Stop Blaming Your Pillow and Sleep Without Pain Using this Method

I took a class on posture about 10 years ago out of curiosity after reading this article on NPR about an Acupuncturist who traveled around the world studying areas where most of the population has NO BACK PAIN.

She herself had 2 back surgeries, and still had back pain.

Certain parts of the world, namely, “3rd world countries,” back pain is not nearly as common as it is in the States and other “developed” countries. This Acupuncturist, Esther Gokhale, set out to study why.

What she found is that the people’s posture in these regions is regal. It reminded her of those old Leonardo Di Vinci sketches of the human body, or like Egyptian statues. Their chests are open and shoulders are down and back – better to make room for your lungs. Their feet and legs have energy and muscle tone – so the hips can stay flexible. And most importantly, the spine is NOT an S-shape. It’s a J-shape.

After she finessed her own J-shaped spine, her back pain went away. And she’s helped thousands of people around the world get out of severe, crippling back pain too. And knee pain. And hip pain. And bursitis. And bone spurs. And plantar faciitis. Etc.

You can get all the Acupuncture, massages, and chiropractic adjustments in the world, but if your muscles are straining to hold an unhealthy, unnatural position, the pain is not going to permanently change.

Ideally, you want the naturally stronger muscles (the lower traps, the serratus, the glutes, etc.) to do the work they’re designed for, and the other muscles (the SCM / jaw, levator scapulae, the back muscles) to be relaxed until it’s time for them to do their very limited, very specific jobs.

Good posture goes far beyond “sit up straight.” That’s actually terrible advice, Esther states.

When most people “sit up straight,” they end up tensing their back. When the back muscles are working harder than they’re supposed to, you get tired, then go right back to slumping, which is also not good. And repeat.

Esther trains people on how to engage and use the correct posture muscles.

You need them when you’re sitting, of course. I love that her philosophy on sitting is that it’s NOT bad. We have to sit sometimes! As long as you’re using the correct sitting muscles (aka, the glutes and core, and not the spine itself), it shouldn’t be a problem.

You also need good posture for walking, running, and all the sports. If you have pain when you stand or walk, that’s a sign you’re probably engaging the wrong muscles or not engaging the right ones (glutes again!).

Then there’s sleeping posture.

I hear all the time – it’s my pillow; it’s my mattress; I’m a side-sleeper …

And maybe those are issues, but also, getting the right alignment before you fall asleep can be a real game-changer.

You can be a side-sleeper, front-sleeper, or on your back. It doesn’t matter! Personally, I do a side/front combo thing. There are posture tips for all of them.

(top and bottom photos courtesy of the Gokhale Method)

What you’ll notice in these photos, the back and neck are aligned, preserving the curve at S1-L5 (that’s where the “J” happens). Kids, especially babies, have naturally good posture. The more “old fashioned” ways of carrying babies, like slings, preserve that oh, so important J-shaped spine.

Until we ruin it by sticking them in various carrying buckets all day long, leading to eventual curving of the spine… This picture below makes me cringe, but also, I’d be lying if I said my kids didn’t end up like this at some point in their car seats.

If you have back, neck, hip, or shoulder pain and haven’t checked out the Gokhale Method yet, here’s the link to check out upcoming free workshops.