Sleeping on your stomach?

[LuluHB]

I've read the thread about why its not good to sleep on your back, but can anyone tell me why its not good sleeping on your stomach - or is it just that as you get bigger you end up rolling all over the place like an out of control beach ball??

I've always slept sort of half on my side and half on my stomach with one knee drawn up almost to my waist (I'm sure that's perfectly clear for everybody ) but now I'm finding that gravity is taking over a bit and I'm ending up more and more on my stomach.

Is it something I should be worried about and really try hard to avoid, or is it not that bad? Lying just on my side is giving me very sore knees!!

[hannanat]

I think its fine until it's too uncomfortable

[Cherie]

I'm still sleeping on my stomach (at nearly 20wks) although it's getting less and less comfy as the days go by. I find that if I draw one knee up the side, like you Lulu, it creates a bit of extra space for my belly, but I'm still pretty much face down.

I hope it's not hurting Bean

[heather]

lulu - how you sleep is exactly how i sleep - its so comfy! As my last preg progressed i think i just naturally adjusted how i lay to protect bub. I ended up on my side with a pillow a little under my belly to support it. After having Hendy it took me ages to go back to sleeping on my belly.... then i got pregnant again so back to altering our sleep.

[Ca Plane Pour Moi]

Lulu, Heather, I sleep the same. Sort of half on my tummy, half on my side, partly curled up. I didn't realise that until the belly touched the bed, I always thought I was a side-sleeper LOL.

I still sleep like that and it's still comfortable for me to lie on my stomach, but not for too long. I couldn't sleep fully on my stomach anyway. I tend to end up on my back or on my other side, so I assume that however I go to sleep the baby will just force me to get more comfortable later in the night whatever I do!

[Danni]

thats how i used to sleep and now its getting hard! it kinda hurts after all the weight being on my tummy for so long. put a pillow under your knee which is propped up. Should give you a bit more room.

Also try a pillow under your side that has the leg propped up.

[Karina]

I sleep like that too but I now put a flat pillow under my waist/tummy area as it gives more support there for me. Its the comfiest for me! I thought it was ok to sleep on your tummy, until it just gets too uncomfortable, but I have a vague memory of being told if you can feel a huge amount of movement from baby then it means youre squashing baby and its better to move more onto your side! I have no idea how accurate that is though..

[Kazbah]

It's how I sleep too.

The GP I saw the other day said I should sleep on my left side, but I sleep on the left side of the bed (looking at it) so I'd be cuddling DP if I did that. And that's starting to get uncomfortable! So I'm staying on my right side until I need the body pillow ..

[DisGirl]

I sleep exactly the way Danni described it. One pillow under my curled up leg, one a bit under my tummy/chest. Woke up with a crook back this morning though, so I don't know if I'll be able to do it for much longer

[JenSam]

Im having the same exact problems for the past few weeks 20-24 or so...I have been putting a squishy feather pillow under my belly and in between my legs, laying on my left side most with another pillow under my head and my arm behind me in the recovery position (any other way it puts too much weight on my shoulder and my hands go numb).
This has been working for me so far without the mega body pillow becoming a fourth party in our bed!!

[expat]

Hi Lulu,

I'm at 25 weeks and I sleep in the 'recovery position' (for those who have done 1st aid) just like you. I tried experimenting with masses of pillows but found that they were always beside the bed by the time I woke up in the morning anyway and I'd be back in a ½-tummy position. The 'wisdom' says to sleep on your left side for best blood flow and luckily that's how I seem to wake up but I seem to need to spend time on my back to get all dozey before I lay on my side and go to sleep.


I think as we get bigger the whole priority is actually getting some sleep at all!!!!