Are you one of those people who likes to read in bed? If so, you know that it can be tough to keep your neck from getting sore. Here are a few tips to help you avoid neck pain when reading in bed.
Table of Contents
Be Aware Of Your Head And Neck Position
Keep your head and neck in a neutral position as you read. Don’t crane your neck forward or tilt your head back to look at the text. This can cause pain and stiffness in your neck.
Things to Do
Here are the things you have to do to enjoy reading in bed without hurting your neck.
Choose a reading Location
Curling up with a good book before sleep can be the perfect way to unwind after a long day. However, if you’re not careful, reading in bed can actually be quite harmful for your neck.
So, choose a location on the bed that is comfortable for your neck. If you tend to slump when you read, try propping yourself up with pillows. This will help keep your spine in alignment and reduce the risk of pain or injury.
Also, do not let your head drop down towards your chest; or don’t bend your neck too much while reading.
Use A Reading Stand
If you have trouble keeping your head and neck in a good posture, try using a book stand or a book holder. This will hold the book or electronic device at eye level, which will help you avoid straining your neck muscles.
Get A Headrest
When you have trouble keeping your head up, try using a pillow or other type of headrest as you read. This will help keep your head in a comfortable position and reduce the risk of neck pain.
Take Breaks
It can be easy to hurt your neck when you’re trying to read in bed for long hours. Take breaks every 20 minutes or so to move your neck around and stretch. Move to a different reading position every once in a while.
Cautions
1. Make sure your bed is comfortable. This may seem obvious, but if your bed isn’t comfortable, you’re going to have a hard time while reading. Make sure your mattress is supportive and that you have a good pillow.
2. As already discussed, a backrest or headrest is very important. If you have trouble keeping your spine straight when reading in bed, using a backrest or headrest can help. This will help keep your spine in alignment and make reading more comfortable.
3. Keep your arms and shoulders relaxed. When you’re reading in bed, make sure your arms and shoulder muscles are relaxed. Tensing up your muscles can lead to pain and discomfort.
4. Try a different position. If you’re struggling to find a comfortable position to read in bed, try switching things up. Try lying on your side or stomach instead of your upper back.
Following these tips can help make reading in bed more comfortable and help reduce the risk of pain and discomfort.
Side effects of reading in bed for long time
There are a few side effects to reading in bed for long periods of time.
– Headache: If you keep the same posture for a long time, you might get a headache. So, read books in a proper posture.
– Dizziness: When you read in bed for a long time, you might feel dizzy because of the change in position.
– Blurred Vision: If you strain your eyes to see the text, you might experience blurred vision.
– Eye Fatigue: Reading in bed for a long time might cause fatigue in your eyes.
– Difficulty sleeping: Although reading before bed is sometimes good but reading for a long time might make it difficult for you to fall asleep.
– Back pain: Sitting or lying in the same position for a long time might cause back pain. To get pain relief from back avoid sitting for a long time.
So, to avoid these side effects, it is important to take breaks every hours or so and change your position occasionally. You can also try using a reading stand or pillow to support your head and neck.
Conclusion
Reading in bed can be a great way to relax and wind down before sleep. However, if you’re not careful, you could end up hurting your neck. So, make sure to follow the above tips to avoid neck pain.