Is sleeping on your back good or bad ???

[Wombles]

Maybe a silly question, but i have heard that laying/sleeping on your back whilst pregnant is not good for the baby ?? It can cause the umbilical cord to wrap around their neck ????

Is this true or does laying/sleeping on your back make any other difference ??? I go to sleep laying on my side, but alot of the time i will wake up laying on my back.

[FluffyLaRue]

You shouldn't lie on your back during 2nd and 3rd trimester because the weight of your uterus is too much for your inferior vena cava, which is a major blood vessel. You will slow blood flow for both yourself and baby which is why it's not such a great idea to spend a long time on your back.

[trini246]

i know i am still early in my pregnancy but i never knew that you shouldnt sleep on your back..i am alot like Wombles and i go to sleep on my side and i wake up on my back

[MantaRay]

You will slow blood flow for both yourself and baby

Actually, it's more that you MIGHT stop the blood flow, not WILL. But that is the reason. You only need to be on a slight incline to keep the pressure off your blood vessels, so I found keeping a pillow behind me worked. Then if I rolled on to my back, I wouldn't be flat on my back IYKWIM? I would be on a bit of a slant.

I had the vein block while lying on my back for a few minutes during an ob visit with one of my pgs. I suddenly felt very breathless and nauseaous, and my ob had me roll over to my side immediately. It's an awful feeling, like you are going to pass out. Having felt that I was extra careful not to sleep on my back!

[Alan]

I agree with MantaRay. It is possable to cut off the blood supply to your baby and to you by lying on your back. It will not cause the cord to wrap around bubs neck

[krysalyss]

Agree with previous posts. I had an ultrasound once and the sonographer seemed a bit naive with pregger women. He kept pushing me to stay on my back even though I was feeling awful. In the end I just rolled because I felt so awful. He didnt argue by that time as I think he was afraid I would vomit on his shoes.