Long time lurker, new poster... Mid/Upper back pain with latex, need suggestions...
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I have searched the forums without much luck, so I am posting my question here. About a year ago we purchased a split king from SleepEZ. My side has a Talalay soft layer and Dunlop medium and firm layers. When I sleep on the mattress my mid to upper back gets so painful that it wakes me in the night and it tends to be painful the entire next day. I have tried all possible combinations and permutations of the layers with little relief. (I have the same problem on my wifes side of the bed) I have tried thick pillows, soft pillows, two pillows etc. I have also tried different toppers I do tend to end up on my side, occasionally on my stomach... I sleep fine on the guest room traditional mattress or in a recliner. We are going to have to get rid of the bed if we cannot come up with a solution... Any thoughts? Thanks jms This message was modified Feb 26, 2010 by jms969
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Re: Long time lurker, new poster... Mid/Upper back pain with latex, need suggestions...
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Mike: when I first started looking at latex I was convinced in my own mind that I would probably prefer Dunlop to Talalay. I even went out of state to try a Dunlop bed as there was no dealerships where I live. As you might imagine just laying down on a mattress even for an hour or so, cannot fully represent what you experience when you spend the night sleeping on it. Due to ramifications I'm not going to go into here I eventually bought an all Natural Talalay bed from FloBeds. You can read my entire experience in the thread I started entitled "Just bought a new FloBeds" it is quite extensive and if you want to read all of it you will have to go to the bottom of the thread and hit the "ALL" button. At this point in time I'm quite happy that I purchased an all Talalay bed. It has worked out quite well for me. While I have never heard of anyone having the difficulties you are illustrating from sleeping on a Dunlop mattress, particularly where you have a soft Talalay top piece, the only thing I can think of is that the underlying Dunlop is not forgiving enough and you're not getting the kind of cushioning your body requires. Or even the top Talalay piece is to soft. But your description does not give me enough details to ascertain what your problem might really be. For instance. Did you have this pain from the very beginning of sleeping on your new mattress? If not from the very beginning, when did it start? If it is more recent (you say you have the bed for over a year), have you done something physical, such as heavy lifting or bending or doing something else that could have caused an injury? No mattress is going to fix these kinds of physical problems, if that is the case what you need is a good chiropractor or osteopathic doctor. Now don't get me wrong. A proper mattress will first of all not add to you pain, and once the pain is properly diagnosed and you really know what is actually going on and take the proper therapy to correct it, then the mattress can assist in healing you by not slowing down the recovery process. This message was modified Feb 26, 2010 by eagle2
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Re: Long time lurker, new poster... Mid/Upper back pain with latex, need suggestions...
| Mike, We will need to know how thick each core is to help you and the ILD's involved. I feel your soft layer is too thick since when I am sleeping on too thick of a topper or latex core, my back starts to act up from the car accident that I had. I have always slept on a very firm bed since my mother told me I should and it was good for my back. I can't sleep on anything too soft. All my latex layers from FloBeds are 36 ILD to 46 ILD with one latex core a 35 ILD. My latex topper is only 1" thick so that seems to work for me to give me cushion since sleep on my side while giving me great support for my back. I really feel the pillow makes a difference also. I sleep on only all natural latex pillows that are a medium soft feel and are not to thick or too thin so my neck is aligned properly. |
Re: Long time lurker, new poster... Mid/Upper back pain with latex, need suggestions...
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Eagle and Lynn My back has hurt from day one regardless of how I stacked the layers... My back is fine otherwise other than when sleeping on this bed. For example i sleep like a baby on the typical hotel bed. Lynn i do not know the actual firmness of each of the layers it is SleepEZ's soft medium and firm... Each layer is about 3" thick The reason we still have the mattress is because my wife loves it, otherwise I would have tossed it to the curb months ago... Thanks for your help folks, jms |
Re: Long time lurker, new poster... Mid/Upper back pain with latex, need suggestions...
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Just a thought, but if you don't use a pillow between the knees when you side sleep you probably are twisting and contorting (is that word?) in different odd positions that cause unusual pain? Just thought I would throw that out there, I have been know to wake up in an odd twisted shape sometimes. Do you have mattress pad over the mattress? That has been discussed as being painful to many. I must say I am baffled that it is the mid to upper back. Usually I have lower back pain from too soft or hard of mattress. Or shoulder pain from too firm of a mattress. I would think stomach sleeping would cause this unusual pain only because I don't sleep on my stomach, I think that would be painful and is bad for your back. Let us know when you get this figured out. By the way you don't mention your weight or height, that might shed some light to us. Also what is your wife's weight, and height. Wonder why she likes it. Also did you have back pain before the bed, don't think you answered that one. This message was modified Feb 26, 2010 by Leo3
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Re: Long time lurker, new poster... Mid/Upper back pain with latex, need suggestions...
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I'm just throwing this out here.... but is it possible to swap out one of the Sleepez layers for a vZone layer from Flobeds configured with help from Dave or Dewey (Flobed owners)? I have no idea if they sell these separately, but it might be worth a phone call. They might also have other ideas that may help. Hope you find some relief, please keep us posted. Natalie |
Re: Long time lurker, new poster... Mid/Upper back pain with latex, need suggestions...
| A 3" thick latex core that is soft or medium would hurt my back. I think your bed needs to be much firmer with a very thin latex topper over it. |
Re: Long time lurker, new poster... Mid/Upper back pain with latex, need suggestions...
