If you roll out of bed bleary-eyed each day, thinking, “Oh, my aching [insert painful joint here],” you’re not alone. Research shows that between 50 and 90 percent of people with chronic joint pain don’t sleep well. And, that sleep deprivation can lead to other health issues, including low energy, mood disorders and eating problems. If you have chronic pain in your hips, knees or shoulders, there are things you can do to limit how much the discomfort affects your nighttime rest, says Michael Schaefer, MD, Director of Musculoskeletal Physical Medicine & Rehabilitation at Cleveland Clinic. “A healthy brain is a well-rested brain. It can deal better with pain, such as arthritis, on an ongoing basis,” he says. “Lack of sleep, on the other hand, can directly affect your mood, and a bad mood can make it harder to cope with pain. This can become a vicious cycle.” When you need a doctor Some problems with broken sleep patterns are normal as we age, Dr. Schaefer says, but you shouldn’t wake up and stay awake every night because of pain.
If that’s your situation, consult your primary care physician. “If the pain goes on for more than three or four days in a row or intermittently for two to three weeks, it’s time to get it addressed,” he says. “If the pain is so severe that you require alcohol or over-the-counter sleep aids to fall sleep, then it’s worth getting it looked at.” See your doctor if you have joint pain and: The pain isn’t in a typical spot for arthritis You’re losing weight unexpectedly Have a fever or chills Have a history of cancer Any of those problems can indicate a more serious condition in need of immediate medical attention, Dr. Schaefer says. Get into a good sleep position Finding the right position can be the most crucial part of avoiding pain during sleep. Twisting and turning to find a comfortable spot is normal, Dr. Schaefer says, but even the slightest twinge of pain can disrupt your rest. He recommends you start out sleeping on your side – avoiding a sore shoulder if you have one – with a pillow between your legs.
Try to avoid lying flat on your back. Side-sleeping won’t work for all shoulder pain, though. Minimize that discomfort by wrapping your arm in a bandage or wearing a sling to bed. It will keep your arm immobile and prevent you from sleeping with your arm in an awkward position. Other tips offer sleep relief for all There are additional, pain-specific steps you can take to decrease nighttime discomfort, Dr. Schaefer says. He also offers some general sleep recommendations to help nearly anyone, not only pain sufferers. Find the right mattress. For back, hip and knee pain, Dr. Schaefer recommends a firm mattress. Add a foam pad on top if you need it to help evenly distribute your weight and keep your joints in alignment.If you’re using regular acetaminophen or ibuprofen and your pain breaks through the night, consider switching to a different pain reliever. Dr. Schaefer recommends pain killers that last between 12 and 24 hours, such as naproxen (Aleve®). Maintain good sleep hygiene.
Keep your sleep schedule as consistent as possible – turn off the television, put all electronics away, turn off lights and keep your room as quiet as you can.Alcohol might make you drowsy, but it won’t give you restful sleep. People often wake up after a few hours of drinking. Minimize how often you use over-the-counter sleep aids. If you take them too long, you’ll need higher doses and may have trouble breaking this habit.Regularly scheduled low-impact exercise, such as walking, bicycling or swimming, can help with both pain and sleep disorders. Why sleep can hurt Normal joint pain, especially in the hips, knees and shoulders, frequently worsens at night, he says. Your sleep position and the alignment of your body are responsible for most of the pain, but some comes from being so still at night. “Joints swell at night, and motion gradually lubricates them and keeps the fluids moving round,” Dr. Schaefer says. “When you stop moving, they can swell more.”
This can cause stiffness and pain, he says. Ratings > Mattresses and Bad Back Problems Unbiased Comparisons Based on 22,478 Owner Experiences Some mattresses perform significantly better than others in preventing / relieving pain, including back, hip and shoulder pain. Before discussing which are best, three interrelated terms are important to understand: support, conforming ability, and firmness. Support refers to how well a mattress keeps the sleeper's body on a flat and level plane. Owner experience data shows that support is a key factor in preventing and alleviating pain, especially back pain. Support can be undermined by excessive softness and excessive firmness – but it is most often undermined by sagging of the mattress. Sagging is the top complaint of mattress owners overall with at least 30% reporting a significant problem. Sagging occurs when part of a mattress, usually the middle, becomes compressed and lower than the rest. Sagging often puts a person's spine into an unnatural position – especially for side and stomach sleepers.
Consequently, mattress owner experience data shows a clear connection between sagging and pain, especially back pain. The greater the sagging depth the more likely it is that sagging will cause a person to have discomfort or pain in bed and possibly out of bed. * especially for side and / or stomach sleepers. It should be noted that despite the fact that back pain for many people may occur with less than 1.5 inches of sagging depth, many mattress warranties cover sagging only if it has a depth greater than 1.5 inches. Conforming ability refers to how well a mattress conforms or molds to the contours and curves of a person's body. A mattress has good conforming ability if all of one's body is supported equally by the mattress. A lack of conforming ability means there are gaps in support. The result can be that at least one part of the body – such as the lower back – is placed in an unsupported, unnatural and therefore stressed position which can cause pain.
A lack of conforming ability also often results in some parts of the body – namely shoulders and hips of side sleepers – feeling more pressure than other parts because of unequal support. Such pressure can be a source of significant discomfort. Having the right firmness is an important factor in preventing / relieving pain. Learn more: Mattress Firmness Guide & Comparison. The graph below shows the pain-relieving ability of the different mattress types based on actual owner experiences. The types that are better at reducing (back, hip and shoulder) pain are more supportive, less likely to sag and more likely to have effective conforming ability. Keep in mind that the chart represents what is often but not always the case; model or individual mattress may go against these findings somewhat. Sagging and loss of support (barring mechanical breakdown) is usually less of a problem with airbeds compared to most other bed types. And the air chambers inside an airbed provide at least fair conforming ability and allow for adjustable firmness / support to suit personal preference and sleep position.
Airbeds, however, with little or no comfort layer can be too firm on hips and or shoulders of small- to average-sized side sleepers. While memory foam mattresses can develop problems (sagging, excessive softness, and loss of support) these problems tend to not be as common or serious as they can be with innerspring-based mattresses (memory foam's main competition). Memory foam also provides good conforming ability for average- to large-sized people. Firmness levels tend to be mostly medium to medium-firm. Smaller-sized people may experience excessive pressure points as they tend to not exert adequate pressure on the mattress to benefit from the foam's conforming ability. Latex can develop body impressions and soften to some extent, but these problems tend to not cause widespread pain problems. Latex often conforms moderately to the body. Firmness tends to be medium to firm (but soft varieties are available). Hybrid mattresses often provide above-average support, but such support breaks down for at least 18% of owners within three years due to sagging.
Conforming ability tends to be good if at least two inches of memory foam is present. A variety of firmnesses are available. While waterbeds are often highly conforming, their support is questionable. At least 15% of owners claim that their waterbed causes back pain because of poor support. Firmness can be adjusted somewhat by adding or removing water. Innerspring mattresses often provide at least fair support, but such support breaks down for at least 20% of owners within three years due to sagging. Models with a significant comfort layer often provide fair conforming ability, while models with a minimal comfort layer often provide poor conforming ability especially for small- to average-sized people. Futon mattresses offer mostly fair support and conforming ability. Futons tend to be more firm than soft. While mattress support, mattress conforming ability, and mattress firmness are crucial factors for preventing / relieving pain, they are not the only factors. One's choice of pillow is important as well.