Sleeping on your Back

**m2244** · 01-31-2017, 07:29

Hello,

I'm new to the idea of hammocks and from what I've heard there is really only one drawback to using them that concerns me, side sleeping. It looks like the only option for hammock use is on your back due to the curved shape.

Has this been a real issue for anyone here?

Any tips for being comfortable in a hammock.

**Billy Goat** · 01-31-2017, 08:05

A long hammock (10-12 feet, 11 being most common) will help get a diagonal and flat lay. Side sleeping isn't usually terrible in a gathered end hammock. Honestly, putting on a good whiskey drunk if car camping will help the first few times. Big miles if hiking will put you right out in a hammock. A lot of people, myself included, here are side or stomach sleepers but have no issue sleeping on their backs in a hammock. I usually wind up falling asleep on my back and wake up tilted at around a 45-60 degree angle. Not quite on my side, not quite on my back. It can take a little getting used to but it's totally worth it. I snore like a demon sleeping on my back, though.

Cheers,
the Goat

**TrailSlug** · 01-31-2017, 08:13

Welcome to Hammock Forms M2244. I had the same concerns as I can not sleep on my back due issues from back sugery years ago. I tried a Warbonnet Blackbird XLC and while I could lay on my side I felt like I was fighting the hammock to stay on my side. I then tried the Warbonnet Ridgerunner hammock and it's great. I sleep very well on my sides and I can even spend a bit of time on my back and not feel any shoulder squeeze. The only time I now use a gathered end hammock is when the wife goes with me and see takes my Ridgerunner.

**coughing owl** · 01-31-2017, 08:18

Laying on ones back is not the only option. I am a side sleeper mostly but I find the comfort of a hammock unrivaled. That being said, there is no problem for me to sleep on my side in a hammock. The most important factor to achieve maximum comfort is to have enough sag in the hammock to allow a "diagonal lay". Either with your head to the left side of the hammock and your feet toward the right, or opposite is how to get the most flat lay. Trying to sleep directly in the center of the hammock will force you into the dreaded banana shape. Correct amount of sag and the diagonal lay are where the greatest comfort comes from. The longer the hammock also seems to work well for me. Hope this helps. There are excellent videos on youtube concerning all things hammock related by Shug, well worth checking out.

**jellyfish** · 01-31-2017, 08:55

I side sleep comfortably in my gathered end hammock with an 83% ridgeline. Get your sag the way you want it, and you are practically flat, making side sleeping quite comfortable.

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**m2244** · 01-31-2017, 09:54

Thanks for the welcome and the info. This is exactly what I needed to hear.

**Latherdome** · 01-31-2017, 11:04

On beds I used to sleep mostly side and stomach, some back, pretty much continuously tossing and turning. In a hammock (full time 4 years now) I sleep 90% back and 10% sides (fetal position). I often wake up in apparently the same position I fell asleep! SO MUCH BETTER!

**jewelbug** · 01-31-2017, 11:09

I always sleep on my side, whether in a regular bed or in my hammock. I have a gathered end with an 85% ridge line, always sleep well as long as I'm warm enough!

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**cougarmeat** · 01-31-2017, 14:14

I might start on my back, but by morning all my muscles have relaxed and I can be curled up in a fetal position all cozy and warm. The sleep position doesn't matter, the sleep quality does. So don't judge your hammock position by your bed experience. A lot of people say have have to toss and turn because that's what they do in a bed. That's wrong. They are usually moving in a bed because of the pressure points that develop. Those pressure points are not there in a hammock (there might be others - like calf ridge - if you are not set up properly) so you don't need to model your bed sleeping behavior.

**Country Roads** · 01-31-2017, 14:24

I am a side sleeper and rarely sleep on my back. I have never had an issue side sleeping in a gathered end hammock. Side sleeping actually helps to flatten the lay nicely. Often I curl up in a little ball to sleep. I have found that I rarely move much in the night in my hammock. In a bed, I toss and turn most of the night.