Experts warn that your preferred sleeping position might carry health risks that extend beyond just waking up with a sore back. The way you position yourself in bed can lead to a variety of issues, including pain, acid reflux, snoring, and even nerve-related symptoms that manifest the following day.

Shelby Harris, a clinical psychologist and behavioral sleep specialist, emphasized the importance of comfort in sleep postures during a conversation with Fox News Digital. “What we care about is if someone is comfortable in their sleep position. Often, we sleep in certain ways because of comfort,” she explained.

Despite seeking comfort, many find that their chosen sleep position leaves them feeling less than refreshed. Sleeping in awkward positions throughout the night can put our bodies under undue stress, affecting not just nerves but also muscles and ligaments.

Interestingly, the common belief that curling up in bed is linked to mental stress or emotional states is not necessarily true, according to specialists. Addressing sleep discomfort might be more about physical adjustments than addressing psychological factors.

“Someone’s sleep position means really nothing about their psychological state or tension or stress or trauma,” Harris noted, suggesting that a focus on physical comfort could offer a path to better sleep and overall relief.

Nerve damage is a concern when sleeping in positions that involve bending or tucking the arms. Dubbed “T. rex position” on social media, health experts point out that arms going numb at night are often related to nerve compression.

A 2023 review of cubital tunnel syndrome, where people experience symptoms of numbness and shooting pain in their forearm, specifically warns that sleeping with the elbow sharply bent or tucked under a pillow can increase pressure on the nerve and worsen symptoms.

While back sleeping may seem like a good way to keep your arms untucked, it can contribute to snoring and acid reflux, according to the Sleep Foundation. But it’s important to know the benefits and risks before you flip over.

In a detailed breakdown of stomach sleeping, the Sleep Foundation notes that lying face-down can put the spine out of alignment and is linked to back, neck and shoulder pain, largely because you have to twist your head to one side to breathe. 

It is also the least common sleeping position, despite evidence linking it to a decrease in snoring.

Harvard Health, referencing Sleep Foundation data, notes that side sleeping is the most common position and can be helpful for many people.

Mayo Clinic guidance on back pain also recommends side sleeping with knees slightly bent and a pillow between the legs to better align the spine, pelvis and hips and take pressure off the back.

Johns Hopkins Medicine suggests that position matters more as you get older or develop medical issues, highlighting back or side postures as more supportive options.

Several medical centers and sleep resources recommend transitioning gradually to side or back sleeping and using thinner pillows (or none) if you can’t immediately give up stomach sleeping, to limit neck twist and lumbar arch.

If you struggle to sleep regardless of position or feel like your sleep isn’t restorative, Harris recommends seeing a sleep specialist.