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Lynn2006 wrote: A 3" thick latex core that is soft or medium would hurt my back. I think your bed needs to be much firmer with a very thin latex topper over it. Mike: I agree with Lynn! I would sure get rid of that top layer of soft, if you have a split layered mattress, since your wife likes her configuration. I believe the soft layer in a Talalay is just way too soft for the average sleeper. I know when I tried it I had a soft top layer and a medium middle layer and extra firm bottom layer, as best I can recall. I developed a pain right between my shoulder blades. I had to get rid of the soft layer. Even a medium layer on top of a firm layer on top of a extra firm layer was too soft over time. I would talk to Sean at SleepEZ and see about exchanging a couple of layers. I know you said it's been around a year, but Sean seems to be a reasonable type and I'm sure does not want to have negative reports about their beds posted on this forum. The small cost to them to allow you to exchange, at this late date, can do more to help sell mattresses for them than the dollers they're going to lose in any cost. It's certainly worth a try and I believe you will find that using a medium layer on top and possibly even a firm layer over your Dunlop might solve your problem. If not, possibly you need to exchange the Dunlop for all Talalay. I like all natural. I tried a blended piece of Talalay and while it is a decent latex I just prefer the feel of natural latex. Possibly it's all between my ears, but in the end that's where all the thinking takes place and determines how we actually perceive things. In any event you have too much money wrapped up to just throw it away, it's worth a try. Good luck! This message was modified Feb 27, 2010 by eagle2
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Re: Long time lurker, new poster... Mid/Upper back pain with latex, need suggestions...
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Thanks for the feedback guys. Just to clarify Dunlop and Talalay are both natural, just traditional vs modern manufacturing process. I may order another medium or firm layer (or maybe an extra firm) and try those. i am willing to pay for the layer since it has been a year or so... So the options would be medium medium firm or medium firm firm or medium firm xfirm PS. I am 5'11" 200lbs, I have tried sleeping with a spacer between my knees, but apparently as soon as I am asleep I toss it on the floor... HAHAHAHAHAHA |
Re: Long time lurker, new poster... Mid/Upper back pain with latex, need suggestions...
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jms969 wrote: Thanks for the feedback guys. Just to clarify Dunlop and Talalay are both natural, just traditional vs modern manufacturing process. I may order another medium or firm layer (or maybe an extra firm) and try those. i am willing to pay for the layer since it has been a year or so... So the options would be medium medium firm or medium firm firm or medium firm xfirm PS. I am 5'11" 200lbs, I have tried sleeping with a spacer between my knees, but apparently as soon as I am asleep I toss it on the floor... HAHAHAHAHAHA Mike I do not understand you comment regarding natural Vs. blended. You say: "Just to clarify Dunlop and Talalay are both natural, just traditional vs modern manufacturing process." Do you mean Talalay process versus Dunlop process hundred percent natural botanically grown latex? They are two different processes but they can both be used to manufacture blended latex. However, it's not that important! I have to guess, since I have only slept on all natural Talalay latex. But given your height and weight and the fact that Dunlop is a more dense manufacturing process of latex, and your middle and bottom layers are Dunlop,I would suggest that you try a medium or a firm piece of Talalay on top of your Dunlop process latex. That soft Talalay top piece could very well be what is causing your problems. I am currently sleeping on a 100% natural botanically grown Talalay processed FloBeds mattress configured thusly, one side of my California King is configured top piece firm, middle piece extra firm, bottom piece extra firm. The other side is configured top piece firm, middle piece firm, bottom piece extra firm. (overlaying all FloBeds mattresses is a 2 inch piece of convoluted soft Talalay latex, this never changes, it's actually equal to about a 1 inch piece of soft Talalay) When I started this process of configuring my mattress I was 6 foot two and weighed 210 pounds. Due to a diet I am currently on, thankfully, I currently weigh 200 lb. Going to see if I can get back down to 190 pounds. The first 10 pounds wasn't too bad but I've already hit the wall and it's going to be tough going from here. It will be interesting to see, if I'm actually able to reach my goal in weight-loss, how the bed will feel with 20 pounds of fat removed from this old frame. But I am positive, in my own mind, that I will never want to sleep on soft Talalay again, no matter what I weigh. This message was modified Feb 27, 2010 by eagle2
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Re: Long time lurker, new poster... Mid/Upper back pain with latex, need suggestions...
I agree go firmer. I also agree about losing weight, can I lose this weight still eating cheesecake, cookies, chips, and beer?    My goal is to lose weight too, I won't say how much or when, but it is my goal. I just removed my spongey 1 1/2" 24ILD and my 20ILD 1 " top layer. Now I have 3" of probably medium soft latex. Still I know I can not sleep on my side, but at least I can sleep on my back and not be on a sponge. My latex is over springs. I would really firm your mattress up more, I am a slower learner and am now doing this.  This message was modified Feb 27, 2010 by Leo3
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