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Advice & Tips for Better Sleep

Rest Easy: Why catering to your sleeping position matters

Words by  Anya Wood

October 08, 2025

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Do you think about how you sleep and the impact on your quality of sleep? And did you know that by matching a mattress to your sleeping position you’ll be directly improving that quality? It’s unlikely you stay in the same position all night, but even understanding how you go to sleep and how you wake can help you choose a mattress that will boost your wellbeing through better sleep and long-term health.


 We have years of experience in this industry. Tell us how you sleep, your worries, what literally keeps you up at night and we will suggest the ideal mattress based on these sleep habits, in a showroom environment which is peaceful, relaxed and private. There are no salespeople standing over you and we even have an area to keep the children happy while you take some time! In this post we will guide you through the most common sleeping positions, what support is required for each and how to find your ideal sleeping environment, starting with your perfect, naturally filled and pocket-sprung mattress.
Sleeping habits

 Whether you sleep on your side, back, front or a restless mixture of all three, a mattress can be chosen to support how you sleep. The ideal mattress is like a well-fitting piece of clothing – it should match your body perfectly and fit your size and shape. When we sleep, our ‘neutral spine’ should be supported as well as our joint pressure points such as shoulders, hips and knees. Support doesn’t mean keeping our bodies in a perfectly straight line - understand how this difference feels and you will see not just greater sleep quality but long term back and joint health.
  Side sleepers

 Whether a curved foetal position or a solid log style, sleeping on your side is considered a healthy sleeping position but it exerts a lot of pressure onto your shoulders and hip as you sleep; and if you are a sound sleeper you are lying that way for hours at a time. The right mattress for a side-sleeper is soft but supportive on pressure points while keeping your neutral spine aligned. You should feel like your shoulders and hips are able to sink into the ticking (the mattress surface) but you should also feel the support of the mattress – a feeling of being cushioned but lifted rather than a feeling of being pulled into the mattress. Your shoulders shouldn’t feel scrunched into your neck.
Back sleeper

 From soldiers to starfish, a back sleeping position is a common one to adopt if you are avoiding back or shoulder pain. However, many people report pain from waking up on their backs and if you have a tendency to snore or have obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) this can be a challenging position. Both of these issues can be helped with the right mattress. Despite the myth that a firm mattress is best for supporting your back, whether you experience back pain or not, the truth is that a medium to soft mattress will support the natural curvature of the lower spine and pelvis. The softer tension allows your shoulders and hips to be cushioned yet supported by the mattress, preventing your lower back to be arching out of its neutral position. Make your mattress too firm and your pelvis will push upwards and disturb the natural alignment in your spine.
Front sleeper

 Popular among children and perhaps those with a great level of flexibility, the prone, or freefall, sleeping position is one that we tend to move away from as we head through life. Front sleepers can feel very restless and move around a lot in the night subconsciously to prevent pain – this is when you know that the mattress you are sleeping on is not supporting you in the right way. We encourage customers to train themselves out of front sleeping where they can, but in the meantime a front sleeper needs a medium to firm mattress to prevent the hips sinking too far into the sleep surface and an overarched lower back, which will lead to back pain. If you tend to roll onto your back or side then it’s a safer bet to be on the more medium side of firm.

 So, however you sleep it’s important to know that one size certainly doesn’t fit all. Different sizes, shapes and sleeping habits require different support. You spend a third of your life in bed and the transformative effect of the right mattress will serve you well for life. We encourage all of our customers to take time to get their mattress right; try different tensions, build a shortlist, bring your partner if you share a bed. You can try all of the tensions we have mentioned and more – we offer split tension mattresses as a bespoke option too - in our Battersea showroom.

Call or email us to book an appointment today. If you aren’t local to our Battersea showroom you can still buy online and use our online mattress finder. Our knowledgeable staff can then help you with any questions.