Couple who regularly swap sides of the bed spark debate about sleep habits
![Many couples have set sides of the bed. [Photo: Getty]](https://s.yimg.com/ny/api/res/1.2/hxgbs3EdZsoQDv94faFqNw--/YXBwaWQ9aGlnaGxhbmRlcjt3PTEyNDI7aD02Nzc-/https://media.zenfs.com/en/homerun/feed_manager_auto_publish_494/1c2a62033fcfcdf42c2386dc8431b9b2)
If you share a bed with a partner or spouse, you likely have a set routine for bedtime.
From what time you turn the lights off to whether or not you like to spoon while sleeping, many habits are individual to the couple.
However, social media users were left outraged after one man revealed he and his partner don’t have set “sides” of the bed they share. Journalist Steve O’Rourke revealed he and his partner Amy regularly swap sides.
After talking to his colleagues, he realised it was “unusual” – and decided to share it with his Twitter followers.
READ MORE: Surprising things that are stopping you sleeping
We were just chatting in work and apparently it’s weird that Amy and I don’t sleep on the same side of the bed every night. Some nights I like to sleep by the window, some nights the door. It’s not really that unusual, is it?
— Steve O’Rourke (@steveohrourke) March 22, 2019
Elaborating on this more unusual style of sleeping, O’Rourke said the pair choose their side for the night based on whoever gets into bed first.
Feel like I need to point out the following:
1. First one in chooses
2. We’ve never disagreed over it
3. We move pillows and books as we move
4. We don’t change every single night
5. Neither of us are aliens— Steve O’Rourke (@steveohrourke) March 24, 2019
However, many people simply couldn’t get over the idea of not having a regular bed side.
READ MORE: Why ‘night owls’ struggle with working 9 to 5
This is like one of those questions they ask in Blade Runner to see if you’re a replicant or not.
Steve, I’m not sure if you and your missus are actually human. pic.twitter.com/bMI288Qkjo
— Ger (@gerdog72) March 22, 2019
I feel like this tweet is designed solely to outrage because I can’t believe it is real
— VP Dodge (@seidodge) March 22, 2019
We maintain the same side of the bed in hotels…. Also in sleeping bags in a tent.
— Denise Robertson (@fueledbybananas) March 24, 2019
Narrator: They were aliens.
— Jon Ayre (@EnterprisingA) March 24, 2019
Gosh, mind blowing stuff, I bet you hotdesk with the ease and comfort I can only dream of! I think it sounds wonderfully freeing but I’m too change resistant for it 😂#iseenoshadesofgrey
— Angela Broadbridge (@angbroadbridge) March 24, 2019
‘First one in chooses’ is possibly the most distressing part of this arrangement…imagine going to get in bed and your other half is just on YOUR side like some kind of power hungry sicko 🙀🙀🙀
— Liz Pellow (@LizPellow) March 24, 2019
This is crazy, what about phone chargers? You’d have to keep swapping them over, my other half insists his charger is better than mine and we have the same phones, I just agree with him as I get the best side of the bed .
— annie murray (@anniemucus) March 25, 2019
In all fairness, that is exactly what an alien would say.
— Jason Karsh (@jkarsh) March 24, 2019
Others said they slept on the same side every night, even if they weren’t in a couple.
I literally sleep in a double bed alone and have a side of the bed 😱😱🤯
— Stephanie Soteriou 🛸 (@StephanieRiou) March 23, 2019
I sleep on the same side of the bed all the time and I’m the only one in it! 😳
— Josephine C 🇩🇪🇪🇺 (@JosieCSapien) March 24, 2019
However, O’Rourke wasn’t without his supporters – with some fellow “side swappers” chiming in to say they agreed with his approach.
Steve, I didnt think this was a weird tweet & then I read everyone’s responses and also got self conscious. But I’m still going to admit that I too am a side switcher and so you’re not alone, friend.
— Legally W(h)ining (@WineAboutLaw) March 25, 2019
We do this! You are not alone 😂
— becca fish (@beccaFxx) March 24, 2019
Of course, some couples eschew the idea of bed “sides” altogether, with 36% of couples regularly sleeping in separate beds.
Recently, Yahoo UK spoke to a sleep expert on what your co-sleeping style says about your relationship.
