Brooklyn Bedding Best Mattress Ever

[phoenix]

Hi HikingMoose,

Welcome to the Mattress Forum!

I’ve had shoulder surgery, and in the last year discovered I have very aggressive arthritis causing me a lot of pain. My lower back has been extremely painful lately.

I’m sorry to hear about your painful pre-existing conditions.

So after doing a lot of research like many of you, we chose the BME from Brooklyn Bedding.

Congratulations on your new mattress! As you’re already aware, Brooklyn Bedding is a member here which means I think highly of them and their products, You certainly made a good quality/value choice.

We’ve only slept on it 2 nights - WAY to early to form any concrete opinions!

You’re exactly correct. There will be what I like to call a “period of retrogression”, where the mattress will adjust to you and you’ll adjust to your mattress. There will also be a certain amount of “false firmness” with any new mattress, and this will gradually soften just a bit as everything “breaks in”, usually within the first 6 months. You had the foresight to select a product with a long 120-night trial period, just in case you need to make a change.

BUT, the mattress does seem very, very firm for a medium. I’m no mattress connoisseur, but it seems like it’s a 9-9.5/10 for firmness.

There is no universal absolute range of nomenclature for the overall firmness or “hardness” of a finished mattress, as there are entirely too many variables involved, and even if it could be accomplished the overall feel would be subjective as it related to the individual sleeping upon the mattress. With that being said, the Medium BME generally wouldn’t be in the conversation of “firmer” mattresses, and your assessment is also relative to your previous mattress. But of course the opinion that matters the most is always yours, as you’re the one who has to get good sleep.

don’t sink into it much at all. My shoulders do not sink in, and my arms go numb if lying on my side. That being said, I have had less back pain the two days since getting receiving it. My wife also thinks its firm but doesn’t have as many aches and pains as I do,

Some recent research has shown that the strongest correlation to time spent in the deeper, more restorative phases of sleep is proper support/alignment. It’s good to hear that your back is feeling better, which at a distance would tend to lead me to a supposition that this new mattress is more supportive than your old mattress. Sleep ergonomic researchers will generally advise you to lean to better support, but that doesn’t mean that a mattress needs to feel like the floor.

People who have gone through shoulder surgery face a unique situation where they are generally more sensitive in an area which is already sensitive when sleeping upon their side. Something that you may find assistive would be to sleep with a pillow up against your back, allowing you to lean back slightly when sleeping on your side, effectively allowing you to “roll” your shoulder slightly forward so that you’re not sleeping directly upon it. Also, consider using a body pillow or a thicker pillow in front of you, upon which you may place your free arm. This also will take some pressure off of both of your shoulders. Finally, don’t forget to reassess your pillow whenever you get a new mattress to make sure that it is the proper thickness to fill in the gap from the outside of your shoulder to your ear, helping to take that weight off of your shoulder joint as well. Hopefully some of those tips will helps you, regardless of your eventual mattress combination.

Have they ever been known to accidentally send a firm instead of a medium?

While uncommon, you certainly can look for the information on your law tag and shipping invoice to confirm what you have, and also give BME a call to confirm what they have in their records for you. They are very helpful with their customer service.

I will try it at least 2 weeks, and if my arms are still going numb, I’ll see if they’ll send a topper.

I would give it as long as you can, for the reasons I provided earlier in my reply. It might be the situation where you desire a bit of extra surface comfort, but need the deeper support for your BMI and low back issues. I’ve spoken with many athletes (who tend to be larger individuals) who have shoulder issues and it is often that they use a softer latex topper in combination with a supportive mattress for all of their “aches and pains.”

Some have said even the soft is too firm. So I’m not too keen on the idea of exchanging it for a soft, because it might not be any better, and might break down faster than the medium.

I would caution using other people’s comments upon the “plushness” of a product, as that is their own personal opinion as it relates to their circumstances and body type (see post #13 here). I’d instead focus on you (you’re the one that matters the most in this conversation) and see how you adjust to your new mattress. If after time you think you need to make a change, then I’d follow through on your thoughts of giving the people at Brooklyn Bedding a call and use their expertise to guide you with some additional ideas to help you get some better upper pressure point relief.

I’m so happy I found this resource and love the information it provides.

You’re welcome. I look forward to learning about your progress.

Phoenix