Does this have a name, I wake up to sometimes with a clogged nose, can't breathe until it drains out. I started sleeping with more pillows to keep my head higher and it stopped, but I think it's a weird angle and makes my throat collapse.
> I started sleeping with more pillows to keep my head higher and it stopped, but I think it's a weird angle
Be careful with those pillows!
A while ago I came across a YouTube video by two orthopedists who were arguing very convincingly that for neck & overall posture it's best to sleep without any pillows at all. I've been doing it for > 2 years now and, from what my body tells me, they're absolutely right. Now I can't believe I ever slept with a pillow.
The reasons they gave for why pillows are bad are (I'm paraphrasing here):
- As far as is possible, sleep should be used to counter the posture(s) one typically assumes during the day, not to reinforce them. (Sleeping for 8 hours basically means 8 hours of reinforcing a certain posture, whether good or bad, so better use it for one that benefits you.)
- Pillows put the neck in a forward position, like when you're sitting at your desk, and therefore cause or exacerbate a neck hump.
- They allow sleeping on the side, in a baby pose (i.e. with your legs tucked up) which, again, mimics the typical posture when sitting.
- Pillows prevent sleeping on your stomach, a position which helps stretch the body (especially chest, neck, hip flexors).
