Lying on back in pregnancy

[Sebinta]

I know the guidance is that you shouldn’t sleep on your back in pregnancy but I’m wondering about lying or lounging on your back?

I’m 18 weeks and still suffering terribly with nausea and am very drowsy as a side effect to my medication. When I’m not working, I spend a lot of time lying on the sofa (sitting sort of up right with my legs on the recliner). Should this be avoided? Or is it only sleeping on your back that you shouldn’t do?

I think if you’re propped up a bit then it’s OK for a while. Being flat on your back is where there’s a risk. Maybe just keep yourself propped up with some extra cushions or try to move onto your side slightly.

It’s to do with whether you’re compressing the blood vessel that takes blood to your uterus - being propped up helps avoid that. It’s basically because when you’re on your back, the weight of the baby squishes the blood vessel. The NHS website says this is a risk from week 28, but some others say from second trimester. I guess just be as propped up as you can.

As long as you’re not flat it’s ok, I used to keep a pillow under the right side of my back so I was tilted towards the left slightly to keep pressure off the blood vessel. Also only need to do it in the last trimester. Once in third trimester you really want to avoid slouching back with your feet up as much as possible anyway as it can make baby more likely to move into a breech position.