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Greetings. I have read posts going into the last few pages, the FAQ and the highlighted threads, so hope I won't ask something that's been answered before. If I do, please point me in that direction and close this thread. I have two problems to address with my mattress requirements. I currently own a queen sized plush mattress. 1) I wake up really tired all the time. I thought this was just me (for 3 years since I bought the mattress!!), but reading on the forum gives me other ideas. I also have a specific tolerance for mattresses. I have an old shoulder/elbow injury that flares up to the point of immobilizing my arm if I sleep on a firm mattress. But these days, even my plush mattress is starting to hurt. 2) My wife needs a firm mattress otherwise she wakes up with a bad headache and is forever unrested as well. We're both side sleepers, and I try my best to avoid my bad side. We're both 5ft 9in, weigh in at 140 and 170 lbs. So, my question is, how do I go about finding the right mix? Ideally, I'd like one half of the bed to be somewhat plush for me (and I need to find the right amount of softness) and the other half to be firm. One option is to buy a firm mattress and buy a soft topper for myself. The other is this mattress I found in a store that is half firm and half soft. It's about $800 and is slightly over my budget, but I guess this is an important investment and I have to grin and bear it? Any advice would help. Thanks! This message was modified Oct 13, 2010 by thanatos
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cityskies wrote: From my experience (and the assessment of my brother who's a doctor), headaches can be caused when your body is out of alignment, sleeping on a too soft mattress. I think your nerves get pinched or something. I had never suffered from headaches before and got a continuous low-grade headache from sleeping on too-soft latex (which also 'pushed back' on me, making things worse). Lasted for months and didn't go away until I changed beds (to a firm cotton innerspring Shifman). |
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OK. So that means you have "a whole bunch" (at least 4" and maybe more) of very soft polyfoam on top of a fairly firm (12 3/4 guage) zoned spring system. It seems to me that the top is certainly too soft and the bottom may be too firm (at least with the padding you have). With other layering it could be perfect. There is quite an extreme difference between the 2 main layers of the bed which could end up (which it has it seems) being not suitable to either of you. I'm sorry to say that to me it looks like you probably made the worst of all compromises. Since you weigh more you are probably going through the super soft layers and sleeping "too much" on the springs which aggravates your pressure issues and she is being affected in a negative way (headaches caused by poor alignment) by sleeping in foam that is too soft which also leads to poor alignment. This is aggravated by the fact that after 3 years the foam in this bed is almost certainly breaking down and making a bad situation worse (perhaps more for you than for her). While a better pillow could help her (if this is an issue), it won't solve the underlying issue of a mattress that is a poor fit for both of you. I would suggest reading through some of the more recent threads, particularly some of the threads that talk about body alignment and comfort and the different ways to achieve it, and then to do some in-store testing armed with both knowledge and a few tools (like a yardstick or broom handle to look for alignment) ... and maybe a hammer to keep some of the sales people at bay. It shouldn't take you more than a few hours to read through most of the relevant active threads of the past few weeks (and it sounds like you have alread read many of them) to get a general sense of what you are looking for (except maybe some of the big long huge ones that I wrote which may take you the rest of your life to read). It will be time well spent. You need upper layers that will evenly distribute pressure so you don't have pressure points She needs support layers that will keep her spine in alignment. Some softness on the top comfort layers (enough to help you with your pressure issues) does not mean that she cannot also have the support she needs for proper alignment. I would certainly stay away from mattresses with that much soft polyfoam and with such an extreme transition ... even with a zoned innerspring. It may very well be possible that you find both of these qualities in the same mattress since you are not so dissimilar in your overall body makeup. Test both for initial feel and comfort (for your pressure issues) and with the yardstick to help check for alignment and sliding your hand under her waist (on the side) and the small of her back (on her back) to see if there is enough support there. I would certainly try to avoid more than 1" of soft polyfoam anywhere in the mattress and if you must have more polyfoam in the mattress because of budget issues (if you only have say $300 or $400 to spend) at least make sure it is higher quality HR foam so it is more supportive and less likely to break down. There are lots of suggestions here already posted that should help you find what you need within your budget ... including checking out some smaller manufacturers that sell factory direct in your area. Phoenix This message was modified Oct 14, 2010 by Phoenix
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| Thanks for that Phoenix. I'll be sure to read everything relevant. |