you all night long and you don’t get proper sleep.

Also, people who sleep on their lungs for a long period of time tend to develop more respiratory problems, they tend to develop tingling or numbness in their arms, hands and fingers. Stomach sleepers also tend to be more prone to headaches.

Now why is sleeping important?

Sleep is so important because we spend up to a third of our lifetime sleeping. Getting proper sleep makes an enormous difference both to your feeling of well-being and to your immune system.

At Chiropractic First we appreciate how important a good nights sleep is. If you fed up of your back pain affecting you nights sleep then call the clinic today on 01472 488082. We want to help you with your back pain so you can enjoy life.