Sleeping Positions - Survey for All

[tides2dust]

I've been meaning to ask these questions to anyone who would like to participate. Please answer line by line.

1. How do you prefer to sleep?
a) on your back
b) on your belly
c) on your left side
d) on your right side
Other: please explain in a few sentences or less.

2. What is the fastest way for you to fall asleep?
a) on your back
b) on your belly
c) on your left side
d) on your right side
Other: please explain in a few sentences or less.

3. Which sleeping position allows you a higher success rate for astral phenomenon? (OBE's, hypnagogia, sleep paralysis)
a) on your back
b) on your belly
c) on your left side
d) on your right side
Other: please explain in a few sentences or less.

I hope my last question makes sense. Thanks to anyone who wishes to provide their answers.

[tides2dust]

I almost have to answer other for all of these...

1) I prefer to sleep on my side. This has always been most comfortable for me. I alternate sides.

2) A & Other. There's a caveat to this. When I lay on my back and clasp my hands together to pray, I quickly doze off with not much awareness/control of my thoughts just before falling asleep.

3) This one... I'm not sure. I've never taken it into account. Usually it's my left side or my back.

The reason I am asking these questions is because I think although I prefer to sleep on my side, it is less conducive to an OBE. But then again, if I lay on my back and go into prayer- I fall asleep so quickly I lose awareness of that thresh-hold, "Cross-over." I also question if it's healthy for the blood to pool in the back of the head like that when going to sleep... So I just wonder what others have noticed.

Thanks for playing. 

[LightBeam]

1. How do you prefer to sleep?
- on my right side predominantly, but I alternate with the left through the night


2. What is the fastest way for you to fall asleep?
-on my right side


3. Which sleeping position allows you a higher success rate for astral phenomenon? (OBE's, hypnagogia, sleep paralysis)
-on my right side or left. I can not sleep on my back. But my AP rate does not depend on position as I always sleep the same way. It depends on how often do I focus, use affirmations or apply AP techniques.

[omcasey]

1. How do I prefer to sleep?
-I enjoy all sleeping positions, fairly equally - slight lean toward sleeping on my back if possible.

2. What is the fastest way to fall asleep?
-hands down, on my belly.

3. Which sleeping position is the best for OBE's? ( for me this means catching the conscious shift )
-also hands down, on my back.

[Tak]

1. b. On my belly

2. c. Left side

3. a. This is where I use a trick, I have noticed that in my particular case the position influences. Ideally, sleep on your back to induce Obe/Hypnagogia. But it's hard for me to fall asleep on my back, so I lay on my side for a while and when I'm falling asleep, I return to the back position. Ideally, elevate your head a little with a pillow.

[Volgerle]

1. How do you prefer to sleep?
a) on your back
b) on your belly
c) on your left side
d) on your right side
Other: please explain in a few sentences or less.

2. What is the fastest way for you to fall asleep?
a) on your back
b) on your belly
c) on your left side
d) on your right side
Other: please explain in a few sentences or less.

3. Which sleeping position allows you a higher success rate for astral phenomenon? (OBE's, hypnagogia, sleep paralysis)
a) on your back
b) on your belly
c) on your left side
d) on your right side
Other: please explain in a few sentences or less.

I'm a notorious side sleeper. I alternate equally between left and right during the night. I think I still prefer the right side as this seems to be the one where I start lying down first.

I have no experience with the other two because I do not know how you can lie on your belly honestly while sleeping (should'nt this be harmful for the neck/nape?).
Due to jaw pain (CMD) problems I cannot lie on my back and also relaxation is more difficult for me generally in supine position (I sometimes do meditation sessions then on my back due to headphones I wear then, but it is difficult for me).

[EscapeVelocity]

1- It depends, but mostly on my back. I alternate left and right throughout the night, stretching to find a
   more comfortable position.

2- Up until about age 30, without question, the fastest and preferred position was on my belly; but breathing
   difficulties eventually precluded that option.

3- OBE success is most often on my back, both for phasing and SP induction. Left/right side offer less
   success, but often with intriguing differences in awareness and challenges. IIRC, Castaneda's Don Juan
   books encouraged left side sleeping for Dreamers.

[tides2dust]

Wow, thank you for all your replies.

It's interesting to see in the small survey here there really is no overwhelmingly obvious sleeping position for a successful OBE.

I have to explore with my self more. Laying on my back wit hands together in prayer and I lose awareness fast. But I'm not sure if that means I'm denying my self the opportunity to notice the in-between. I love your word choice Casey... "Catching the conscious shift."

Or, being conscious of the shift.
And to follow it up with LightBeams point... How often do I focus? It's a tricky situation, considering at the end of the night and after a long day of work I just want to go to bed.

When I was younger I would always notice when my talking mind would turn into a daydreaming mind. The thoughts would become less controlled just before I would enter into sleep/rest. But that doesn't mean that awareness was somehow lessened.

I think I need to return to this "beginning" and see where it takes me. Perhaps falling asleep quickly and losing awareness isn't necessarily a loss in awareness... Or to say, things don't need to be painstakingly drawn out for me to feel I am witnessing a shift. No need to control the process, but will I remain aware during?

I'm going to experiment with the sleeping positions and take note of the mind/body as it transitions from wake to sleep.

Also to my fellow side sleepers- do be careful and make sure to visit a good chiropractor every once in a while. I think after my years of side sleeping I have one slightly rolled forward shoulder as a consequence