How to Sleep with Sciatica? - Find out how to deal with sciatica

An article answering all the common questions about how one can sleep with sciatica

Have you ever tried to sleep with sciatica? If you have or are currently trying to do so, then you know how difficult it can be. If you haven’t, you cannot possibly imagine the uphill battle it gives those trying to get a good night’s sleep. However, there are ways to manage sciatica and, at the very least, learn how to get some shut-eye despite its existence. That’s why below, we have compiled some common question and answers for you to better understand how to sleep with sciatica and how to deal with this nuisance of a condition:

What is Sciatica?

Your sciatic nerve is the largest nerve in your body. Where is your sciatic nerve? Well, it runs down the entire length of your spine, down through your buttocks, and even extends to the back part of your legs. This means any problem that occurs in the areas the sciatic nerve runs along can stimulate it and cause sciatica.

In simple terms, sciatica is the condition wherein an impingement is disturbing the sciatic nerve. Something on the backside of your body is displaced and intruding on the space of the sciatic nerve — causing discomfort and/or even sharp pain. But, what causes it? Read further.

What Causes Sciatica?

According to cleavelandclinic.org, Sciatica is caused by inflammation due to compression or pinching of the sciatic nerve. It is frequently the result of a herniated disk or slipped disk that disturbs the nerves. It is often described to be like a burning or electric sensation on the affected area and caused great discomfort. In severe cases, the pain can be sharp, stabbing, and render the affected immobile and unable to sleep.

In most cases though, sciatica will cure itself and can easily be managed with certain self-care techniques. Below are how people deal with sciatica to get a good night’s sleep.

Firstly, Find Out Why You Have Sciatica Pain

The first step to dealing with sciatica is to know what caused it. This might require a checkup from a qualified health care provider to accurately identify. There are, however, things that make a person more likely to experience sciatica. In a 2021 book published by researchers from Orange Park Medical Center and Augusta University, the conditions that could lead to sciatica include but are not limited to:

An injury or previous injury;
being overweight or pregnant — the added weight puts strain on the spine and might affect the sciatic nerves;
Lack of strong core muscles;
Bad posture or prolonged sitting;
Has Osteoarthritis;
Has Diabetes;
and/or is a smoker.

If one or more things on this list apply to you and your life, it might be likely that your back pains aren’t temporary but a result of sciatica. In which case, it is highly advised that you see a doctor immediately to identify its root cause and treatment.

Why Is Sleep So Important?

It’s been established that sciatica can be a debilitating condition that can prevent you from getting sleep at night. Its ability to keep those it afflicts awake is something that must not be underestimated since sleep is a highly essential part of keeping good health. Getting the right amounts of sleep can ensure proper motor functions, proper cognitive functions, ensure you have the energy to do physical tasks, and allows your cells the opportunity the regenerate and repair the body.

Meanwhile, Healthline published a 2020 article that states the negative effects of sleep deprivation. When sciatica prevents you from sleeping, the symptoms get worse and you can experience the following:

It can cause you to eat more gain weight faster (which in turn makes your sciatica worse);
Sciatica can weakens your immune system, making you more prone to other illnesses;
It places you at risk of mood changes and depression.
Sciatica has been shown to make your bones more brittle and damage your sense of balance — paving the way for even worse sciatica.

To ensure that you get the rest your body needs to deal with sciatica, the next section will inform you on how sleeping positions can affect your sciatica:

How Can Sleep Positions Affect Sciatica?

There are only two ways your sleeping positions can affect your sciatica: it either helps you manage the discomfort to sleep properly or it can make your sciatica worse. The bad sleeping position might have even been the cause of your sciatica in the first place.

Sleep is when the healing can occur and, getting the right amounts of it in the right position, can give your body the tools it needs to correct itself and help with your sciatica. The key bit to understanding here is that sciatica is caused by a compression of the nerves in your spine. What you need to be doing is getting into positions where the bones in your back move the other direction — releasing pressure on the sciatica nerve.

What Makes Sciatic Nerve Pain Worse at Night?

According to the United Physicians Group website, your sciatica is worse at night because this is the time when the inflammatory processes are most active. There are also a host of other factors prevalent at night that might make the pain worse.

Body Posture

When in bed, the weight of your body (muscles, organs, fat, and tissue) are pushing down towards your back and spine. This might cause sciatica to be more painful at night– because the position you take in bed makes it worse.

Temperature

For most people, seeing temperatures are supposed to be nice and cool. Unfortunately, cool temperatures can exacerbate the symptoms of arthritis which, in turn, might make sciatica worse.

Attention

We also need to sleep in quiet and, usually, dark conditions. These conditions also make the pain or discomfort caused by sciatica more acutely noticed. Your sciatica might hurt more at night because you have nothing else to distract you from it.

Hormone Levels

Hormones are usually released during the nighttime. It is your body’s normal mechanisms that gear you up for bed. Sadly, it might be those same hormones that make the pain of sciatica more acute.

