Best sleeping position for sciatica and piriformis pain
Nothing makes you feel more helpless than 2am, wide awake, doing math on how many hours are left.
Position will not fix your sciatica, but it decides whether you get through the night.
Side sleeping
Most people do best on the non-painful side with a pillow between the knees, thick enough
that your top hip is not dropping forward. If side-lying on the painful side is the only way you can
settle, that is information, not a crime — tell whoever is coaching you.
On your back
A pillow under the knees takes the pull off the back of the leg and settles the low back. Some
people do better with a small rolled towel in the low back as well. Two minutes of experimenting beats
a night of guessing.
On your stomach
Usually the worst option for sciatica — it cranks the low back and turns your neck for hours. If it
is the only way you sleep, put a flat pillow under your hips to take the arch out.
Getting out of bed without paying for it
- Roll to your side first, knees together, then push up with your arms.
- Do not sit up straight from flat on your back.
- Expect to be stiff for the first ten minutes and move gently through it — that stiffness is not damage.
Try the free 3-Day Sciatica Proof Lab and find out in three days whether your sciatica can be broken — instead of guessing for another six months.
Dean Volk, MPT has spent 34+ years working with people in pain — 10,000+ in person and 5,200+ online. The 180° Sciatica Solution works the non-painful side first: Balance, Stabilize, Return.