People ask me on an almost daily basis whether it’s comfortable or healthy to sleep in a hammock. For all the questions I get asked directly, there are thousands more talking about it on sites like Reddit and online forums across the Internet regularly. Some are asking about using a hammock every night at home or on a long term backpacking trip while other people simply want to know whether you’ll wake up with neck and back pain if you spend too long in one or even ‘accidentally’ fall asleep. What they all have in common though is that The Sleep Question almost always seems to be asked from a skeptical standpoint, as in “You really shouldn't sleep a whole night in a hammock, right?” or “Yeah, but your back will be broken if you spend a whole night in one of these things, right?”
Guess what?
Sleeping in a hammock is good for for you, it can even help cure your insomnia, and while it’s just now beginning to gain recognition in sleep studies it’s something that people around the world have understood and embraced for centuries. Often, the first example I’ll give to people who ask about long term use of a hammock is to look at Central and South America where literally millions of people use a hammock as their bed every single night. It’s not out of necessity or poverty, it’s done because they prefer to sleep in a hammock for all the benefits it provides and in most cases grew up sleeping in a hammock since they were infants.
So, if millions of people around the world sleep in hammocks comfortably every single night and scientific studies are proving that it’s one of the healthiest ways to sleep, why do I encounter so many people who have had bad experiences trying or approach the idea of even spending too long in a hammock with skepticism?
Bad experiences in a hammock usually boil down to two things: being in a hammock that is poorly designed or simply sleeping incorrectly in the hammock. We're going to explore both of these areas over the course of the next few blog posts and whether your goal is just to learn how to rest comfortably in a hammock or to try sleeping in a hammock every night, consider this your definitive guide to making sure that you have the right hammock and the right technique to get a good and healthy rest every time.
Each part of this series will be posted as its own entry and this page will be updated to include easy links to each section. So, without further ado, let's begin:
Part I: These Aren’t The Hammocks You’re Looking For: How You’ve Been Hammock Brainwashed
Part II: The Human Waffle Effect
Part III: The Hammock Angle: How To Relax And Sleep Comfortably In A Hammock, Even If You're A Side Sleeper
Comments (48)
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[…] of course, don’t forget to read our Sleeping In A Hammock Guide for the information you need to know to sleep in a hammock comfortably, whether for a short nap or […]
I’m getting my first apartment with some friends soon. I recently realized I don’t have the money to purchase, space to set up, or ability to transport a new mattress and box spring. After that realization, I started researching alternatives to the conventional ‘mattress & box spring’ setup and I came across this article. Initially I was skeptical because… practically no one sleeps in hammocks, and everyone thinks hammocks will destroy your back. Well, I’m glad to hear that’s not true. Thanks for providing a factual and realistic look at the hammock, and not to mention a really helpful users’ guide too. Because of this article and the hammock-researching-journey it sent me on, I’ll soon be ordering a double from Trek Light.
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[…] you’ve read our post on The Hammock Angle (part of our Sleeping In A Hammock Guide) you know that you should be hanging your non-spreader bar hammock with a nice loose curve so you […]
[…] not hard to find plenty of people on the Internet who swear by hammocks. I’m just crazy enough to wonder about this. Hammocks have been used since time immemorial, […]
I recently switched from the traditional mattress and box spring sleeping platform to a beautiful brazilian style hammock for my sleeping space. I have had the best sleep of my life since switching to a hammock. I highly recommend sleeping in a hammock and can not rain enough good words about it. :) hope you enjoy any hammock experience you are able to have :)
[…] Sleeping In A Hammock: Your Complete Guide to Going From …Mar 8, 2010 … Curious about sleeping in a hammock? Read this guide to find out what you need to know to get a healthy night’s sleep in a hammock. […]
[…] crawling insects and snakes. The hammocks with wooden spreader poles commonly seen in the USA are not stable enough for sleeping. See below for some purveyors of lovely hammocks that can be used for […]