Adjust Your Position
Pick your favorite sleeping position
right or left side position, stomach and right or left side combined position
back and right or left side combined position
Tonight’s Sweet Spot
Finding your Resting Sweet Spot begins with a conscious connection with your body. How do you feel and what feels best as you get into bed. Is it best –lying on your side, or stomach? In what position are you stress and pain free and could you remain here, lying comfortably for an extended period of time? Are you in the groove to use a phrase from the 60's and Haight Asbury fame. Allow the discovery of your Resting Sweet Spottm to occur over
minutes, hours or several days. Your Sweet Spot will change as your body changes in response to the activities of your day. New larger injuries, even the accumulation of small micro traums will necessitate
the rediscovery of a "new"
spot of comfort. It is really all about your conscious connection with your body and how a newly designed pillow can assure better neck alignment and more restful, restorative deep sleep. You will learn in a short time to Snug It, Love It, True . Snug it, Love it, into the nape of the neck, Truing this relationship by maintaining the spine in line for another night's adventure into deep sleep.
Your Neck's Best Friend
We often tend to hug our pillow for warmth and comfort. Like an old blankie from childhood our pillow can represent that same kind of security and support. Let your pillow start by supporting your neck so there is no strain. Adjust your pillow to find the Sweet Spottm for your neck. That cradle of comfort.
Create for yourself a special relationship with your pillow, like that blankie from childhood. "My pillow takes me to that safe
and
warm place where I'm OK and your OK." What a thought to go to sleep by. Try this as an easy exercise to help you sleep. "I can imagine myself with an attitude of childlike acceptance of myself and people I know and all situations in my life." Say, " I can do this and I do it", and do it for 5 minutes with an open heart. You may be amazed at the results of this tool in your bag of tricks. It may be a new beginning, your rediscovered journey to lands of deep, restful sleep with
your "necks best friend".
Shoulder Supporter, Enabled to Sleep on My Side Again, Less Apnea and Snoring Too
Use this Deep Sleep pillow to relieve pressure on your shoulder if you like sleeping on your side. So many patients I have worked with over the years were forced to sleep on their back due to pain and irritation to their upper back, neck or shoulders. Shoulder irritation from too much pressure complicated by old injuries can wake you up at night causing you to move and readjust body parts as well as your pillow. How much sleep is lost tossing and turning each and every night? Think of those
you know who might be able to improve their sleep and avoid the problems of snoring and sleep apnea associated with back sleeping positions if they could only sleep more on their side than they do on their back.
Love Your Lower Back
Lower back pain is very common in adults and you will want to position yourself relative to your pillow in a way that puts your back in “neutral.” That means there is little or no pressure felt in that area. Sleeping in the fetal position, for example, loses the normal curvature of the lower back and can leave you with a similar feeling to bending over all day. A side sleeping position could also incorporate a gentle forward facing curve to the lower back but details and further study can
be found on "Deep Sleeper" Blog.
Spinal Curves
Your spine naturally has three curves in its makeup when you view it from the side. While the exact alignment varies from person to person, there is typically an alignment that is naturally good for you. Discover that Resting Sweet Spot that best supports these natural curvatures. Use your pillow to help you find that Resting Sweet Spot for your neck spinal curve as it becomes the upper back spinal
curve. The spine seen from the front should be stright from the top to the bottom of the spine and every attempt taken to maintain this relationship when lying in bed. Please check out my Bolg Deep Sleeper.
Shoulder / Spine Axis
A rule of thumb is ears above shoulders and nose above sternum. Finding a sleep position where that relationship of shoulders and spine is correct can result in a kind of ergonomic sleep. With that relationship you are keeping the bones of your skeleton in a balanced relationship where each joint has the least amount of pressure and irritation possible. Much more on this topic at the Blog.
Relax Your Muscles
Diet
Eat enough at dinner (4 hours before bedtime) to insure that you won’t be hungry at bedtime. Limit intake after dinner to water and, if necessary, a piece of fruit of other light food. Stay away from anything containing caffeine in the evening.
Write Throw-Aways
Release the thoughts that are occupying your mind by writing them down. Also, list things and relationships you are grateful for. You can just throw the paper away when done and with it you can let go of those thoughts until tomorrow.
TV & Music
Avoid watching or listening to those TV ads that create a craving for food. At the very least turn off the sound of the commercials. Instead of stimulating TV and TV ads you might try listening to calming music or reading a relaxing book.
Flex then Relax
While lying in bed, go through your major muscle groups and flex and then relax the muscles in each area. That can include legs, abdomen, chest/shoulders/back, arms/fists, and then face.
Toe to Head Review
Start at your toes and relax the muscles moving your attention next to your calves, then thighs, and so forth all the way to your face. Consciously relax every muscle in your body.
Breath into Pain
Breathe as if the breath was going directly to an area of pain and then exhale as if the outgoing breath was taking the pain with it. This can sometimes help to relax that area to a deeper level. Move away from the pain as you breath is also very helpful.
Adjust Joints
Check mentally for any feeling of pain or discomfort around your joints. Adjust your position until the joint feels like it is in a neutral position where no pressure exists between the bones and the muscles can relax. Breath, let go of the day.
Re-adjust Skeletal Alignment
Do a final check to insure that the alignment of your spine and shoulders is optimum, meaning little or no pressure on spinal disks and other joints.
Calm Your Mind
Count Sheep
Sleep is often interrupted by thoughts of what happened today or what might happen tomorrow. The solution to that mind chatter is to be very present in the moment rather than worrying about the past or future. Two simple ways to do that are the old idea of counting sheep and counting breaths. Both can bring your mind into the present and allow you to let go of mind chatter.
Get Out of Bed!
Get out of bed for cookie or read some calming poetry...Sometimes, mind chatter is persistent and more drastic measures are required. One solution is to get out of the bedroom environment and do something different. A very light snack or some reading on a peaceful subject can disconnect you from those persistent thoughts.
Journaling
Another way to disconnect or let go of thoughts is to do some short journaling. Simply write down what you are thinking and get it all on paper. Often, that process will allow you to let go of that cycle of thinking. Get it out of you and on paper.
Supplements
Your goal is always deep sleep that results from natural processes. There are times, however, when natural sleep isn’t happening. You can consider some kind of supplements to help. Talk with a specialist in natural supplements to see if they can assist with that.
Medical Evaluation & Treatment
In extreme situations, due to emotional or physical trauma, you might want to find a medical professional who can help. We recommend that your goal is always to return to the natural sleep process as soon as possible.
