Hips hurt when sleeping

[ella78]

Does anyone else have problems with their hips while sleeping?  I can't seem to find a way to not wake up in a lot of pain.  I flip from side to side throughout the night and use pillows, but I just can't seem to figure out how to take the pressure off my hips.

[Heather Lyn]

Mine are in a lot of pain, too, and I wake up early in the morning with deep "growing pain" type aches in my hips and upper legs.  But the body-length pregnancy pillow I just got has been helping......  Maybe try one if you're not already? 

[Ms. B. Sprout]

I would suggest pelvis-stretching exercises like pelvic tilts and hamstring stretches, twice a day (like the last three stretches listed here). Chiro can also help.

I've been stretching faithfully every day since 13 weeks, and this has been my most pain-free pg. I think it makes a real difference.

[time4latte]

I just brought this issue up to my midwife at my last prenatal. Having two pillows between my legs at night is a huge help. She also suggested 1000 - 2000 mg of magnesium to be taken in addition to my regular prenatal and making sure to do stretches. It's from being in one position for too long. I knew she was right about that because when I actually get a nap I don't have any of the hip pain. I've also made sure to support my belly with my hand when ever I roll over. That seems to have helped too.

[Thing1Thing2]

I do get hip pain as well, and have to roll over to get the pressure off my hips. It's hard because I'm not usually a side sleeper plus the fact that our mattress is on the floor. There is some good advice here!

[youngsoul]

ooh, i'll try those pelvic exercises...i have the same problem and it's been somewhat alleviated by putting a pillow between my legs (running the whole length of the legs, to the ankles - a king-sized pillow) but it's still there. i roll over onto my back for a while to relieve the pain - i know we're not supposed to sleep on our back at this point but man, i really need to sometimes...

[scsigrl]

I am with you all.  I have been doing the pillow mountain, chiro (who makes me CRY every time I have gone so far) and ice.  Nothing is helping :(  I am stretching too but it's just not working.  :(

[purplerose]

When using the pillows make sure it's spreading your legs apart...use a thick pillow or two. Body length is best, so that your legs are kept apart all the way down to your feet. Try keeping your legs even with each other if you're not already, and if that doesn't work try keeping the bottom leg straight and the top leg bent on top of your thick pillows. I have found it's important to keep the whole leg, down to the feet, on pillow, not just between my knees. Crotch to feet...

[Mommel]

Someone posted this video demonstration a few months back of how to arrange your pillows to relieve hip pressure. This really worked for me and I still use it to great effect:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TDTbi4Xb5ec&feature=player_embedded

[Thing1Thing2]

Great video! I'm going to try that tonight! Hopefully DS sleeps so I can try it.

[dramamamax4]

I can find a bit of relief when I prop my body pillow up under my opposite hip/back/bootie and slightly roll over. The body pillow keeps me from rolling onto my back.

[Lexi_029]

I second the cal/mag and body pillows. I still flip around and have hip pain but it helps.

[Smurfy]

This is the video that helped me.  I had the same problem with my first pregnancy and this time it's even worse, feels like someone drove a nail into my hips during the night.  I tried this and it helped, but it's a lot of pillows and I found rolling over impossible, not to mention the frequent bathroom trips and the pillows made me a bit hot.  So I altered it a lot.  Of course one pillow for your head but then I just take a single pillow, fold it in half and put it under my top leg.  I find it works much better to get the top leg bent at a 90 degree angle out away from the other leg like in the video, not directly on top of your bottom leg, try to get your hips squared, not rolled.  Then I just have a mini pillow that I kind of hug and use to rest my belly on, but that's not as much a problem for me.  My midwives also recommend taking Lecithin for this, start with two a day and increase by two per day as needed.

 

Originally Posted by Mommel 

Someone posted this video demonstration a few months back of how to arrange your pillows to relieve hip pressure. This really worked for me and I still use it to great effect:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TDTbi4Xb5ec&feature=player_embedded

[purplerose]

Lecithin is what's in eggs that's supposed to help with sympathsis pubis pain. I read to eat eggs everyday to help prevent it.

