Sleeping Better with Yoga and Other Supports

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Our body has the capacity to go to sleep in any kind of position we can hardly even imagine. Next time you go on a long trip, whether by bus, train or plane, you'll be flabbergasted at the poses your co-travelers sleep in. Then you can easily anticipate the next morning’s groans and sighs of aches from all the distortion and contortions they had put their bodies through!

Do you know you can alter your sleeping position to a more comfortable one that could grant you real slumber? When the nose is congested, the body compensates by snoring and breathing through the mouth. Yoga movements which focus on alignment and harmony of the different body systems will help you set a new position in sleep that would give you a sound and soundless slumber all night through.

Before that, though, you have to take note of these three no-no in sleeping positions:

Flat Back Sleep. A stiff corpse-like position where the limbs are kept straight usually has you waking up in the mornings with pain in the lower back. That is caused by the "locking" of your knees and hips for hours, with which the weight of your legs drags your lower back bones and muscles from their natural positions. The vertebra and lower back discs are thus burdened unnecessarily, resulting in that wake-up pain.

Belly Sleep. When you sleep with your face on the mattress and set to one side for breathing, your neck gets twisted in the process. This will also put a lot of weight on the fragile nerves from the skull to the upper spine. Sleepers of this pose wake up covered with spittle and neck muscles convulsed.

Side Sleep. This position is the "safest" among the three, as regards the back muscles and bones. Still, it’s not safe from pain. The weight of your body converges on the shoulders to the neck and result in extreme pain and muscle spasms in the upper back, shoulders and neck.

Here are alternative ways of sleeping that, in union with yoga practice before bedtime, would send you to soundless slumber-In the meantime, the following positions, in conjunction with pre-bedtime Yoga, can grant you deep sleep with no more snoring:

The Side Sleep position along with some simple stuff can ensure you complete body alignment and prevent constricting your neck.

Put a rolled-up beach towel or cylindrical pillow a foot long and 8-9 inches round facing your pillow. You will get additional support for the cervical bones not to bend over the side and control your neck all night long.

You  can also try sandwiching between two pillows to serve as a “hug pillow.” This position gives your shoulder joints room and keeps the arm bone weight from gripping the brachial nerves under the collar bones.

A lightweight blanket or towel firmly in place between your knees the whole night, despite tossing and turning all night would maintain the space between the hips. Thus, you’ll be able to avoid the lower back or hip bones falling out of its position. This will also keep you from bruising between the knees.

Don't be fazed by additional articles crowding you in bed and adjust to the hug pillow or knee blanket. The sound sleep you’ll be experiencing from then on will be all worth it.

Check out Yoga in Kamloops for more yoga info.

Another highly recommended article is Yoga Can Be A Welcome Aid During Pregnancy