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Avoid these TikTok pregnancy sleep hacks

pregnancy sleep hacks

As the pregnancy progresses, finding a comfortable sleeping position becomes difficult due to the growing belly, with many parents experiencing back pain, leg cramps and general discomfort, disrupting sleep. 

This, coupled with plenty of other symptoms like frequent urination, heartburn, and hormonal changes, means thousands of parents are struggling to fall asleep and stay asleep at night. 

Across TikTok, hundreds of videos with various advice and tips promise restful sleep. However, speaking with Vitabiotics, sleep expert Dave Gibson unpacked these videos to uncover which hacks actually work.

Sleeping in the bathroom will make you more exhausted 

Though a comedic piece of advice, TikTok creators who suffer from frequent nighttime urination due to increased pressure on the bladder have suggested swapping out their beds in favour of sleeping in their bathrooms. 

According to Gibson, “You are most likely to get to sleep when you sleep in your own bed as your brain finds it easier to relax in a familiar environment. Sleeping in a strange place and position creates something called the first-night effect, where part of your brain stays alert and makes it hard to fall asleep even when you are exhausted. 

“To help alleviate the feeling and need to urinate at night, elevate your legs in the evening, about an hour before bed. This can help reduce fluid retention in your lower body, which can then be eliminated before bed.

Aim to empty your bladder before bed with a technique called double voiding, where you wait a few minutes after emptying your bladder and try again. 

You can improve your bladder control by strengthening your pelvic floor muscles with Kegel exercises, which will reduce your urgency to urinate. Finally, monitor and modify your diet. Spicy foods, citrus fruits and carbonated drinks can often irritate the bladder, and if you find these trigger the need to urinate, you should avoid them later in the day.” 

A variety of different pillows is better than one pillow placed under your fitted sheet 

Some creators have suggested rolling a thin pillow and placing it under your fitted sheet to support the back and spine during pregnancy. Whilst a good idea in theory, Gibson highlights the issues with this hack: 

It’s recommended that during the second and third trimesters of pregnancy, you sleep on your left-hand side to increase blood flow to the uterus and fetus, so ideally, you should get used to sleeping in this position before you conceive,” Gibson advises. 

It can take up to three months to fully adjust to a new sleeping position, so it’s best to start before you begin trying to get pregnant. If you plan to use a pillow under the mattress while pregnant, start practising this as well. 

However, I recommend having a variety of pillows to prop yourself up in this side-lying position. Use standard, folded, or smaller wedge pillows for your back and knees and U-shaped or J-shaped pregnancy pillows to stop you from rolling onto your front or back. 

This approach offers much more flexibility to make adjustments than having to fiddle with a pillow under the mattress if things become uncomfortable during the night.” 

Don’t replace a pregnancy pillow with a blanket 

Other creators on the app recommend replacing a pregnancy pillow with a thick blanket, hailing its ability to conform to your body as one of its benefits. But does this trick offer enough support for pregnant people? 

“As you progress through the second and third trimester, falling and staying asleep gets much more challenging. I would always plan and think about what support you need in terms of the type of pillow and making sure you have breathable bedding and sleepwear to keep you cool at night. 

Whilst a blanket might be enough during the first trimester to prop you up, it probably isn’t substantial enough to do the job later on. If it’s made out of a heavy heat-retaining material, it could overheat you too. A cotton-covered pregnancy pillow would offer better all-around support and keep you cooler at the same time.” 

Gentle stretches before bed will release muscles and help you sleep 

Certainly stretching, yoga, and meditation engage your rest and digest parasympathetic nervous system, which helps you relax and switch off before bed. 

“I recommend specific stretches and exercises during pregnancy depending on individual needs. However, the Cat-Cow pose is generally a good stretch for ligaments and spinal flexibility. The Child’s Pose is also good for the back and hips, and the Butterfly Stretch opens the hips and improves circulation. 

I also recommend strengthening the core and pelvic floor with exercises such as pelvic tilt, but it’s always best to get expert advice and supervision when exercising and stretching during pregnancy.” 

Sleeping on your left side is optimal  

Pregnant women are often advised to sleep on their left side, particularly in the later stages of pregnancy, for several important reasons. However, on TikTok, there’s plenty of discourse around this expert-led advice.

With regards to which side to lie on, research shows that the main advantage of lying on your left-hand side over the right is that with the liver lying on the right side of the body, left-side lying minimises the pressure on the organs and the key veins and arteries

This, in turn, promotes better circulation for mother and baby and optimal kidney function for the mum. One benefit of optimal kidney function is that it improves tissue draining and potentially helps to reduce swelling of areas such as the legs and ankles, which can often accompany the later stages of pregnancy. 

In general, lying on your left-hand side would also be more comfortable than lying on your right due to the reduced pressure on internal organs. However, we all have a preference for our habitual sleeping positions, especially the position in which we go to sleep. 

If you can only lie on your right-hand side to get to sleep, it’s still better than sleeping on your back during the 2nd and 3rd trimesters. Also, it’s still ok if you swap from side to side during the night, but prop yourself with pregnancy cushions to prevent you from lying face up or face down. 

I always recommend my patients adjust to lying on their left side before they get pregnant so that this position is familiar during their pregnancy. Always consult a healthcare provider for specific support if you are worried about your sleeping position.”

Stacking two pillows to mimic sleeping on your front may aggravate pubic symphysis 

Side stacking two pillows with your leg over them, even with another pillow for your shoulder to lie on, has several potential disadvantages. 

“Firstly, in this half-face-down, half-side-lying position, you are still putting considerable pressure on your circulation system, which can impede blood flow during your second and third trimesters. 

Additionally, the extra rotation of your upper hip and pelvis could aggravate your pubic symphysis. This position may also strain your neck and back muscles.

Therefore, finding a sleeping position that promotes optimal alignment and circulation is essential. I would keep it simple and learn to lie on your left-hand side using a pregnancy pillow or two for support rather than try to create a hybrid face-down sleeping position of this nature.”

Getting up rather than trying to go back to sleep can help with pregnancy insomnia 

Some videos on the platform suggest attempting to stay awake when experiencing pregnancy insomnia and restlessness at night. According to Gibson, “You should try to avoid staying in bed if you know you won’t be able to get back to sleep easily. The general advice is that if you wake up in the middle of the night and remain awake for longer than twenty minutes, it’s recommended to get out of bed and engage in a relaxing activity before returning to the bedroom. 

This helps maintain the association between your bed and sleep rather than wakefulness. Lying awake can create a negative association where your brain anticipates wakefulness instead of sleep. To avoid this, leave the bedroom, have a warm drink, and do something relaxing, such as reading a book in dim light. Then, go back to bed only when you feel tired enough to sleep.” 

Using a Holo Float to sleep on your front is not recommended 

As an air bed with a specially designed hole in it to support allowing the developing bump to drop into it, you’re technically reducing the pressure on the blood vessels. For some, this would also be a relaxing position for the back muscles. 

However, as an osteopath, I tend to advise against lying face down in general due to the strain this puts on the neck muscles. Achieving a neutral neck alignment in this position can be challenging, especially as we get older and have stiffer joints. Even with specific support like a pillow with a cut-out, maintaining proper alignment is difficult compared to other lying positions.” 

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