I found this site because I’m asking the question “is there any “real” relief possible for chronic upper back pain” from “any” of these latex foam, tempur foam or anything beds discussed on this site? All I read so far are complaints about that type of topper, or some core, or some other comfort layer, etc. Or some other decision that someone regrets and now they are actually “in” pain.
I’m looking for some relief from my upper back problem that’s not drugs, so does it come from a bed - any bed? I certainly don’t need a bed to give me more “pain” than I already have.
While I appreciate the candor and honesty in these posts, my first reaction is that this isn’t worth what little relief (if any) these mattresses give folks.
Does anybody have a success story to share? Something like, wow I was in an 8/10 pain level for years, but after switching to mattress X, it dropped to a 5/5, or something like that?
I may not be the best to answer this but here are my thoughts.
Im sure i have seen “success” stories here and also on other sites.
You are more likely to find people struggling with their mattress/pillows/toppers here as this is where people will turn when they are in the process of finding/adjusting a new mattress or having problems with an exciting one.
Now I am someone who lives with chronic neck and back pain due to a car accident going on 10 years. I wont say my new mattress has been the best thing ever…but it certainly has helped. I would say it is at least 40% better now than it was sleeping on my old sears mattress. My new mattress defiantly still needs some fine tuning but we are getting there and the past 2 nights(after removing a unneeded topper and removing elevation legs) have been pretty good. (imo an overly soft mattress only makes a back with chronic pain worse, I have also been told this by many chiropractors)
I have also struggled with pillows for ages and changed to a shredded low loft latex pillow the past 2 nights and it is amazing! for the neck pain.
So I do think a mattress/pillow combination can help but it is a process…especially if you choose a diy route!
Hope you find some relief
[quote]I found this site because I’m asking the question “is there any “real” relief possible for chronic upper back pain” from “any” of these latex foam, tempur foam or anything beds discussed on this site? All I read so far are complaints about that type of topper, or some core, or some other comfort layer, etc. Or some other decision that someone regrets and now they are actually “in” pain.
I’m looking for some relief from my upper back problem that’s not drugs, so does it come from a bed - any bed? I certainly don’t need a bed to give me more “pain” than I already have.[/quote]
A new mattress (in combination with a suitable pillow) can help with back pain to the degree that either some or all of the back pain is caused by an old mattress and/or pillow that isn’t a good match for you in terms of PPP (Posture and alignment, Pressure relief, and your own Personal preferences). If a new mattress relieves pressure points and keeps your spine and joints in neutral alignment better than your old one then it can help alleviate back pain that was the result of sleeping with pressure points or out of alignment on the old mattress.
If the cause of your back pain is a medical or physiological issue and not the result of sleeping with pressure points or out of alignment then a new mattress won’t generally help except perhaps to the degree that better and deeper sleep can help with any healing and recovery process over the course of time. In this case a health professional that can make suitable suggestions and treat the cause of the back pain would be the most effective approach.
It’s never a good idea to expect a mattress to solve a pre existing health or medical issue.
As pennies mentioned … most people that post on the forum are either looking for a new mattress because they are uncomfortable or experiencing some kind of “symptoms” on their old one or they are looking for a solution to a mattress related issue. Most people that have been successful in their search don’t generally continue to post once they are sleeping well on a new mattress or once they have resolved the issues they came here to ask about.
While other people’s comments about the knowledge and service of a particular business can certainly be very helpful … I would also keep in mind that you are the only one that can feel what you feel on a mattress and I would be cautious about about using anyone else’s suggestions, experiences or reviews on a specific mattress (either positive or negative) or review sites in general as a reliable source of information or guidance about how you will feel on the same mattress or how suitable or how durable a mattress may be for you. In many if not most cases they can be more misleading than helpful because a mattress that would be a perfect choice for one person or even a larger group of people in terms of comfort, firmness, and PPP may be completely unsuitable for someone else to sleep on (even if they are in a similar weight range or have similar back symptoms). In other words … reviews or other people’s experiences in general won’t tell you much if anything about the suitability, quality, durability, or “value” of a mattress for any particular person (see post #13 here).
I get this question frequently in my store and the first thing I tell people is if they ever visit a store and the store promotes a product that claims to cure back pain, they should turn and run as fast as they can in the opposite direction. Unfortunately, there is no such animal that can provide relief for all “back pain.”
Back pain is as varied as we are as individuals. Unfortunately, there are certain pre-existing conditions that can only be treated via methods such as therapy, exercise, medication or even surgery. Some unfortunately have no cures and people suffer for years. In situations like this I’ve found that the best I can do is to help find something that doesn’t exacerbate someone’s pre-existing condition. And sometimes that is even quite difficult. The solutions end up being as varied as the individuals.
I’ll give you two personal examples from my luge athletic days. I had a mid-back issue that just wouldn’t go away. I tried different sleeping positions and products, medical treatments, physical therapy and traction. Nothing worked. Then I was treated by a chiropractor and he was able, with much force, to manipulate my joint back into place and I recovered rather quickly after that. So in this case only a mechanical manipulation worked for me. Years later, I had upper back issues that stemmed from another athletic injury. I tried different pillows, mattresses toppers, drugs, manipulations and therapies. Eventually I had surgery to decompress the nerve and now i am relatively pain free.
