Shoulder pain and sleeping

Painful, aching shoulders due to injuries can get in the way of a good night’s sleep. It can make it not only difficult to fall asleep, but also to stay asleep or get good quality rest.

Here are some tips and tricks to make sleeping with rotator cuff pain easier, and to help you on your road to recovery.

• Sleep on your back. This will allow your shoulder to be in a neutral position without any added pressure. Avoid sleeping on your shoulder until the injury has fully healed. You may want to consider sleeping on a wedge pillow to avoid rolling onto your stomach through the night.

• Consider switching out your mattress. Find one that is higher quality and more comfortable. Whether you are injured or not, a better mattress will take take the pressure off your joints and muscles, making it easier to get a good night’s sleep.

• Experiment with a new pillow. Sleeping on a high pillow can put added pressure on your neck and shoulder, especially if you sleep on your side. It may take some trial and error to find which pillow works best for you, but even this small adjustment can go a long way to improving your sleep.

• If you must sleep on your side, try to pull the shoulder out so you have more pressure on the shoulder blade than the shoulder joint - you can use other pillows (behind and in front) to help you get comfortable

• Keep moving. Exercise has been shown to improve quality of sleep, so make sure to maintain an active lifestyle. Just make sure that you are temporarily avoiding any activity that exacerbate your shoulder pain.

• Book a treatment. Chiropractors and registered massage therapists are familiar with rotator cuff injuries, and can help to alleviate pain, increase range of motion, and speed recovery time. Less pain results in a better night’s sleep :)

Maureen, RMT

To book a treatment click HERE