Pregnancy can make the simplest tasks difficult, including falling asleep and sleeping comfortably throughout the night. Knowing that this sleep will be the last bit of peaceful sleep you get before the baby arrives makes missing out on it even more frustrating. Luckily, figuring out the best sleeping position for you while you are pregnant can be done and it is easier than you may have originally thought. Today, we will be taking a look at the changes you can make to ensure you get a comfortable night’s sleep during your pregnancy.
Getting Comfortable Sleep During Pregnancy
Choose the Right Position
Your sleeping position will play a huge part in how comfortable you are in bed during your pregnancy. When you are far along in your pregnancy, sleeping on your stomach will be extremely uncomfortable. Sleeping on your back can cause backache, breathing issues, low blood pressure, and hemorrhoids. All of which have a negative impact on your ability to sleep at night. Sleeping on your side is best. It helps with back pain, it’s comfortable, good for your posture, and may reduce the chances of a stillbirth, which is said to be more common in women who sleep on their backs when pregnant.
Add Pillows
Adding pillows to your sleeping position can make sleep more comfortable and helps to decrease back pain, which is a common issue many pregnant women have to deal with. Bending your knees during your sleep is said to help stabilize you. This will stop you from feeling uncomfortable and rolling onto your back. To support you while you sleep, place one or two pillows in the middle of your knees. This can help with keeping your spine straight and can reduce the pressure your hips, spine, and nerves surrounding them.
Replace Your Mattress
Quality is just as important as quantity when it comes to sleep, and a mattress will play a huge part in quality. A memory foam mattress is great for pregnant women because it will continuously provide the comfort and support required throughout the changes of your pregnancy. They are also hypoallergenic, non-toxic, and they don’t contain dust mites. This makes them one of the healthiest mattresses to sleep on. Purchasing the right mattress is important. In this post, the best mattresses of 2020 have been compared to help you make the right decision.
Avoid These Foods
Eating the right food at the right time will determine how well you sleep at night. During pregnancy, cravings and appetite can be difficult to control, but it’s important that you do so. Eating any food right before bed can trigger heartburn, so you should avoid eating a couple of hours before you go to bed. Certain types of food can also induce heartburn. These include citrus, spicy, fatty, fried, and acidic food. Unfortunately, chocolate also falls into the trigger foods. If you notice that your heartburn is worse during the night or when you eat certain things, then it should be avoided.
Don’t Forget Stretches and Exercise
Doing the right exercise is important during pregnancy. It doesn’t have to be intense, just walking or cycling for half an hour a day can do you the world of good. It helps to keep your body healthy, it strengthens your muscles, it reduces weight gain, and it also helps you sleep better during the night. Stretching before you exercise and before bed will reduce muscle pain and cramps during the night. You should focus on the legs and back when carrying out these stretches because these are the main areas that experience cramps and pain.
Use the Toilet Before Bed
Nothing is worse than getting into bed and realizing you need to go to the toilet. This is even worse when you’re pregnant because it’s harder to get out of and back into bed, and you will have to find the right sleeping position again. The task is long and disruptive. Also, many pregnant women have to pee more frequently due to the baby pushing on the bladder and an increase in blood volume, which means your kidneys have to process more fluid. You should use the toilet right before you go to bed to avoid needing it in the middle of the night.
Getting adequate, good quality rest is important for all of us, especially those who are growing a baby inside of them. Simple changes to your diet, sleeping position and routine will do wonders when it comes to getting comfortable sleep during your pregnancy.
