Ideally it is best to sleep on your side with a fat pillow between your legs during pregnancy. This allows your pelvis to be in a neutral position and even out the pressure on the parts of the body that are supporting your increasing body weight. Body pillows that you can mold around your bumps are often a good alternative.
The concern with sleeping on your back is that the baby is sitting on top of the major blood vessels that supply the placenta & restricting its own blood supply. Many women are panicked when they wake & find they are flat on their back again. You only need a tilt of 15 degrees from flat to stop that restriction. In other words a flat pillow that you can roll back onto & still feel comfortable will ease your fears in the morning!
Unfortunately, many books are advocating to only sleep on your left side so your baby is getting a good supply of blood & oxygen. This is one of the latest “must do’s” in pregnancy. While the left side may have the least pressure on the major blood vessels this does not mean the blood supply is poor on the right side.
So please feel free to move around & change position while sleeping! Our mothers did & grandmothers did!
If you have any questions about your health during pregnancy or after child birth please contact our Women's Health Physiotherapists at Genesis Physiotherapy on 9284 0919.
