How to lay on your back while pregnant

Is Back Sleeping Harmful When Pregnant? – Cleveland Clinic

Since the moment you saw those two, bliss-inducing pink lines on your pregnancy test, you’ve been painstakingly conscientious to do nothing that would harm your baby.

You’ve kicked your latte habit. You take your prenatal every evening like clockwork. And you don’t change the kitty litter. (Heck, who are we kidding? Someone else can do that one permanently!)

But then ― without even meaning to ― you woke up and had a groggy (and panicked!) realization: You were sleeping on your back. After all, every single pregnancy book you’ve read has advised against it. But how bad is it really?

The why behind the warnings

As your uterus gets larger (usually by the time you’re 20 weeks ― that’s five months ― along), it’s big enough that it lies on top of your inferior vena cava, if you’re lying on your back, explains Ob/Gyn Salena Zanotti, MD.

“This big blood vessel is what brings blood flow back to your heart,” Dr. Zanotti explains. “So the thought is if you have anything large that’s pushing against the blood flow return, you’ll have less blood flow to your heart. That means you’ll have less blood flow to yourself and the baby.”

So what can this actually do?

Researchers in New Zealand found that there was a potential increased risk of stillbirth for those who slept the entire night on their back. But Dr. Zanotti says these and similar studies were small, not randomized and shouldn’t be taken as definite proof.

For instance, the studies looked at those who spent all night on their backs and never got up to go to the bathroom. “But most people don’t sleep the entire night without getting up at that point in pregnancy ― even if they wish they could,” Dr. Zanotti says.

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Plus, she adds, there are many factors involved in pregnancy, so it’s really hard to say one thing causes stillbirths or other problems. “A lot of people who are back sleepers may be snorers or have sleep apnea. That’s where these studies are faulted because you can’t weed out all those things.”

Quantifying it is the tricky part

Dr. Zanotti reassures expectant mothers not to stress if they accidentally find themselves on their backs for a brief spell.

“We do know that short periods of time ― even if you were on your back for an hour or two ― probably do no harm to your child,” she says. “The hard part is we can’t really quantify exactly how much is ‘safe time’ and what it really does.”

When they’re far along in their pregnancies, they’ll get light-headed or not feel right if they’re on their backs for long periods of time, Dr. Zanotti notes.

“Often times, your body is going to tell you something isn’t right and that will make you move around,” she says. “So if you’re on your back and having a little trouble breathing or maybe your heart is beating faster, it’s your body’s way of saying you need to roll over on your side. Listen to your body.”

The best advice if you’re expecting

So what’s an already uncomfy expectant mother to do? After 20 weeks of pregnancy, try not to spend the entire night on your back, Dr. Zanotti advises. She suggests putting a pillow between your back and the mattress as insurance. That way, even if you do roll over, you’re on a bit of a tilt.

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“As long as you’re not flat on your back, you’re going to be fine,” she says. “Even if you can be on a 20- to 30-degree angle, that’s going to relieve any potential pressure on your inferior vena cava. I think most people, even if they were back sleepers, can be comfortable sleeping with just that bit of an angle.”

While it’s sensible to be cautious, Dr. Zanotti says it’s also important to comfort those who already have enough on their minds.

“I’ve had patients who’ve woken up on their back and they’re worried they’re going to cause their child brain damage. That has not been shown,” she says. “We don’t see a higher risk of autism or developmental disorders in those who’ve slept on their back for a little bit.”

And left side vs. right side?

Traditionally, Ob/Gyns have advised pregnant people to sleep on their left side. That’s because your inferior vena cava is on your right. “The thinking was that if you slept on your right side, you could potentially compress the blood flow,” Dr. Zanotti says.

But today, the evidence shows that if you’re truly on your side, you’re still going to get good blood flow. So most experts tell people it’s OK to sleep on either side.

“The left side’s ideal,” she says. “If you like your left side, absolutely wonderful. But if you’re a right-sided sleeper, you’re fine that way too.”

Positions And Tips For A Restful Night

You hear all the buzz about not sleeping well (if at all!) when you have kids, but it may come as a shock to hear that the same can be true while they’re growing in your belly. Learning how to sleep when pregnant is a whole new ballgame!

Nausea, insomnia, anxiety, and growing pains are just a few reasons you may be lacking in the sleep department during your pregnancy.

In this article, we’ll reveal the best sleeping positions for pregnant women and offer some tips to help you get a good night’s sleep the whole nine months!

The Importance Of Good Sleep When You’re Pregnant

Even if you’re not pregnant, you need a good night’s sleep. Sleep is the time when your body and organs reset and renew.

