79 Times People Caught Their Partners Sleeping In Ways So Unhinged They Had To Share

What’s your preferred sleeping position, pandas? Personally, I’m a stomach-sleeper, which I know is controversial. But I just can’t doze off any other way. According to the Sleep Foundation, side-sleeping is actually the most common way to drift off to sleep. But each position has its pros and cons.

For example, side sleeping is often helpful for relieving back pain and reducing sleep apnea symptoms. However, back sleeping feels more natural to many people, even though it can lead to more snoring, sleep apnea symptoms, and acid reflux. Meanwhile, stomach sleeping is the least common. This position can minimize snoring, but it may simultaneously put a strain on the person’s neck and lower back.

Considering the fact that we spend about one-third of our lives asleep, it’s important to find a comfortable position that’s not going to have adverse effects on our health. Your sleep posture can impact your quality of sleep, certain health conditions, how your neck and back feel throughout the day, how you breathe during the night, and more.

So the Sleep Foundation suggests finding a position that promotes healthy spinal alignment. This might be side-sleeping in the fetal position or back-sleeping. But stomach-sleeping or side-sleeping with your hips flat against the bed can cause pain and/or poor sleep. 

The position in which you sleep isn’t the only thing that impacts the quality of your slumber, though. The quality of your pillow and bed can also play a significant role in how rested you feel. Dr. Doug Cary, musculoskeletal physiotherapy specialist and sleep educator, told The Guardian that a proper pillow should keep your head and neck aligned with your spine. But choosing the right one depends on which position you tend to sleep in.  

Dr. Lindsay Orosz, director of research at the National Spine Health Foundation, told The Guardian that back-sleepers should find a pillow soft enough to leave at least four fingers between their chin and chest while lying on it. Meanwhile, side-sleepers should look for a pillow that’s high enough to keep their neck straight, without being so tall that it pushes the neck to one side. Apparently, a medium-firm pillow is typically ideal. 

Now, if you’re one of the rare stomach-sleepers, the experts say that they’d recommend finding a new sleeping position, period. But if your body can’t fall asleep any other way, a thin pillow under the head and another under the hips might help to stabilize the spine. And once you find the perfect pillow, don’t get too attached to it. Dr. Orosz says you should replace your pillow every 1-2 years to ensure that it’s doing its job properly. 

Now, your sleeping position may not be the same as your Zodiac sign or Enneagram, but according to the Sleep Foundation, it can still reveal something about you. Per research done by Samuel Dunkell in the 1970s, sleeping in the fetal position is often associated with more anxious and emotional individuals. But if you only sleep in a semi-fetal position, you’re probably a well-adjusted person. Meanwhile, those who sleep in a “log” position, on their side with their entire body straight, are supposedly warm and sociable.