If you are struggling to get a good night’s sleep, find it really hard to get comfortable in bed and wake up feeling exhausted and in pain, then this blog is for you…
A lot of visitors to our clinic are suffering with back pain and want to know how to stop back pain FAST without painkillers, so they can get better sleep.
As well as dealing with back pain in day-to-day life, people we speak to frequently suffer with poor sleep, which in turn leaves you with no energy, and affects their mood during the day.
In this blog, we will cover how to stop back pain at night and get better sleep with natural, drug-free solutions that are practical, and easy to implement in your life.
Why Do I Wake Up With Back Pain?
During the night, you are moving less, and this leads to stiff joints, and tight muscles – This is made worse if you sleep in a poor position.
When you wake up, either during the night, or when your alarm clock rings, your body may not have moved positions for several hours, and this will make your back pain very uncomfortable.
How to Reduce Back Pain So You Can Fall To Sleep
If you struggle to fall to sleep, there are a number of natural, drug-free ways to reduce back pain and help you get comfortable in bed.
What To Do To Reduce Back Pain So You Can Fall To Sleep
A good starting point is to try and establish a nightly routine around 30-60 minutes before the time you want to fall to sleep.
This could include drinking warm tea, reading, knitting, listening to soothing music or meditating.
You could also take a warm shower or bath, apply gel heat pads, or do some light stretching exercises to loosen your muscles which can reduce back pain.
What To Avoid To Reduce Back Pain So You Can Fall To Sleep
If you find you are still struggling to fall to sleep, then avoid alcohol, big meals on an evening, avoid caffeinated drinks after noon.
If you apply some of these tips to your life, you should be able to reduce back pain without painkillers and enable you to fall to sleep.
What’s The Best Sleeping Position For Reducing Back Pain?
If you’ve managed to apply some of the top tips from the previous section to your bedtime routine, and you can get into bed feeling more relaxed, and with your joints and muscles feeling pain-free (or at least a lot less sore than normal), then the next step to focus on is getting into a comfortable sleeping position which won’t aggravate your back pain.
The best sleeping position will depend on your preference, however, to stop back pain at night and get better sleep, you will want to keep your spine in alignment and here are some things you can do to make sure that happens.
Sleeping On Your Back
If you sleep on your back, this is a great sleeping position as it evenly distributes your body wide across the widest area, and therefore puts less pressure on specific points.
To improve this sleeping position, place a pillow underneath your knees, which will help keep a natural curve in your lower back. You can also place a rolled-up towel under the small of your back too for added support.
This will ensure that your spine remains in alignment when you are sleeping on your back.
Sleeping On Your Front
If you sleep on your front, this is generally a poor sleeping position and can lead to back pain, and/or neck pain. However, if you are a front sleeper and can’t get comfortable on your back, or side, then place a pillow under your pelvis and lower abdomen which will relieve some of the pressure on your lower back.
Depending on your preference, you might find it more comfortable to lay without resting your head on pillow.
Sleeping On Your Side
If you sleep on your side, there are a couple of options that can help you sleep without back pain.
The first option is to sleep on your side in the fetal position, with your knees towards your chest and your torso slightly curls towards your knees.
The second option is to sleep with your left or right shoulder in contact with the mattress, along with the rest of that side of your body, and with a pillow between your knees.
With both of these options, your neck pillow should sit between the top of your shoulder and your head, so that your neck is in a neutral position.
An important thing to remember with side sleeping is to alternate which side you sleep on to avoid creating any muscular imbalances.
Another important thing to remember is that sleeping on your side alone won’t reduce back pain. It’s using the pillow between your knee, that makes the big difference, as the pillow will keep your hips, your pelvis, and your spine in better alignment.
Take a look at the video below starring two of our fabulous team; Jonny and Jade
If you are able to adjust your sleeping position, and find the best sleeping position suited to you, this should make a huge impact on reducing your back pain and enable you to get a much better sleep.
Another Natural, Drug-Free Ways To Stop Back Pain At Night
Should I Change My Mattress?
If you can’t remember the last time you changed your mattress, or you have noticed that it is sagging or uneven, it may be a good idea to find a replacement.
Your mattress can play a vital role in supporting your body during your sleep, and in turn, influence whether you wake up with back pain, stiff joints, and tight muscles, or you wake up feeling well rested and moving freely.
The ideal firmness of a mattress can vary based on a person’s sleeping position, body shape, and individual preferences, but as a general rule using a medium-firm mattress will be the best option for most people.
If your budget allows you to buy a new mattress, make sure to test drive these when in store, so you are sure that you are making the right choice. A lot of stores even allow you to try the mattress for 30 days or longer, with the option to return it if you aren’t satisfied.
The FASTEST Way To Stop Back Pain At Night And Get Better Sleep
We hope that you have found the advice in this blog useful, and we know that applying some of these tips will reduce your back pain, and help you get better sleep.
However, if you want the FASTEST solution to stop your back pain at night, and you are sick of waking up sore, and with no energy for the day ahead, then reach out to our team of expert physios.
Our team has helped THOUSANDS of back pain patients over the years and have a wealth of experience and knowledge to share with you.
How To Get Our Help
Within our four North East clinics (Darlington, Durham, Guisborough and Hartlepool), we offer expert advice tailored to your life-changing back pain, which is wrecking your sleep, and leaving you reliant on painkillers – for FREE, in under 30 minutes.
In one of our free taster consultations, you will get the opportunity to speak to one of our friendly team in a relaxed environment on a 1-1 basis and discover:
- What is the underlying cause of your aches and pains? (hopefully nothing too serious!)
- Roughly, how long will it take to fix my problem?
- What to do to help – which doesn’t include painkillers, resting or surgery etc.
- What other, natural, drug free methods are there to speed up recovery alongside treatment?
Our taster consultations are great for anyone that may be “unsure” if physio is right for them, and they give you the opportunity to ask questions and see for yourself if we can help you.
To arrange a FREE taster consultation, simply click the link below and complete our quick and easy form:
Arrange Your FREE Taster Consultation
More Information To Help Your Stop Back Pain At Night
If you want to get more specialist advice right now, then download our free report entitled:
“9 Quick And Easy Ways To End Back Pain (And Stiffness)… Without Taking Painkillers Or Having To Call And See The GP!”
This report is packed with powerful strategies and written by our founder, Paul Gough.
Download Our FREE Back Pain Report
Alternatively, you can check out our other back pain related blog articles by clicking the link below:
Read More Of Our Back Pain Blog Articles
You might know Paul as an expert Columnist who writes weekly health articles for TWO of the North East's biggest daily Newspapers, The Northern Echo And The Hartlepool Mail, he is a regular Speaker at Industry Seminars around the globe and a Radio Personality, often heard on the BBC. Paul has been an expert guest on dozens of Radio shows and regularly interviewed in newspapers, magazines and trade journals all over the world, including the Guardian.
Paul’s background included working extensively in the Premier League with a Top Professional Football Team, and since quitting his job in Professional Football in 2007, his Physio Practice has become the fastest growing in the UK and biggest in the North East. So successful, that companies like BUPA, ASDA, The Vela Group And Coast & Country, repeatedly retain his Physio company's services to keep healthy their own staff and workforce. Paul Gough Physio Rooms is now a large multi-physio, multi clinic speciality practice in Darlington, Durham, Guisborough and Hartlepool.
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