Hi,
Just a quick answer, I primarily sleep on my back and then towards the end of the night my left side usually.
It might be incredibly taxing to go over every possible configuration Iāve tried and give notes on what happened over the past 18 months. Plus itās a moving target and wonāt make much a difference, since the in reality the middle of the bed is softer and literally less supportive than the rest. (15lbs weight example from previous post is accurate.)
I have numerous drawings, notes, dissecting each possibility. at this point, and I see this soft middle portion of the layers S/M/F where it creates anterior pelvic tilt is the main culprit.
Regardless of what I do there is a pseudo body weight impression where I sleep the heaviest weighted portion of my body sinks lower in the middle of the mattress, when it actually needs to be more supportive. I said pseudo in the sense that latex simply rebounds without weight on it, however it doesnāt mean it supports evenly once ābroken inā and if youāre body is not proportional in weight distribution, youāre overweight, or you have ligaments which are hypermobile you can expect disproportional support as the latex layers break in over time.
I was not really aware of the detriments of the latex breaking down this way as all that seems to be marketed as it will last 15-20 years so itās easy to think it means it will support you correctly during that time. That may not be the case from this experience unless you like being out alignment while you wait for the layer to break down, by rotating it or flipping, but once you do that you have to contend with new alignment problems.
When talking about all the benefits I think this should be pointed out as it makes latex sound like some miracle that fixes all in mattress marketing. It does has a lot of benefits compared to foam no doubt, but as a support system, it doesnāt seem so good if you need more stability that wonāt wear down like that or be codependent on your weight to such a high degree. as itās more like a see saw when it comes to weight distribution. Newton 3ārd law of motion.
The breaking down of the layers isnāt so ideal if you fit any of the above differences. Simply removing a layer so you donāt sink as much can easily cause discomfort if the mattress doesnāt relieve enough pressure, which is really what has happened in all the combinations Iāve tried, remove soft from S/M/F and it feels better for a few days to a week or so and then start getting numbness in my hands from back or side sleeping.
Iāve read elsewhere on this forum where you consider anterior pelvic tilt typically a problem of the mattress being too firm, for the majority of people otherwise itās that they maybe shaped differently other with a different spine curvature, so then itās a medical problem.
I understand the sentiment, they need to work on their physiological problems to do better. However, this implies this type of mattress in design is correct, when realistically most people are different in shape and not everyone is made stiff at the ligaments.
Having hypermobility syndrome is in the U.Kā¦ is in fact a smaller part of the population at roughly 3%, if itās equal to that in the US near 10 million people, although that 3%. I say roughly because there has been a lack of general population studies or other studies of sufficient sample size to accurately estimate itās prevalence.
That said Caucasians are 6% and whereas African, Asian, Arab, and origin or less than 30%, meaning it could very well translate further in the U.S. where the population diversity is high and larger.
Scaling back down to simply having hypermobile joints is even more interesting, because population that is 10-25%. To break it down further people having 1-4 hypermobile joints is about 10-40%. Thatās around
31-127 million people in the US. That might have laxity in an less ideal place when sleeping, itās not certain, but should be considered, when thinking of the āmajorityā. Women tend do have this more then men, which could explain some things. One test from Beighton tests is specifically if you can touch your palms on the floor, itās pretty assume some back and hip ligament are looser in these individuals.
On top of that thereās plenty of desk jockeyās in the population ruining their posture and not doing anything about nor realizing it. Which would fit into people outside the āmajorityā I donāt agree, there, but they maybe easier to manage if they are in the norm of stiffness. However keeping someone at the same same bad curvature over time 8 hours a night only exacerbate the problem. Which is the type of support latex seems to provide if it doesnāt help fix it soon after itās broken in. And them āfeelingā something good or bad could simply be in relation the problem they have which makes for a difficult time picking anything out. Lots of people arenāt always the best at knowing their own bodies or anatomy.
Steps to pick out a mattress seem to be:
- Know what posture youāre in and if you need to correct it and how a mattress will be able to help or not.
- Pretty much everything else youāve written on this site.
So all latex sounds appealing in marketing but without starting an exercise regimen of smart re-postural techniques (PRI or egoscue) and resistance training, which most wonāt know about or consider, you may not be able to improve spine curvature, and laying on a bed that supports posture that isnāt helpful, is a detriment and a bad buy for that individual.
Maybe I missed something like this in the intro here, but I think this isnāt subtle subject when considering the ramifications of buy 2-5k mattresses.
PRI, postural restoration institute advices having even support through head to foot of the mattress or rather the same firmness and maybe a little more firm in the middle. And looking for pocketed coil mattress, advised against, foam, water, futon, latex and air mattresses. These came from 2009 article https://www.posturalrestoration.com/resources/dyn/files/1062906z2b3de4bc/_fn/Mattress_Recommendations.pdf.
Anyone suffering from back might want to research PRI and work with a PRI trained therapist or trainer. I have it makes a difference, itās a little different, but really helps.
I felt I need to say this because Iāve gotten the impression latex has been the best for everything, and itās been very hit or miss, but more detrimental as time passed due to the way it supports and wears down.
All Iām doing now is using polyfoam to trying to make the bed more evenly supported kind of like the recommendation made by PRI. However itās overly complex and mostly bandaids in hope that the layers break down more evenly after time.
Just a quick conclusion for anyone else thatās say in extension, you need to practice breathing exercises keeping your ribs down and the pelvis tucked in towards the ribs, google PRI exercises. So you can see if youāre pelvis isnāt supported properly when laying on your back, it will create anterior pelvic tilt, especially if you carry more of youāre weight near the waist down. You also donāt need extra lumbar support at your chair or mattress as it pushes you into more extension.
Iāve zoned my bed with .25 layers of polyfoam of different densities and created a slight decline at the head of the bed. But too complicated to explain more, but the main problem exists, the center of the bed is less supportive and difficult to make firmer and the complexity is outlandish.
Basically it seems like thereās not fast way of breaking in a layer, so even with that you Iāve found it better to sleep lower on the bed then as the top of the bed from head to foot is basically a wave of firm to medium, soft, medium, firm.
I could consider zoning it with latex, but what happens as different layers break in at different rates? Thatās part of the problem with getting a new layer, which Iām dealing with now, itās partially broken. A nightmare of bad alignment that never seems to end.
Anyways, Iām starting to lean towards getting a cheap coiled mattress for the support and seeing how a layer of latex on top would be better, than all latex.
So far this bed hasnāt lasted very long for 4k I could have bought a lot of cheap mattresses that might have lasted longer and still been cheaper in the long run of 15 years.
Iāve seen this site as resource, so after so much time, I thought Iād give anyone in what might be considered the minority a different perspective. Although I will say everyone is different itās best understand youāre body if youāre the type that struggles with finding the right fit easily.
If you have any suggestions on cheaper but decent coiled mattresses feel free to let me know.
Thanks