We hear a lot about how important getting enough quality sleep is, but the way you sleep – as in where your body is – matters, too. We all have our preferred side to snooze on, but how do you sleep when you’re sharing a bed with your partner? And does it have anything to do with the way you feel about them? A study uncovers the most popular sleeping positions for couples and what they reveal about their relationships.
For the research, professor Richard Wiseman worked with 1,000 partnered people to learn about their ideal sleeping position, their personality and how satisfied they were with their relationship.
SergKovbasyuk / Depositphotos.com
- For those couples, the most popular sleeping position is back-to-back, which 42% preferred. It’s sometimes called the “cliffhanger” position, especially if they’re far apart from each other.
- Sleeping facing in the same direction, or “spooning,” comes in second with 31%, and just 4% prefer to sleep facing each other.
- The research also suggests that more extroverted people tend to sleep closer to their partners, while creative types are more likely to sleep on their left side.
- How far apart they are is also important here, and 12% of the couples spend the night less than an inch apart, while only 2% sleep more than 30 inches apart.
- Wiseman found that distance makes a big difference, as 94% of couples who spend the night in close contact with each other said they were happy in their relationship, compared to 68% of couples who don’t touch.
- And the further apart they sleep, the worse they report feeling about their relationship, as 86% of those who slept less than an inch from their partner said they were happy with their relationship, compared to only 66% of those who slept over 30 inches apart.
Wiseman notes that this is the first research to analyze couples’ sleeping positions that offers “an insight into someone’s personality and relationship by simply asking them about their favorite sleeping position.”
Source: BuzzFeed
