I’ve used a full 3 layer talalay SleepEZ mattress for over 10 years. I am 5’11" and started at 140lb but am now 165lb with a more athletic build. The mattress or at least the top layer needs to be replaced, but throughout the lifespan of this mattress, I have noticed that:
- When side sleeping, I feel very unstable, like trying to sleep on a water bed or jello. If I don’t use a pillow to hug with my arms, and another pillow between my knees, I roll forward or backwards. Which is a problem because–
- When back sleeping, my hips sink in deep, but I don’t get lower back support-- this rounds my lower back. Because of this, I tend to flip on my side within 15-30 mins of falling asleep on my back. When traveling or staying at friends’ houses on innersprings, I tend to stay on my back for 4 hours+, sometimes all night.
So I wonder now, does dunlop help with this? e.g. a F/M/S (all dunlop). At the moment I am looking to innersprings with a latex topper, but I really would miss the durability of latex.
@Sleep_EZ
Hello and thanks for reaching out on this! My advice is to keep the top layer in Talalay but change the middle layer or maybe even the middle AND bottom layers to Dunlop.
There is a noticeable difference between Talalay and Dunlop, and it’s not really that Talalay is softer than Dunlop. Most people and companies say Talalay is softer just because that’s an easier way to explain it. You can actually have a soft Dunlop layer that’s softer or firmer than a soft Talalay and a medium Talalay that’s softer or firmer than a medium Dunlop, etc. The real difference comes down to how they react when being compressed. Talalay is bouncier and springier and is generally better at contour and pressure relief on your hips and shoulders. Dunlop is denser and is generally better at support and maintaining proper spinal alignment so our most common configuration is Talalay for the top layer and Dunlop for the bottom 2 layers. We will recommend Talalay for two or more layers for customers that have things like fibromyalgia, shingles, chronic hip pain, chronic shoulder pain, or anything where they’re sensitive to pressure, or for customers that just prefer a bouncier / springier feel. Outside of those circumstances, a combination of Talalay and Dunlop offers the best chance to be successful for the average person. Again, the best way I can summarize the differences would be to say that Talalay is better at pressure relief on your hips and shoulders and Dunlop is better at maintaining proper spinal alignment and avoiding back pain. However, Talalay can also be helpful in avoiding back pain because it provides more of what we call secondary support. Secondary support fills in the gaps between your body and the mattress. For side sleepers, this is normally the area between a person’s ribs and waist. For back sleepers, this is normally the area between the small of your back and the mattress. If these parts or your body aren’t being held up by the mattress, your muscles will work all night to hold those parts of your body up, which can lead to back pain. Aside from that, women tend to be curvier, especially around their hips, and having a top layer of Talalay can help avoid hip pain and keep the mattress from pushing their hips up, which can also lead to back pain. As such, most of our customers definitely benefit from having one layer of Talalay on top, and Dunlop for the rest of the mattress, but it’s completely up to you what you would like to order.