In each of these cases I had “back pain” but they were very different and each required a resolution (manipulation or surgery) that was unrelated to my sleep surface. And no matter what I tried for restoration, the answer was found in other avenues. In my specific case, it didn’t matter if I slept on the floor or an ultra plush latex mattress. In the end, i had to address the real cause of my pain.
I’ve found that people in general tend to ascribe too much to their mattress as a cure for back issues, and they unfortunately neglect some of the root causes, such as lifestyle, level of fitness, flexibility, stress, and weight. It’s often easier to swap out a mattress than address those issues.
In my personal situation, I have found that a more plush latex surface comfort with deep down support has worked well to assist with my issues. But when I have flare-ups, the true relief for me comes from addressing my flexibility and strength issues and getting manipulations during that treatment. And during that time I remove my plush topper from my mattress (also latex) and sleep on a bit of a firmer surface. So I do have a bit of “success” in changing up my mattress during those times, but the real cure for the pain lies elsewhere.
I know my experiences are not yours or anyone else’s, but hopefully sharing my road to recovery has provided some insight. “Back issues” are personal to each individual and the answer for pain relief is often found outside of the mattress world. I tell my clients that I wish there was one product that was the “cure-all” for such issues, because I know from personal experience experience the misery of not getting restorative sleep for years, especially the pain caused by nerve issues.
Again, I’m not looking for a “magic” bullet. But any degree of improvement is worthwhile to me and of course I know this is a subjective measurement.
I have been though the health care system (if you want to call it that), and to understate, I’ve been disappointed. and received little help.
In other words I’m on my own with chronic back pain, unwilling or unable to allow Doctors to experiment on me. In fact one pain doctor said a mattress (tempurpedic to be exact), would more than likely be uncomfortable for me which is the reason I’ve never tried one.
But’ I myself haven’t had an experience with these pressure relieving mattresses, and I no longer trust Doctors (in a general sense), so life being what it is one gets desperate to try all possibilities.
So, even though I appreciate Phoenix’s caution about taking too much away from the experience of others, when you got nothing else, I’ll take what I can get and try to make my own sense from it.
I am impressed by the honesty and candor and the great information made available on this site. It’s like no other.
So once again, I’d be very grateful to the folks on this site to hear about your own experience with any mattress that “helped” an existing back condition.
Hopefully some of the members here that have similar back issues will see your post and share their comments and experiences.
I would keep in mind that most sleeping ergonomics studies clearly indicate that for most people the single most important factor in how well and how deeply you will sleep on a new mattress will usually be how well it keeps your spine and joints in good alignment (see this topic) and that pressure relief is usually secondary to spinal alignment.
Zoning systems can also be useful and well worth considering for people that have more difficulty finding a mattress with the right “balance” between comfort/pressure relief (under the shoulders especially) and support/alignment (under the hips/pelvis especially) or who have more challenging circumstances or sensitivities, body types that are more difficult to “match” to a mattress, more complex medical issues, or who have a history of having more difficulty in finding a mattress that works well for them. There is more about zoning in this article and in post #11 here and the additional posts it links to.
Some of the information in post #3 here may also give you some insights as to whether you would sleep better on a new mattress than the mattress you are currently sleeping on.
If you are considering buying a matress , i highly suggest you to go to [confidential]Literie Provinciale[/confidential] and ask for [confidential]Jean Mounayerdji[/confidential]. He is a consultant microbiologist that works there and knows each and every product inside out. He will guide you and explain to you A to Z how they will build your mattress and even give you a tour of the manifacture the matress will be built in. He explains you why the products are better quality and on top explains how they are certified. You will never get cheated on the product and have a full 25 years warranty on the high end mattresses. With 60 years of experience in the field [confidential]Literie[/confidential] has really the best approach i’ve seen putting someone like Jean is really the cherry on the sunday! I recommend this place highly!
I’ve hidden the name of the manufacturer you mentioned since the forum rules don’t allow any direct or indirect advertising (see the forum rules here).
Your comments are also outside the scope of the topic you posted in which is about back pain rather than recommendations for specific manufacturers (which in your case would only apply to someone that was close to your city as well) and doesn’t include any information about your own personal experience with back pain relative to the specific mattress you purchased (which is what the OP was asking for).
I would also appreciate it if you could also disclose whether you have any direct or indirect relationship to the manufacturer you mentioned since it’s somewhat unusual that a member’s first post includes a recommendation for a specific manufacturer without discussing their own personal experience on a mattress they purchased and I am cautious with these types of posts because this is normally done by someone that is looking to promote or advertise a specific business rather than just share their own individual experiences.
Having said that … the type of knowledge, service, and transparency you mentioned is much more common when you deal with better factory direct manufacturers and/or sleep shops (although they are certainly a minority in the industry) and is one of the reasons that I so often suggest that who you choose to deal with can be one of the most important factors in a successful mattress purchase.
Agree with what Jeff said. The mattress and pillow can help but ultimately you need to find the root cause of your pain and make changes. Whether it is posture, ergonomics, or exercise/fitness - I believe that improving these areas will provide you will more lasting relief in the long run. Just my 2 cents B)
