Is sleeping on your back bad?

I have noticed more than one instance where posters on this forum indicate that sleeping on your back is not good for you. Prior to my diagnosis of sleep apnea I slept alternated between sleeping on either side and my back all night. After my sleep apnea treatment started I have been trying to sleep only on my back because I cannot keep my FF mask from leaking heavily when ever I try to sleep on either side. Some on this forum have said that they sleep fine with a FF mask on their side but so far I cannot do it. Is sleeping on your back bad for you?

bigfoot wrote:I have noticed more than one instance where posters on this forum indicate that sleeping on your back is not good for you. Prior to my diagnosis of sleep apnea I slept alternated between sleeping on either side and my back all night. After my sleep apnea treatment started I have been trying to sleep only on my back because I cannot keep my FF mask from leaking heavily when ever I try to sleep on either side. Some on this forum have said that they sleep fine with a FF mask on their side but so far I cannot do it. Is sleeping on your back bad for you?

If sleeping on your back gives you more apneas, then the answer is yes.

If your answer is yes, then I suggest you start experimenting with the FF mask sleeping on your side. There will be a solution that works for you, you just have to find it. A feather pillow has helped me, with my head on the edge. Others have found a different solution.

I used an oximeter to prove to myself that sleeping on my back caused more desaturations than on my side.

Good luck

Mars

bigfoot wrote:I have noticed more than one instance where posters on this forum indicate that sleeping on your back is not good for you. Prior to my diagnosis of sleep apnea I slept alternated between sleeping on either side and my back all night. After my sleep apnea treatment started I have been trying to sleep only on my back because I cannot keep my FF mask from leaking heavily when ever I try to sleep on either side. Some on this forum have said that they sleep fine with a FF mask on their side but so far I cannot do it. Is sleeping on your back bad for you?

Probably not if you were properly titrated while on your back. However I have learned to sleep on my side with a full face mask. Most of the time anyway. What I do is use a fairly thin pillow that I can fold in half so I'm sleeping on the edge of it (with the mask off the pillow). It still gets knocked around a bit but I can usually shove it back into place when it does. I'm using a Fisher & Paykel 431 at a pressure of 14 but I doubt there's anything unique about the mask. You'll have to experiment with what exact position works for you.

Unless you happen to need a huge difference in pressures on your back vs on your side... sleep however you want and can sleep well.

For some people sleeping on their back can increase apneas. It is common but does not hold true for everyone.
Even if it did, this is why we use these machines to prevent these apneas. If your pressure is sufficient they won't happen on your back any more than they will happen in any other position.

Now some people have extreme pressure needs variables between on their back and on their side. One member here needs pressures of 18 and 19 cm to control his apneas on his back and only 9.5 cm on his side.. I can sure see why he wants to sleep on his side. I am no worse on my back than I am on my side. I am worse in REM sleep. Would I want to prevent myself from getting REM sleep.. Heck no. I just let my machine do its job and adjust the pressure as needed.

If your reports show your sleep apnea is well treated by your machine and you are resting comfortably...sleep however you want. Leaky mask waking you up all the time is far worse than just sleeping on your back and letting the machine do its job. Not everyone is horribly worse on their back anyway.

Now if you didn't have the machine...... of course try to limit events in any way you can.

Hi Bigfoot,
I'm one of those people that has higher pressure needs while supine. But after years of having my wife wake me up to turn on my side to control snoring, I now sleep exclusively on my side.

I did have difficulty using the comfortGel FF mask on my side. The FF masks are bigger and get pushed to the side easily.

After experimentation, I found that the ComfortGel nasal along with a chin strap (on top of mask straps) allowed me to side sleep w/o difficulty.

They make stepped cpap pillows that provide extra space for the mask while side sleeping. Many people improvise their own.

Like many cpap issues, experimentation is called for.
Good luck,
Jamis

When i injured my shoulders, I had to sleep on my back...my AHI tripled, I had AI which I'd never had before, my median and 95%centile pressures increased, my leak increased. Now, I must acknowledge that I was in considerable pain that likely played a role, but as the pain lessened (5+ months later) I began to sleep for a few hrs on my side, the numbers decreased significantly and software showed I had fewer events sleeping on side. That made a believer outta me that I need more pressure and will experience more events when I sleep on my back compared to sleeping on my side.

My husband has trained himself to sleep on his side but on rare occasions when he turns onto his back for any length of time, his AHI is higher. He uses a FF mask and mainly uses a memory foam contour pillow. Finding the right bed pillow is key and even then with a FF mask some nights are leakier than others. Do a Search here and you'll find many suggestions.

I have CSA and for some reason, get the least central events sleeping supline. I think its because supline tales the least effort to breath. My unit keeps my airway clear in whatever position so I go for comfort and sleep supline.

Sleeping on your back may make your apnea worse, or it may not.

If it makes your apnea worse, you may be able to compensate with more pressure.

If you can't treat your apnea as well when you sleep on your back, it's bad for you.

You might be more comfortable if you can sleep on your side and reduce your pressure.

Lazlo wrote:Indeed. Everyone here is quite correct. A person that sleeps on their back may very well have their tongue and jaw slide back into their airway with the help of gravity (not a theory). This combined with positional asphyxia can create a great deal of breathing disorders in the long term. Not just Obstructive Sleep Apnea.

-Lazlo

Which other disorders does it cause?

Positional asphyxia is something most often seen when a person is restrained (such as by police) in a position which severely restricts breathing. It can also happen if you get into a position you cannot get out of which restricts breathing. I did not find any references for positional asphyxia and OSA.

Some people have positional apnea and sleeping in a particular position makes the apnea worse. This is usually sleeping on your back. I don't believe we can make a blanket statement whether it is bad for you personally or not.

Sleeping on my back supine is DISASTROUS for me. It is beyond "bad".

Im sure there are issues of anatomy, weight, head elevation on pillow, etc. that come into play but Im a natural back sleeper from long practice. Most likely I learned to sleep on my back years ago and now my brain is trained to seek that out. If I fall asleep without my backpack on, i'll roll right onto my back and i can still have apneas WITH my cpap mask on at pressure 13.

Im curious to study more about positional asphyxia.

For a significant number of people, losing weight can have a dramatic effect.