One of the main reasons why people suffer from back pain is the irregular posture they sleep in. You spend around one third of your life sleeping and if you are not spending it in the correct posture then it is highly likely that you are going to get backache. People usually think that having a comfortable and soft mattress is the best way to support the spine but is it really the case? Japanese households prefer sleeping on the floor and it is also common in popular culture too. The Count of Monte Cristo is one notable personality who despite his wealth slept on the floor as it had become his habit during his imprisonment years. The question remains is:Is sleeping on the floor good for your back? Most sufferers of back pain think that having a sleeping on a soft mattress can ease their aching backs. However, overly soft mattresses fail to provide the required support to the back, leading to poor posture during sleep and misalignments of the spine. The answer to the question “is sleeping on the floor good for your spine or back?” is yes.
Sleeping on the ground can prove to be very beneficial for your back as it provides support to your spine and help you in keeping your back straight while lying down. People who have tried it have found it extremely beneficial for their backs and have woken up feeling much better than before. Lying flat on your back with something marginally softer than the floor under you without a pillow is the ideal way to sleep. You spine will remain in the most neutral position if you sleep like this. Sleeping on the floor is not going to be very comfortable in the early goings and you might want to sleep with many pillows. However, try to use a single pillow only when sleeping as the important thing is not to cushion the back but to support it. Some people think it is bad to sleep on the floor but that is totally incorrect. Although people who are overweight or are not accustomed to sleeping anywhere than on soft mattresses would feel a little sore in the mornings, but this is natural and is the same as the soreness you feel in the morning after an overnight exercise session.
Sleeping on the floor is perfectly safe for healthy individuals. However, if you are suffering from a health condition, which requires you to sleep in a special bed or if you reside in a basement that has concrete floors then it becomes impractical for you to sleep on the floor. It is best to give this method a try for a few nights at least to check whether it is good for your back or not. After all, your back pain is the only thing you stand to lose by sleeping this way. "I and my girlfriend have slept on the floor for a few days. In the beginning, it was only for a weekend while my grandmother was moving and we were around to help her. I lie on a soft couple of blankets while my girlfriend lies on a thin blanket only as she is slightly tougher than me. Lying on the floor is different than lying on the bed as the floor is definitely firmer when compared to the bed. Having slept on the floor for a few days, I realized that my back felt different. After sleeping on the bed for only a couple of hours, I woke up to sore hips and an aching back.
This is why I don’t remain in bed anymore and watch Netflix while I am not in bed. "It was only by chance that I slept on the floor when I was travelling. I have now started sleeping on the floor permanently as my back stopped aching after that. My backache is gone entirely. I did a little research on the internet regarding the advantages of sleeping on the bed which did not yield any results. Although sleeping on the bed is comfortable, it disturbs the natural body positions and is the main reason why so many people nowadays suffer from back issues. We make use of a heavy feather blanket which is quite old just for remaining warm. I am planning on buying thin camping mats for sleeping on the floor although I think that the western children playground material is a good option too. We use a cheap synthetic blanket for covering ourselves."What are the pros and cons of sleeping on the floor? August 6, 2006 Subscribe What are the pros and cons of sleeping on the floor?
This is something I have never talked about and very few of you know that one of my greatest pleasures is sleeping on the floor. The earth and grass and perfect but if it’s a nice straight wooden floor that’s even better. But what are the benefits of sleeping on the floor? Here are 5 benefits that come with it: Because there is nothing there to take the shape of your body, it cannot sink into the mattress, so it won’t need to tense up you can actually relax and let go of tensions in your body. As the spine straightens and lengthens you get that feeling of release in your lower back and throughout your spine. So many issues come from misaligned hips, imbalanced muscles and body, poor posture and misaligned boned can trap nerves. A straight wooden floor can realign the hips. Misaligned shoulders can put strain on your neck and back, causing chronic pain, and even headaches. The consequences of a misaligned body take time to show up but it’s the details that many ignore which cause the greatest injuries.
A straight wooden floor is perfect to realign the shoulders. You cannot achieve a nice lengthened posture if the pillow or mattress take the shape of your head and body. It means that if your head and neck are in a wrong position they will take that shape. A wooden floor, if sleeping on the back, will align your head, neck, spine, hips, the whole body. The communication between head and the rest of the body is enhanced helping healing, improving circulation and better functioning of the body Remember that sleeping is the body’s natural way of healing, so sleep in a good resting position to enhance the process of healing. A good posture also tell your brain it is happy while slouching tell your brain it is unhappy and sends signals of stress as well. Thus by simply aligning our physical body we tap into mental wellbeing , happiness and optimism as well. And laying on the floor, on your back makes things very easy, you don’t even have to think about it, you just need to enjoy the moment.
Other awesome benefits include grounding, less tossing and turning, fall asleep immediately, wake up earlier and there’s this feeling of clear mind that I always experience when I sleep on the floor. But that comes down to you experimenting and experience it for yourself. The best position for most people is on their back. That’ll help align the body. On the side not that much. Even if you say you cannot sleep in that position you might be surprised at how much and fast you relax and end up sleeping like a baby. Of course as with anything else in the world there are also disadvantages but you just have to decide whether this works for you or not. It might if you’ve never slept on the floor or haven’t in a while. The body positions in a different way and joints straighten so if you do feel achy that might not be that bad. It might take up to one week for your body to adapt. However if you feel very uncomfortable start slow. As with every habit it is good to start small.