Sleeping in a Hammock

I saw a picture on a web site this morning that got me thinking about hammocks. I have never been able to get comfortable enough in a hammock to sleep. There's just something about the forced curvature of my spine that feels wrong; I need to be lying flat to sleep. Yet for a long time people apparently have been sleeping well in hammocks, while camping, on old-time sailing ships, or just in everyday life in a village somewhere. I looked up 'hammock' on Wikipedia, and the information was kind of interesting.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hammock

This led me to thoughts about how I sleep now compared to my sleeping positions in the past. When I was a child I always slept lying on my right side, with my legs curled up partially. I don't know why - it just felt like the right way to do it at the time. Then in college I slept on my stomach, always with my head turned to the left; for some reason if I turned it to the right, my nose would get very congested. And now, for at least the last few decades, I have slept primarily on my back. Maybe it all has something to do with my aging vertebrae and the changes in bone mobility due to calcium deposits. Or maybe I'm just more 'open to life' now that I no longer sweat the small stuff so much - and now that I have the leisure time to wonder about useless topics like this...

John, I think if someone gets tired enough they can sleep on anything, even a hammock. They might not like it so much after waking up though. I'm with you, I could never get comfy enough to sleep on one ordinarily. I have yet to try exhaustion and have one nearby. I know in the military I could sleep anywhere, anytime. I once shared a foxhole at near freezing temps'. It was raining and our shelter was leaking, drip, drip, on my neck and it was my turn to sleep. I slapped a hand over my neck to "take" the dripping and I slept solidly for my 2 hours. Anywhere, anytime, that's just one of the very many instances such as that. Have an hour on the side of the road waiting for a troop transport? Out like a light. Sitting on a plane crammed in like sardines with 150# of gear lashed to me while it's flying us to the DZ? Out like a light. Yeah, I probably could have slept in a hammock back then.

I think you hit the nail on the head by suggesting age as a factor in sleeping positions.

Interesting post John. I love the thought of a hammock but like you. Find them less desirable than what they originally appeared. Great to lounge in. Crappy for sleeping. I have a bow hunting buddy that carries a lightweight hammock and uses it for our midday nap time. I still kick a hip hole and sleep in the dirt.

I love a good hammock and currently have a 2 person one set up next to my koi pond. Dozed off in it plenty of times lol. That being said I can sleep on rock if the situation calls for it. I'm not picky!