• Get enough physical and mental rest each day. This is a very important factor in the recovery and maintenance of your health.
• A third of your life is spent in bed. Sleep on a good mattress, which must be firm, that is to say neither too soft nor too hard.
• Always sleep on your back or on your side with your legs slightly bent. When you switch positions, make sure to lift your head from the pillow.
• In bed, avoid lying in a cramped position. If you must sleep on a sofa, do not rest your head on the armrest.
• Your pillow must be adapted to your sleeping position (see the following diagrams).
• The only type of foam pillows that can be used are the ones that are orthopedic. A feather pillow, if it is not too thick, will also provide adequate support to the head and the nape of the neck.

When lying on your back, avoid using pillows that are too thick, for you would adopt a bad posture, which may cause damage to your neck, arms and shoulders.

It is best to place a thin pillow to support your neck and a large one under your knees.

Sleeping on your stomach increases the lumbar curve and can cause damage to the cervical and lumbar areas.

Sleeping on your side with your knees slightly bent helps keep the spine straight. A thick pillow should be used so that the cervical area is perpendicular to the shoulders. In order to limit the amount of tension placed on the spine, put a pillow between your knees.

 

Raising the feet of the bed (or the mattress itself) about 20 cm will increase blood circulation and help get rid of the habit of sleeping on the stomach.

Relaxing the back

To relieve spinal tension, lie on your back and place one or more pillows under your knees, so that the lumbar area touches the ground. The nape of the neck must rest on a thin pillow or a rolled-up towel.

To relieve lumbar pain, maintain this position between 5 and 25 minutes.