Best Sleeping Position for Sciatica

It’s time we now learn about the sleeping positions that are conducive to a person with sciatica. Good sleeping positions won’t only make sciatica hurt less, it can lead you to get the rest your body needs to help with sciatica naturally:

Sleeping on your Side

Sleeping on your side can remove pressure from your backside and, by extension, on your sciatica.

Sleep on your uninjured side and, if there is some space between your waist and the mattress, place a pillow under your waist.

Sleeping on a Fetal Position

Some believe that sleeping in a fetal position can stretch out the spine and release pressure on sciatic nerves. Others state that it makes the pain worse. The only way to be sure though is to try.

Sleeping with a Pillow under the Knees

For some people, laying on your back is the least painful option. It distributes the weight evenly and, depending on where the sciatica is, places the least amount of pressure on sciatica.

Be sure to put a pillow under your head for support, and put a pillow under your knees to keep the curvature of the spine.

Sleep with a Towel or Thin Pillow under Your Lower Back

There are cases where the discomfort is caused by a feeling of a lack of support in the lower back. To address this, it might help to sleep on your back with a thin pillow or rolled-up towel under the lower back. This maintains and supports the natural curve of the spine.

Many of these positions are found through a process of trial and error. One or multiple might not work for you or might even make sciatica hurt more. You have to find the position most conducive to sleeping suited to you.

How to Sleep with Sciatica Nerve Pain

Here are some tips of thing to do and not to do when suffering from sciatica:

Do’s

Despite the pain, cortho.org advised that you stay active and continue with your day-to-day life. Not doing so will only worsen the symptoms and delay recovery.
Heat therapy, using pads or hot towels, can help alleviate the discomfort.
Stretches and flexibility exercises are great for realigning the spine.
Keeping your posture correct is essential through recovery time. You want your back to heal and correct itself to its natural position. Bad posture will only ensure that never happens — meaning you’ll be dealing with back pain even longer.
Massages can help greatly relieve the pain of sciatica and, according to some, speed up the recovery.
If the pain gets too much, consult your doctor about prescribing medicines to help manage it.

Don’ts

Do not extend your bedrest past normal times. Your sciatica needs to recover by itself through movement.
It is advised that you quit smoking and drinking — at least for the duration of recovery.
Do not do anything too strenuous like lifting weights.

Sciatica Exercises before Bed

In this section, let’s go over some tips and tricks for relieving back pain without needing to resort to painkillers:

Stretches and/or yoga before bed. Before going to bed, consider doing some stretching exercises which seek to align your spine.
Take warm baths and practice good hygiene. Taking warm baths can lead to a relaxing of the muscled and nerve endings which helps alleviate the pain.
Avoid soft mattresses and maybe put plywood under your mattress to offer more firmness. What you are trying to provide yourself here is a flat surface that is comfortable but does not distort the shape of your spine.

Sciatica with Pregnancy

As stated above, pregnancies and sciatica are closely related due to the strain carrying a forming person puts on the back and spine.

Sciatica Pregnancy Pain

The weight created by the belly when one is pregnant, and the contact tension it puts on the back in order to lift, can cause sciatica. On the Cleveland Clinic website, a burning, radiating pain coming from the back is one of the common experiences one has to face during pregnancy — especially during the third trimester.

It may also only grow as the pregnancy progresses. If it becomes too much discomfort to manage, it’s best to consult a physician or qualified chiropractor. You can also practice some sciatic pregnancy stretches to deal with or even eliminate the pain.

Sciatica Pregnancy Stretches

There are several types of sciatic pregnancy stretches to choose from. These stretched aim to relieve pressure on the sciatic nerve and get your spine into its most optimal positioning.

Some examples of these stretches include but are not limited to:

Seated piriformis stretch
Table stretch
Pigeon Pose
Hip flexor stretch
Glute and hamstring foam rolling (will require the use of a foam roller)

It is also suggested that pregnant women suffering from sciatica sleep on their uninjured side. This is to avoid their bellies from placing more pressure on the spine and to alleviate the pain. In some cases, sleeping on your back might work but be sure to do it on a firm mattress and with pillows under your head and knees — this is to support the curvature of your spine.

When Should You See a Doctor?

Ideally, you would have visited a doctor to identify that the cause of your back pains is, indeed, sciatica. This will evidently lead you to also identify the main cause of your sciatica. Afterwards, you and your doctor will formulate some self-care regimens for you to do at home and, maybe, book you an appointment with a chiropractor.

If you have been experiencing back pain for more than a week, even if you manage to sleep and go about your day normally, you should really have yourself checked out by a doctor.

Conclusion

Sciatica might be a debilitating condition that, at its worse, can seem to make everything into an uphill battle. The pain can keep you up at night and make it very difficult to live your life normally. That being said, it’s not the end of the world.

With proper care and the knowledge you have acquired in this article, you can effectively deal with sciatica and lead a better, healthier life as a result.