In my teens I accidentally discovered a preference for sleeping on the floor, having carpet as a ground barrier, and blankets or a sleeping bag for warmth, pillow for my head. At the time I just wanted more space for computers in my small bedroom, so I got rid of my bed.
When I moved into a larger space, the default was to get a normal western style bed. I did this but my back and neck would randomly hurt like never before. It appeared to clearly be correlated with the switch to sleeping on a deformable surface.
So I got rid of the mattress and resumed sleeping on the floor. Now, ~20 years later, I still sleep on the floor and never have neck/back pain. Except for when I stay in hotels, where floors are exceptionally dirty, in those situations I often wake up with a stiff neck and/or back after sleeping on the bed.
It's worth noting that other cultures don't use the squishy mattresses either, I'm not off the map breaking new ground here.
If you suffer from back problems, I think it's reasonable to try adapting to sleeping on the floor. If it's too low-brow for you, you can spend money on japanese-style tatami mats - you can even get stylish bed frames for them.
I did this recently when I was renovating our new house and we hadn't moved our furniture in. Yoga mat and thin duvet as a mattress. Had a bit of pain (but good kind of pain) first night, but noticed my back pain which I've had for years had mostly gone after a couple of days.
I found my muscles kind of sore though after every night, I guess they get squashed a lot more than with a normal bed. I think a thin/hard mattress would probably be a good middle ground.
In what position do you sleep? On your back or on your side?
I have extreme problems with sleeping on my side without a matress, even on just a camping foam mat for a few days. I regularly have the problem with camping trips which last longer then 4 nights, when both sides are just no longer an option
The piece of my hip which directly pushes onto the ground when sleeping on my side is the point which doesnt let me sleep on my side for a few days on the ground, no matter the angle. I think someone else in this thread is right, and it is a matter of missing muscles/fat/skin in that area. I do remember that as a youth i didnt have the problem when camping, but after all that was only for a night or two back then.
Did anyone try to go back after sleeping on an extremely soft mattress after 30 years here? How long did it take for you to adjust? I do even bring my own pillow into the hotel after spending a few sleepless nights, so i might be an extremely bad example of a creature of habit, but on the ground, it was actually painful and not just a matter of it being unfamiliar.
Yeah I imagine that's to be expected, since you're not accustomed to having the pressure of your weight focused on few points.
I'm desensitized in those spots, presumably it'd fade if you persisted.
If the pain was more on the interior, like your spine or something, I'd be more concerned. (which is where my pains develop when sleeping on a bed, where I refuse to ignore them)
>Yeah I imagine that's to be expected, since you're not accustomed to having the pressure of your weight focused on few points.
>I'm desensitized in those spots, presumably it'd fade if you persisted.
Yes, i assume so. Then again, i would be interested if anyone changed habit in that stage of life without enduring that kind of back pain? I dont have any motivation to make myself sleep without a pillow after all.
Do you use buckwheat pillows or anything like that, or just regular ones?
I'm going to try this. I had a tatami for a while, but maybe not long enough to give it a real try. I had a lot of stress at the time which I think added to back/neck pain.
It just has to support my head at the right height, as set by my shoulder size when sleeping on my side. If it's too small or squishy then my head will droop too low and cause neck strain.
When camping I'll just use my backpack with a hoody thrown across it to soften the zippers etc. All that matters to me is the resting head height... I don't think the composition is important.
A pain in the small of my back went away after I started sleeping on a hard floor with a thin mattress-pad underneath. The discomfort was brutal the first week though.
I still love using my big squishy pillow tho, because I like sleeping on my side.
I know that sleeping without a pillow has to be good for me... 2 million years of homo-noid evolution without pillows is all the facts I need.
However, the most I'm able to go without a pillow is 2 nights. I have such terrible sleep, that I give in and use a pillow the 3rd night.
Without a pillow I find I can't sleep on my side (which I love doing), and if I'm sleeping on my stomach then there's too much pressure on whichever face-cheek faces down, causing mild bruising.
I'm sure early humans were at least as capable at making beds, and could make something that functioned as a pillow, or at least gave some neck support, if that was comfortable.
(To be clear, I know absolutely nothing about how early humans slept. I just suspect that you don't either.)
Not really, I use them mostly to support my head in side sleeping. Occasionally I'll use a folded arm instead, but that's uncommon.
Congrats on getting past the acclimation period, it seems obviously better for your back.
How has it affected your personal life? The last woman I dated was deeply offended by my disinterest in sharing her bed and insistence on sleeping on the floor after our first few overnights. This aspect of the practice seems the most problematic, it's had me consider moving to Japan.
I could never go back to sleeping on a thick mattress. I used to do 10" of foam, on a 10" box spring. Never again.
The mattress-pad I use is 4mm of sponge. I use it to help with air-flow under my body. I think I'm eventually going to wean myself off it and sleep on a sheet on a wooden floor (or perhaps a tatami mat type thing).
It helps a lot that I don't have a "steady" love-life. I keep a bed in a guest-bedroom for the dalliances though. Nobody else I've met in real life so far agrees with the concept of sleeping without a mattress. Pity (for them).
Look into orthopedic pillows: a good pillow is supposed to support your neck when you're on the back or your whole head when you're on a side when the shoulders are in the way. (Not sure about sleeping on the stomach, though.)
Evolution is a game of trade-offs and compromises, you know.
When I moved into a larger space, the default was to get a normal western style bed. I did this but my back and neck would randomly hurt like never before. It appeared to clearly be correlated with the switch to sleeping on a deformable surface.
So I got rid of the mattress and resumed sleeping on the floor. Now, ~20 years later, I still sleep on the floor and never have neck/back pain. Except for when I stay in hotels, where floors are exceptionally dirty, in those situations I often wake up with a stiff neck and/or back after sleeping on the bed.
It's worth noting that other cultures don't use the squishy mattresses either, I'm not off the map breaking new ground here.
If you suffer from back problems, I think it's reasonable to try adapting to sleeping on the floor. If it's too low-brow for you, you can spend money on japanese-style tatami mats - you can even get stylish bed frames for them.