Plus, your body needs sleep to perform its basic functions, like thinking (pregnancy brain, anyone?). And it helps your mood!

But how does sleep affect you when you’re carrying your little one?

As you may know, your blood flow significantly increases during pregnancy, and adequate sleep helps the blood flow properly to your baby. Your pregnant body also needs rest to fight off any infections and build your immune system.

Getting the right amount of sleep also helps regulate your blood sugar levels. Because of that, the quality of your sleep can play a big role in the outcome of your glucose screening test, which screens for gestational diabetes by checking for high levels of sugar in your blood.

One reason some otherwise healthy moms-to-be fail this test or have to repeat it is that they’re not getting enough (or good) sleep and their blood sugar levels have gotten off track.

Finally, don’t forget the obvious reason you need quality sleep every night: your body is growing a baby!

Now that you know the reasons behind getting good sleep while you’re pregnant, let’s talk about how to sleep when pregnant.

How To Sleep When Pregnant: Positions

Sleeping On Your Side

There’s been quite a bit of back-and-forth banter between which side is the best to sleep on during pregnancy.

We’re here to put your mind at ease! The general consensus is that the left side is the best sleeping position for pregnant women.

While sleeping on your right side is not unsafe, sleeping on your left side helps promote better blood flow to your baby. Plus, your liver is on your right side, so if you sleep on your left side, it can keep your heavy uterus off of that important organ!

Sleeping On Your Stomach

If you’re an avid stomach sleeper, we’re sorry to tell you that it’s not the best sleeping position for pregnant women, and for obvious reasons.

But all is not lost! Studies have shown that it’s OK to sleep on your stomach during your first trimester, but consider a new sleeping position past that point.

Sleeping on your stomach eventually becomes uncomfortable and impossible, anyway. Try other possible sleep positions and see what works best for you.

Sleeping On Your Back

You might also want to avoid sleeping on your back, especially during your third trimester. It’s not ideal during your last few months of pregnancy.

Think about it:

Your uterus is heavy.
Your baby is getting bigger by the day.
Your organs are under all of that weight, and it presses on them during the night, including your bladder.
And your back is probably not feeling too great.

This sleep position could possibly be one of the reasons you wake up so much at night. To start with, you’re probably uncomfortable. And you’re probably getting up to empty your bladder pretty frequently.

To top it all off, sleeping on your back might make it hard for you to breathe, which isn’t safe for you or your baby. For an alternative sleep position, try our next one: sleeping propped up.

(Note: Don’t worry if you wake up in the middle of the night and realize you’re sleeping on your back. Simply switch positions and get back to snoozing!)

Sleeping Propped Up

Nobody wants to sleep sitting up, but it might be the best way to get some shut-eye while you’re pregnant, especially if sleeping on your back is your go-to position.

For this sleep position, grab a few pillows and make sure the top part of your body is propped up. Avoid lying in a way that puts pressure on your back or belly.

The easiest — and probably most comfortable — way to sleep propped up is to use a cozy reclining chair.

How To Sleep When Pregnant: Tips For A Restful Night

Use A Pregnancy Pillow

To help you sleep better at night, consider using a pregnancy pillow. This type of pillow supports your belly and might even help alleviate some back pain.

Lie on your left side with the pillow between your legs and propped up under the side of your belly for the best quality of sleep.

Tip: Don’t have a pregnancy pillow? Use two or three regular pillows in the same spots.

Eliminate Screen Time At Night

Pregnant or not, staring at a screen before bed disrupts the quality and quantity of your sleep.

To get the best possible sleep while you’re pregnant, stop using any form of technology about an hour before you want to fall asleep.

Drink Plenty Of Water

Make sure you’re getting your water intake for the day!

Now that you’re carrying a baby, it’s even more important to drink a lot of water — not just for you, but for your baby, too. And if you’re not getting enough water, you could wake up with different pains due to dehydration.

That being said, you might want to consider not drinking anything two hours before going to bed so you don’t have to make a few unwanted trips to the bathroom in the middle of the night.

Exercise During The Day

Exercise is important all the time, but especially when you’re pregnant. It keeps your body in good shape and helps you gear up for delivery. Plus, it gives you much-needed energy to fight pregnancy fatigue.

Keep your body moving (safely) throughout the day so that when bedtime comes around, you’re ready to crash and won’t have any trouble falling asleep.

Save your exercises for the morning or afternoon, and skip doing them in the evening. Since exercising can give your body a boost in energy, it might hinder your ability to fall asleep once your head hits the pillow.

