🛏️ How Sleep Position Affects Neck Pain

1. Back Sleeping (Good for Neutral Alignment)

• When your neck is supported properly, sleeping on your back allows your cervical spine to rest in a neutral position.
• The key is having a pillow that supports the natural curve of your cervical spine without tilting your head too far forward or too far back.
• Without proper support, back sleepers often wake up with stiffness, tension, pain, sometimes headaches.

2. Side Sleeping (Support Needed Between Head, Shoulder, and Mattress)

• Side sleeping is good, if your pillow supports the space between your head and your mattress, in a neutral spine position.  The amount of fill needed in your pillow will be determined by how broad your shoulders are, and the softness of your mattress.
• If your pillow is too flat,  your chin will tilt upward, leading to strained neck muscles and compression of cervical joints and nerves.
• If your pillow is too thick, your head will tilt forward, also leading to muscle strain and the compression of cervical joints and nerves.
• A customizable pillow can help side sleepers target proper alignment.

3. Stomach Sleeping (Debatable for Neck Health)

• Stomach sleeping forces your head to turn to one side for hours.  This twisting of the cervical spine can put strain on the discs, ligaments, and nerves, often leading to chronic neck and upper back pain.
• However, if you have a very heathy cervical spine range of motion, and are proficient in “belly breathing,” there is some thought that sleeping on your stomach can be beneficial.
• If you’re a stomach sleeper with neck pain issues, training yourself to transition to a side or back sleep position may be best for long-term neck health.

4. Quarter-Turn / Combo Sleepers

• Many people shift between back, side, and in-between  positions at night.
• A pillow that adapts to multiple positions, like the WingsPillow™ with its patented, customizable design for back, side, and in-between sleepers, can help maintain a healthy neutral spine throughout the night.

✅ Key takeaway: Neck pain is often less about how you sleep and more about whether your pillow keeps your cervical spine neutral.  That’s why physical therapist Colin Broadbelt designed the WingsPillow™ to help reduce joint compression, ease soft tissue strain, and support pain-free sleep.

For more information on how the WingsPillow™can help you get a better night’s sleep, please go to: thewingspillow.com.