Cuddle curling with your baby is an important part of safe cosleeping, but bedsharing pain can make this season of life miserable. If you are a cosleeping mom, here are three easy stretches you can do in the morning to relieve aches and pain, after a long night of cuddle curling.
The 3 Best Stretches for Bedsharing Pain Relief
- Child’s Pose
- Figure-4
- Butterfly
Let’s look at these three stretches for easy, at-home pain relief, as well as how you can help prevent pain in the first place.
Bedsharing Pain Relief Begins With Support Pillows
If you are able to properly support you body in the cuddle curl position with pillows, you may not need to do pain relief stretches in the morning! So begin there: focus on preventing pain in the first place.
Download my free Cosleepy Pillow Guide to make sure you’re using the correct pillows on the three areas of your body that need support as bedshare in the cuddle curl position.
After you sleep in the cuddle curl position using these proper pillows for a few nights, you should see a difference in how the nights go and how you feel when you get out of bed in the morning. Many moms don’t have to do stretches at all for bedsharing pain relief because support pillows do the trick!
But if you’re using the three support pillows properly and doing everything correctly, and you’re still waking up in pain, some gentle stretches could help.
Relieve Bedsharing Pain With Stretches in the Morning
If you wake up in pain, there are easy stretches you can do in the morning to help you feel better for the rest of the day. After you have your tea or morning routine, put your baby in their bouncer or on the floor beside you for tummy time.
Press play below for a guided video that will walk you through five stretches that you can do with your baby right there, beside you.
If you don’t think you’ll have time for five stretches, I’ve narrowed down the top three. Continue scrolling for three quick, easy stretches that will help you relieve bedsharing pain.
1. Child’s Pose
Child’s Pose will help to stretch out your back and all those muscles around your hips that are probably really sore when you wake up after cuddle curling. It also helps you stretch out your shoulders after sleeping with your arms close to your body all night.
Is your baby within eyesight or in a safe place? Then let’s get started!
- Step 1: Kneel down and sit on your knees.
- Step 2: Lean forward, keeping your butt on your heels if you can.
- Step 3: Rest your forehead on the floor.
- Step 4: Inhale and exhale slowly and deeply for at least 30 seconds.
If it’s hard for you to rest your forehead on the floor — which is very common, let’s try a different way. Kneel and sit on your knees with your knees slightly apart. Lean forward, fold your arms in front of you on the floor, and rest your forehead on your arms.
2. Figure-4
The Figure-4 stretch will be easy to transition into next, since you’re already down on the floor. It will help you release tension in your hips and glutes.
Sit up from the Child’s Pose position and make sure that your baby is okay, if they’re nearby. When you’re ready to begin…
- Step 1: Lie down on your back, with your knees bent. Your feet should be flat on the floor, in line with your hips.
- Step 2: Bring your right ankle to rest on your left knee, forming a figure “4.”
- Step 3: Reach through your bent knee with your right arm, grasp the back of your left leg, and pull it forward towards your chest.
- Step 4: You should feel the stretch in your glutes. Try to keep your head and neck relaxed, and hold this position for 30 seconds.
- Step 5: Slowly move your right arm and right ankle back to the starting position.
- Step 6: Repeat with the other side.
This stretch is so easy and effective at opening up your hips. I used to do it a couple times a day, if I didn’t get the chance first thing in the morning. I liked doing it before bed, when I was watching TV with my husband as the baby slept on his chest.
Side note: In the early days, I always watched something joyful. This is not the season of life to watch slashers or true crime documentaries. When you’re newly postpartum, genre matters.
3. Butterfly
You can also do the final stretch on the floor. The Butterfly is maybe the easiest stretch in the world, and it’s very effective in relieving tightness in your hips and improving flexibility and posture.
Slowly sit up and bring your legs in front of you. Is your baby all good? Then let’s finish up!
- Step 1: Reach forward and gently pull your right foot towards your groin, bending until its sole is comfortably facing your left thigh.
- Step 2: Bend your left knee to bring your left foot towards your groin, so that its sole touches the sole of your right foot.
- Step 3: Try to keep your back straight and allow your knees to fall towards the ground. You can apply gentle pressure on the inner thigh by pressing gently on the knees with your elbows.
- Step 4: You should feel tension in the groin. Hold for 30 seconds at a time, for up to three reps.
Additional Resources for Bedsharing Pain Relief
My hope is that you can work these three stretches into your mornings because it will help. Bedsharing and cuddle curling doesn’t mean that you have to feel pain. You don’t deserve that. You deserve to be able to sleep beside your baby comfortably, so please make it a priority to feel better.
The Achy Bedsharing Mom’s Action Plan:
Begin by downloading my free Support Pillow PDF for links to my favorite cuddle curl-specific support pillows. Make sure you’re supporting your body in these three key areas for a few nights, and assess your bedsharing pain levels in the morning.
If you are still achy, watch my guided video for five bedsharing pain relief stretches you can do every day. Try to work all five (or at least the top three) into your mornings as your baby lies on the floor beside you.
If you are still uncomfortable after properly using support pillows and stretching, get my Bedsharing Beginner’s Guide (free) and my Cuddle Curl FAQ Guide ($39). These guides will arm you with all the information the world has to-date on the safety, comfort, and logistics of bedsharing in the cuddle curl position.
If you are still in pain after trying all the steps above, I’d recommend visiting a chiropractor or occupational therapist for treatment. You can lie down and show them exactly how you’re sleeping, and they can give you specific stretches and exercises to help.
Did you Enjoy My Video on Bedsharing Pain Relief?
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