Imagine waking up, fully rested after 8 hours of sleep. You had some good dreams, your alarm is going off, and now it’s time to start another day.
As you open your eyes, you move to sit up…only to be hit with an ache in your back…which moves to your shoulders and neck. You start to stand up, thinking a good stretch will help even out the kinks, and bam! The aches in your upper body are eclipsed by the dull ache in your hips and legs!
How can you feel so terrible after a full night’s sleep? Your mattress may be to blame.
Don’t believe us? Call our office for a free consultation with our physical therapist and find out how your mattress impacts your morning aches and pains.
How common are morning aches and pains?
A 2008 study found that 1 in 15 to 20 cases of chronic pain can be attributed to sleep problems. One of the biggest causes is something called long-term malpositioning. In short, your body is in the wrong position for too long, as you sleep for roughly 8 hours a night.
Bad posture, poor workstation ergonomics, and even sleeping on the wrong mattress or pillow can force your body into positions your back, hips, shoulders, neck, and head are not meant to be in for long periods of time. The result is morning achiness, even if you have adequate sleep at night.
Oftentimes the reason for this kind of pain lies in what you’re sleeping on: your mattress.
Your mattress must provide adequate support.
The level of support you need from your mattress will depend on your typical sleep position. People who sleep predominantly on their back will find they have low back pain if their hips rest on top of the mattress.
Side sleepers may experience aches and pains in their hips and low back if their knees rest below their hips.
Stomach sleepers may wake up with back pain because their shoulders are resting behind their hips.
While properly positioned pillows and mattress toppers can do a lot to alleviate morning aches, they cannot take the place of a mattress that supports your natural sleeping position.
Is it time to get a new mattress?
If your mattress was once comfortable but now seems to be at the root of your aches and pains, it may be time to replace it.
While the Better Sleep Council recommends replacing your mattress every 7 to 10 years, the way you feel in the morning is a better indicator that it’s time to replace your sleep surface.
Physical changes like injuries, surgery, and weight change can also change your body’s position as you sleep, necessitating a faster change in your mattress.
When you go to pick out a new mattress, take your time! Don’t let yourself get overwhelmed with all the options available to you and end up picking something that you won’t like in a few night’s sleep. Ask questions, try out different levels of firmness, reposition your body, and do everything you can to simulate how you sleep at night.
This way you can be sure you’re getting the absolute best mattress for you. You’ll be waking up feeling well-rested and grateful you took the time to pay attention to what your body needs!
Physical therapy can also help with aches and pains.
While it may seem strange to consult a physical therapist for aches and pains that may be caused by your mattress, their expertise may be just what you need!
You see, physical therapists are experts in the areas of posture and movement, and they can assess what positions you sleep in. This way they can make recommendations for the type of mattress that best supports your body. They will also assess your posture and movement for any underlying conditions that may be contributing to your morning aches and pains.
Your physical therapist may also decide it’s appropriate to create a customized treatment plan aimed at improving your posture, strengthening your body, and improving your sleep overall. Sometimes there are underlying conditions that cause a person to wake up experiencing pain in the back, shoulders, neck, hips, or other parts of their body.
A physical therapist can determine if this is something that you’re dealing with, and create a customized treatment plan specific to your needs. They’ll make sure you’re feeling your best in no time at all.
Call our office today.
It’s time for you to wake up without aches and pains in the morning. With a little bit of work with a physical therapist and a little bit of time, you can say goodbye to morning pain and hello to a restful night’s sleep. Call Rehab Dynamics today for more information, and to set up a consultation with one of our physical therapists.
