Science Journal

Do Sleeping on the back cause nightmares?

Every time I woke up suddenly by my horrible nightmare, I noticed myself I am sleeping on my back. One time, I experienced sleep paralysis. I cannot move my body. I want to scream but I can't as if something is covering my mouth. Unfortunately, I did not see any evil entities or ghosts which might be a good story to share to my fellow friends. In my life in social media, after watching a video about 'What is the best position to sleep?' I read the comments below. Someone commented that he was disappointed because he was expecting the host to talk about the relationship between sleeping on the back and nightmares, which turned on my curiosity to search about it. My curiosity motivated me to open a lot of reliable sites explaining the science behind the nightmare-inducing sleep position. The answers were mind-boggling but did not satisfy me because it seems improbable.

Sleep positions affect how a person dreams. Different sleep positions create pressure to certain areas in the body. The physical sensations of the body are sometimes the source of dream elements. The population of stomach sleepers is small but their position is unhealthy. However, they have the best REM sleep moments. They are dreaming of an intense, vivid and sexual with a stranger, or their loved one or a celebrity. According to the expert in dreams, the physical pressure on the body is the culprit of creating erotic dreams. Also, it put a strain on their spine and neck leading to unsatisfied rest and soreness. But However, they might not notice the physical consequences because they seem happy and feel rejuvenated thanks to their gratifying dreams. But some of the students who tried sleeping on their stomach from a conducted experiment reported dreams of incapable of moving, locked or tied up. But if you are convinced to try doing this position because of its wonderful benefits. I won't judge. ;)

Sleeping laterally in a fetal position is the most common sleep position. Studies have found that right-sider sleepers experienced more positive dreams than their counterpart, left-sider sleepers. Which seems strange because I learned before that sleeping on your left side is healthier because the stomach is on the left side of the body and gravity helps the digestion, reducing the possibility of having nightmares or interruption at night. However, this is true for people with heartburn or GERD (gastroesophageal reflux disease). They are recommended by doctors to sleep on their left side. Sleeping on the right side aggravates heartburn, while on the left side calms it. Like the picture depicted below:

But sleeping only on a left side puts a strain on internal organs such as liver, lungs, and stomach but reduces acid reflux. So, it is better to switch sides frequently. And though left-side sleepers have more nightmares, they actually sleep better and more well-rested than right-side sleepers. So, what I've said before, better switch sides frequently to attain perfect satisfaction. Happier and fully rejuvenated in the morning.

Lastly but not the least, to answer the question raised above, I found that sleeping on your back leads to snoring and sleep apnea. Sleep apnea is like advertisements. It interrupts the person's dream. The dreamer's breathing is interrupted during sleep repeatedly, sometimes a hundred times. It impairs that person to reach the deep, sweet, restful phases of sleep due to airway blockage or the brain forgets to signal the muscles to breathe. And when the brain is deprived of oxygen it induces nightmares to wake you up to breathe again and enough to remember the horrific moment of speaking in public naked.