Advertisement

This is a paid advertisement. The information below is general and is for educational purposes only. It is not medical advice, it does not diagnose any condition, and it does not recommend any treatment.

Health & Wellbeing

Why the Lower Back Can Feel Worse in the Morning Than at Night

A general look at what researchers have studied about sleep posture, the lower spine, and the simple idea of supporting it.

By the Wellbeing Desk · General information ·

If you wake stiffer than you felt when you went to bed, you are not alone. For many adults the lower back feels at its most tender in the first hour of the day, then loosens as the morning goes on.

That timing puzzles a lot of people. If daily activity were the only factor, the morning would be the easy part of the day rather than the hardest.

Readers who deal with lower back discomfort, including the kind that some describe as radiating, often ask the same question about the hours they spend asleep.

A simple idea about the night

Researchers have studied for many years how body position changes the load placed on the lower spine. Measurements gathered over decades indicate that this load shifts depending on whether a person sits, stands or lies down.

Work associated with research groups in Copenhagen has looked more closely at the hours spent lying still. The lower back is the stretch of spine between the ribs and the hips, and on a soft surface it can lose much of its natural support. 

A term some people use for the pattern

A few writers use a descriptive label for this idea, Nocturnal Spinal Compression. It is shorthand for a simple notion and is not a formal medical diagnosis.

The thought is that a region left without support through a long night may settle into a posture that researchers continue to study. The science here is ongoing rather than settled. 

Where support fits in

If the idea holds, the question that follows is an ordinary one. It is simply about how the lower back is supported while a person sleeps.

Many people experiment with placing a small cushion under the lower back, in the space between the ribs and the hips, never under the seat.

About the cushion mentioned here

The support referred to in this article is a lumbar cushion. It is a comfort and positioning aid, shaped to rest under the lower back, and nothing further is claimed for it.

Whether any approach suits you is a personal matter. Anyone with a diagnosed condition, or with new or worsening symptoms, should speak with their own clinician before changing anything.

If you would like to read more about the research on sleep posture and how the cushion is positioned, it is gathered in one place.

Read the research