[She2dancer]

I have this hip pain too :(  Though I find that when I put a pillow under my belly to support the bump, the pain in my hips and back is better (a body pillow between the legs helps too)...getting close though..not too much longer :)

[wombatclay]

I was trying to build a pillow nest but finally gave up and got a pregnancy pillow... sort of a big "C" shape.  I sort of wrap it around myself so it holds my legs in alignment but also supports my lower back.  I'm no longer laying right "on" my hip and I think that is what did the trick.

I've belly danced for years and pelvic tilts are a wonderful thing.  Also hip circles and figure eights (links go to video how-tos, and this instructor shows both types of figure eights in the one video even though the focus is on the up/down variety... one extra comment though, the goal is to isolate your pelvis from your rib cage so that your hip circle isn't "mirrored" by your rib cage doing it's own circle.  :)  If you visualize your pelvis as a "bowl", the goal is to slide it gently and not "spill" anything by tipping the pelvis one way or the other).

So, imagining that your pelvis is a "bowl" and you want to avoid tipping/spilling the pelvis:

hip circle- It's kind of the "hoola hoop" move.  You push your pelvis out to the front, then push the right hip to the right, then the whole pelvis to the back, then the left hip to the left, and finally the whole thing back to the front.  If you smooth out those 4 points you'll find that you're using your pelvis to draw a circle with your body at the center.  Try to keep your rib cage still and lifted... you just want the stretch in your sides and pelvic area.

the up/down figure eight- lift your right hip up towards your right shoulder, push it out to the right and lower it towards the ground, then shift your weight to your right foot and lift your left hip towards your left shoulder before pushing out to the left and dropping that hip to the ground.  Basically, if someone is facing you they'd see your hips drawing the number eight on it's side (the "lazy eight" or moibus strip).

the front/back figure eight- again your hips are drawing a figure eight, but this time the viewer would have to be floating in the air above your head to see the eight.  If your body is at the center of a clock face, you'd push your right hip forward to 2, draw it around the clock face to 5, slide your pelvis so that your left hip is now hitting the 11 and use that left hip to draw a sweeping curve along the clock face down to the 6.

These moves are also good during labor... one possible origin for belly dance is that it comes from "birth dances", movements that help a woman give birth more easily.  I've always found that belly dance feels good during labor and it's a good way to maneuver a babe into a new position.  And after birth, belly dance not only helps restore muscle control in the pelvic area, it can help your body body heal if you've suffered physical trauma (episiotomy, tear, cesarean, etc) since it gently increases blood flow, reduces adhesion formation, and reminds your body that it "has" a pelvic area.

[time4latte]

Originally Posted by wombatclay 

These moves are also good during labor... one possible origin for belly dance is that it comes from "birth dances", movements that help a woman give birth more easily.  I've always found that belly dance feels good during labor and it's a good way to maneuver a babe into a new position.  And after birth, belly dance not only helps restore muscle control in the pelvic area, it can help your body body heal if you've suffered physical trauma (episiotomy, tear, cesarean, etc) since it gently increases blood flow, reduces adhesion formation, and reminds your body that it "has" a pelvic area.

I took two community based belly dancing classes before my first was born. I loved doing the hip circles in the early stages of active labor!  I found the movements calming and graceful. They even allowed me to focus on working with my baby towards getting into position for delivery after AROM. My husband even took a short video clip of me doing this in the hospital hallway. When I view it I think my form was really good, even though it didn't seem like it at the time.  I am planning on doing some more belly dancing again this time around ... speaking of which I need to find some music I can practice to in the mean time.

[~~Sarah~~]

Sleep sitting up.

[Earthylady]

Originally Posted by ~~Sarah~~ 

Sleep sitting up.

I wouldn't recommend this one. Being in a recline position encourages a baby into poor positioning of posterior or breech presentation.