Finally, always check with your OBGYN before beginning any exercise routine.

Take Up A Relaxing Activity Before Bed

Pregnancy can cause a lot of anxiety in moms-to-be. It’s important to find something that helps your brain shut down and unwind, like reading a book or listening to relaxing music.

Schedule Your Sleep

Just like you set an alarm to wake up at the same time every day, schedule the time you want to go to sleep every night.

And if you’re taking naps during the day, also pencil them into your schedule. But don’t take a nap too late in the day since that may disrupt your nighttime sleep!

Stash Some Snacks On Your Nightstand

Despite its name, morning sickness doesn’t just show up in the morning. Surprisingly, it can even show up in the middle of the night.

If your belly is keeping you up in more ways than one, keep a healthy snack nearby, like on your nightstand, to help with unwanted nausea.

What To Do If You’re Not Getting Enough Sleep

If you’re concerned that you’re not getting enough sleep while you’re pregnant, first try the different sleep positions we mentioned above and put our tips into practice.

Every mom-to-be is carrying around extra weight during their pregnancy, which can disrupt your sleep patterns and your overall health. Judge your sleep by quality, not quantity, during your pregnancy.

One way to do this is by evaluating how you feel during the day. If your exhaustion is beyond the expected pregnancy fatigue, you might not be getting good sleep.

Sleep apnea could also be contributing to your trouble sleeping. This is a common sleep condition that affects sleep patterns among pregnant women. It can lead to cardiovascular issues and gestational diabetes.

If you have any sleep concerns, discuss them with your doctor right away.

A Good Night’s Sleep For All

Quality sleep is extra important during your pregnancy!

As you think about how to sleep when pregnant, consider your sleep position and how it affects the quality of your sleep. Try putting our tips into practice to see if that helps you sleep better during your pregnancy.

Remember, mom, it’s important to get good, quality sleep when you’re pregnant and discuss any concerns you have with your doctor.

Everyone needs a good night’s sleep, especially your newborn because once that precious bundle of joy enters the world, the quality of your sleep will depend on the quality of their sleep.

To give your baby the best sleep, give them a comfy, breathable Newton Baby Crib Mattress. We even offer swaddle blankets that will help your little one safely fall asleep and stay asleep.

With Newton Baby’s sleep collection, everyone can sleep well!

How to sleep during pregnancy

It is difficult to overestimate the role of sleep in the life of every person. A complete healthy rest allows you to fully restore the functioning of the nervous system, relieve stress, improve performance and increase activity. Chronic sleep deprivation is the cause of many diseases. What can we say about a woman who is at the stage of bearing a baby. During this period, more than ever, she needs a healthy, long and full sleep. However, unfortunately, it is during this period that one can only dream of a restful sleep.

As soon as a woman finds out about her new position, she has to give up a lot for the sake of the health of her unborn baby. And you need to give up not only bad habits: alcohol, cigarettes, coffee, but also from a comfortable sleep.

The cause of insomnia can be :

Anxiety;
Frequent urination;
Fears and phobias before a new stage of one's life;
Nervousness and irritability;
Digestive disorder;
Toxicosis;
Physical indisposition;
Uncomfortable posture.

During the period of bearing a child, the female body experiences an extraordinary load, especially in the last trimester. The need for more sleep increases, because the body expends much more energy. Therefore, healthy sleep and pregnancy are inextricably linked.

Let's try to figure out how to sleep during pregnancy, so as not only not to harm the health of your unborn baby, but to sleep well.

Looking for a comfortable sleeping position

Each person has his own favorite position, in which it is easy to fall asleep and sleep. Many do not imagine a comfortable rest on their backs, accustomed to sleeping on their stomachs. This habit will have to be sacrificed, as it is unsafe for the normal development of the fetus. If in the first three months of pregnancy a woman can still sleep in the position in which she is used to and feels comfortable, then after the first trimester the growing belly will not allow her to lie safely in this position. Despite the natural protection of the baby in the form of amniotic fluid, there is a high probability of injuring the baby in a dream, squeezing it. But what is the right way to sleep during pregnancy?

Back position

Even if you are used to sleeping in a Spartan position, on your back, with your arms spread wide, from the 28th week you will have to radically change your lifestyle. The fact is that as the fetus grows, the load on the intestines and vena cava will increase significantly, blocking the access of oxygen to the baby.

If you sleep on your back during pregnancy, you may experience the following problems:

Dizziness;
Nausea;
Convulsions;
Numb limbs;
Pressure reduction;
Hemorrhoids;
Heaviness of breathing.

