Why Does My Hip Hurt When I Wake Up

Waking up with sore hips starts your day off on a negative note, and the pain can persist for longer than just the morning. Unfortunately, morning hip pain is a common problem for older and active adults. But luckily, you can mitigate this pain and wake up feeling fresh rather than sore.

In this blog, we’ll examine what causes severe hip pain in the morning and offer solutions you can try at home to eliminate the problem. Keep reading to improve your a.m. routine today.

Why Your Hip Hurts In The Morning

If you’re noticing hip pain in the morning after sleeping, your first thought is likely, “What’s causing this?”

There are a few common causes of sore hips in the morning. Here are some of the main issues adults face:

Osteoarthritis — Osteoarthritis is the most common type of arthritis that affects the hip. The pain from this problem is usually caused by ageing-related wear and tear, which leads to the cartilage breaking down and becoming inflamed (Johns Hopkins Medicine, 2022).
Bursitis – Bursitis is when your hips' bursae (small fluid-filled sacs) become inflamed. This is often caused by overuse of the hip joints through activity.
Sciatica — Sciatica can cause lower back pain that runs through the hips, buttocks, and down one leg. It can be caused by a herniated disc, spondylolisthesis, spinal stenosis, or other conditions (Cleveland Clinic, 2023).
Tendonitis — Tendonitis occurs when the tendons in your hip become damaged and inflamed. This is due to overuse or putting too much weight on your hip.
Tight muscles —Tight hip muscles can also cause hip pain. This condition usually occurs because of a sedentary lifestyle.

The Influence of Sleep Position On Hips

While various conditions can contribute to morning hip pain, it's crucial to recognise that your sleeping position can also play a significant role in causing or worsening these issues.

If your sleeping position puts too much pressure on your hips or twists them, it can exacerbate the pain and make your hips feel worse when you wake up. Sleeping in an unhealthy position every night can lead to worsening hip problems and a decrease in sleep quality.

Some sleep positions are harder on your hips than others. For example, sleeping on the side of the painful hip will put more pressure on it and be more painful. In this case, sleeping on the non-painful hip is a better idea.

Stomach sleeping can also put extra pressure on your hips. Instead, you should try sleeping on your back. Back sleeping evenly distributes your weight and ensures your torso and hips aren’t twisted awkwardly throughout the night.

So, for a better night of sleep, focus on keeping your arms, legs, and torso straight, and avoid putting excess pressure on the affected hip.

Choosing The Right Pillows & Mattress To Manage Hip Pain

Alongside prioritising safe sleeping positions, you can adopt specialised pillows and mattresses to lessen hip pain.

Memory foam mattresses and pillows improve column alignment, sleep quality, and pressure distribution while you sleep (Caggiaria et al., 2021). This leads to more comfort throughout the night and in the morning, less aggravation of pre-existing conditions, and higher-quality rest.

Depending on your sleeping position, there are different sleep aids you can try.

Full body pillows (like The Groove Body Pillow) are designed to provide complete support for side sleepers and knee support for back sleepers. These are made with memory foam to relieve pain and pressure from your muscles and joints. You can even adjust the firmness in some cases to guarantee personal comfort.

You can also explore memory foam pillows under your head and neck (like The Original Groove). These don’t touch your hips but promote neck support and healthy sleep postures, reducing hip pain as you’re not twisted or putting extra pressure on your hip.

Memory foam mattresses are another excellent way to reduce hip pain, as these mattresses reduce pressure point problems and correct poor sleeping posture (which can cause hip pain).

Prevention and Management Tips

In addition to managing pain with supportive pillows and memory foam sleep aids, you can actively prevent pain through lifestyle change management strategies.

Here are some reliable ways you can prevent and manage hip pain:

Maintaining a healthy weight — Excess weight can put more stress on joints and your hips (Harvard Health Publishing, 2019). Maintaining a healthy weight can help to reduce stress and strain.
Staying active — Regular exercise can prevent hip pain and improve your overall health and strength. Pilates and yoga are especially effective for preventing hip pain.
Avoid high-impact exercises — Running and step aerobics are workouts that can exaggerate hip pain.
Special exercises — Special hip-strengthening exercises (e.g., hip and pelvis stretches) can strengthen the area. However, it’s best to work with a physical therapist to ensure the correct form.
Anti-inflammatory diet — If you have osteoarthritis, adopting an anti-inflammatory diet with lots of omega-3s and antioxidants can reduce overall hip irritation.

When to Seek Medical Help

You should contact your GP or healthcare provider if your hip pain is disturbing your sleep or worsening. Disturbed sleep can affect your physical and mental health, and hip pain that doesn’t get better can be a sign of an underlying condition.

Depending on the condition, your doctor may recommend further tests, physiotherapy, medication, or surgery.

If your pain is accompanied by a deformed joint, signs of an infection (chills, fever, and redness), sudden swelling, or a loss of mobility, you must go to A&E as soon as possible.

Severe Hip Pain in the Morning – the Conclusion

Waking up with sore hips is never pleasant, but you can manage and prevent the pain at home in many ways. If the pain continues after using these strategies, you must consult a doctor to find the underlying causes to effectively treat the problem.

Start managing your morning hip pain now. See the Groove Pillow memory foam range online here. Or jump to our blog.

References

Caggiari, G., Talesa, G.R., Toro, G., Jannelli, E., Monteleone, G. and Puddu, L. (2021). What type of mattress should be chosen to avoid back pain and improve sleep quality? Review of the literature. Journal of Orthopaedics and Traumatology, 22(1). doi:https://doi.org/10.1186/s10195-021-00616-5.
Cleveland Clinic (2023). Sciatica & Leg Pain | Cleveland Clinic. [online] Cleveland Clinic. Available at: https://my.clevelandclinic.org/health/diseases/12792-sciatica.
‌Harvard Health Publishing (2019). Why weight matters when it comes to joint pain - Harvard Health. [online] Harvard Health. Available at: https://www.health.harvard.edu/pain/why-weight-matters-when-it-comes-to-joint-pain.

Johns Hopkins Medicine (2022). Hip Arthritis. [online] www.hopkinsmedicine.org. Available at: https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/conditions-and-diseases/hip-arthritis.