If you feel these symptoms or the baby gives persistent signals, you need to urgently change your position, so squeezing the vena cava is fraught not only with poor health for the mother, but also with a lack of oxygen supply to the fetus.

Stomach position

One of the most beloved positions for many people, which allows you to quickly fall asleep while hugging a pillow. Many women, as soon as they find out about the change in their lives, are interested in the question, is it possible to sleep on your stomach during pregnancy? Doctors recommend abandoning this position already in the first weeks, even before the enlarged belly makes it impossible to fall asleep peacefully.

If you are afraid during sleep, without controlling your movements, to arbitrarily roll over on your stomach, you can put a large pillow that does not allow you to change position.

Side position

In order to normalize your sleep and not harm the health of the baby, experts recommend sleeping on your side during pregnancy. And if at first this option seems unacceptable to many, after the second trimester, lying on your side is the only possible one. But here the question arises, on which side to sleep in order to ensure the safety of the fetus?

Sleeping on the right side can cause squeezing of the kidney, which can have dire consequences. The ideal posture is lying on the left side. Thus, you not only do not injure the unborn baby, but also improve blood flow along with oxygen to the placenta.

But one should not ignore the individual characteristics of each organism and the position of the fetus in the uterus. When the baby is in a transverse position, choose the side where the baby's head is. And with a breech presentation, doctors recommend changing the position several times a night.

If you still cannot improve your sleep, you feel unwell and you are tormented by insomnia, then it is better to consult a specialist. A good gynecologist will analyze the situation and help solve the problem. If necessary, he will prescribe a safe sedative that stabilizes the emotional state and helps to fall asleep calmly, resting and restoring the nervous system in a dream.

Help pillow

Fortunately, now modern manufacturers help women survive the pregnancy period with great comfort by offering special pillows. They are made taking into account the physiological characteristics of a woman in this period and allow you to find a comfortable position for relaxation.

You can buy two pillows and put one under your stomach and the other under your knees, looking for your best option. And you can buy a long banana-shaped pillow, which allows you to throw your leg on it while sleeping, which improves well-being and relieves the main load from the lower back and abdomen. Already in the last weeks of pregnancy, when the growing belly does not allow you to breathe normally, the pillow will allow you to take a comfortable half-sitting position.

Remember that pregnancy is your opportunity to gain strength and fully relax before the most crucial period in your life. Childbirth and the first weeks of caring for your baby will require a lot of energy from you, so good luck and sound sleep!

A PREGNANT WOMAN CAN SLEEP WHATEVER YOU WANT - THE BABY WILL NOT BE HARMED

The researchers examined the pregnancy outcome data of 8709 women who completed at least one sleep questionnaire up to 30 weeks of pregnancy. Of these, 1 903 women (22%) had serious complications such as life-threatening high blood pressure, stillbirth, or intrauterine growth retardation.

The study showed that women who slept on their right side or on their backs developed no more serious complications than women who slept on their left side.

“These results should reassure many pregnant women who fear harming their baby if they sleep on their back or turn into this position during the night. There is a downside to advising you to avoid sleeping on your back. Some women may have trouble sleeping when they lie on their left side and cannot control their movements while sleeping. Even with careful medical advice, there is a risk of increasing anxiety in women who wake up on their backs, as well as guilt, shame and self-flagellation in women who suffer from adverse pregnancy outcomes such as stillbirth, ”said Dr. Robert Silver, lead author of the study, department chair obstetrics and gynecology at the University of Utah School of Medicine in Salt Lake City.

Previous research has linked sleeping on your back or right side with an increased risk of serious pregnancy complications because these positions can constrict the blood vessels that supply the uterus.

Women in this study were more likely to have serious pregnancy complications if they were overweight or obese, smoked, or had high blood pressure or diabetes before pregnancy.

Neither the position in which women were when they went to bed or woke up, nor the position in which they could be at night, did not affect the risk of complications.

The researchers also looked at objectively measured sleep positions for a subgroup of women who completed sleep studies at home for trouble breathing at night. For these women, there was also no significant difference in the risk of pregnancy complications depending on whether they slept on their backs more than half the time or less.

The study was not designed to prove whether sleeping positions can directly affect pregnancy outcomes. Also, the relationship between sleep position and complications in the last weeks of pregnancy was not considered.

One limitation of the study is that there were only about a dozen stillbirths—which may have been too few to detect significant differences in this outcome based on sleep position, the research team notes.

“Nevertheless, the results should be reassuring. Pregnant women should sleep in whatever position they find most comfortable. The few women who do experience pregnancy complications should be reassured that they are not due to their sleeping position at all,” says Dr.