In dire need of advice

I’ve spent weeks and many hours worrying over finding a mattress that suits my needs, but I’m afraid I’m now at the end of my rope. I’ve been on three new mattresses in the last four months and none of them passed muster. I initially got a Beauty Rest recharge hybrid innerspring bed that felt okay for the first month, but afterwards it grew increasingly uncomfortable, so after looking online, I decided that the Casper might be a better fit for me. I slept on the Casper for two nights and it had slightly higher heat retention than I wanted and it gave me really bad back pain in the morning due to its firmness, so I had to send it back.

After continuing on the ever-worsening Beauty Rest, I came to the conclusion that perhaps latex could be the answer. After resigning myself to spending nearly two grand on a bed, I stumbled upon this site and was overjoyed at the Brooklyn Bedding thread that had people singing its praises. The fact that it had the talalay and dunlop foam that I was prepared to spend nearly triple the money on was great, as were the reports that even people who sleep hot were cool on the bed. I received the “best mattress ever” last week, laid on it for six hours and couldn’t even fall asleep. Not only that, but it slept way too hot for me, much more so than the Casper. On subsequent nights I was able to fall asleep, but never for more than an hour at a time and it would take me quite some time to fall back asleep.

Seeing as latex and memory foam seem to be out of the question and that putting a water bed in my house is a no go, the only thing that seems to be an option are innerspring beds, but those fail way too quickly and appear to be terrible investments. I’ve read a lot of information on both this site and sleep like the dead, but I currently have no idea what I should do and am about ready to just give up and deal with the discomfort and back pain of the Beauty Rest. To anyone who’s had any similar problems I would be very thankful for any advice or ideas for possible solutions.

Hi SeventhSonofaSeventhSon,

The best place to start your research is the mattress shopping tutorial here which includes all the basic information, steps, and guidelines that can help you make the best possible choice … and perhaps more importantly know how and why to avoid the worst ones including all the major brands such as Simmons, Sealy, and Serta (see the guidelines here).

Two of the most important links in the tutorial that I would especially make sure you read are post #2 here which has more about the different ways to choose a suitable mattress (either locally or online) that is the best “match” for you in terms of “comfort” and PPP (Posture and alignment, Pressure relief, and Personal preferences) that can help you assess and minimize the risks of making a choice that doesn’t turn out as well as you hoped for and post #13 here which has more about the most important parts of the “value” of a mattress purchase which can help you make more meaningful quality/value comparisons between mattresses in terms of suitability (how well you will sleep), durability (how long you will sleep well), and the overall value of a mattress compared to your other finalists (based on all the parts of your personal value equation that are most important to you).

The first “rule” of mattress shopping is to remember that you are the only one that can feel what you feel on a mattress and there are too many unknowns, variables, and personal preferences involved that are unique to each person to use a formula or for anyone to be able to predict or make a specific suggestion or recommendation about which mattress or combination of materials and components or which type of mattress would be the best “match” for you in terms of “comfort” or PPP or how a mattress will “feel” to you or compare to another mattress based on specs (either yours or a mattress) or “theory at a distance” that can possibly be more accurate than your own careful testing (hopefully using the testing guidelines in step 4 of the tutorial) or your own personal sleeping experience (see mattress firmness/comfort levels in post #2 here).

While your own careful testing or personal experience is the most reliable way to know whether a mattress is a good “match” for you in terms of comfort and PPP … when you can’t test a mattress in person then the most reliable source of guidance is always a more detailed phone conversation with a knowledgeable and experienced retailer or manufacturer that has your best interests at heart (which would include Brooklyn Bedding and Dreamfoam) and who can help “talk you through” the specifics of their mattresses and the properties and “feel” of the materials they are using (fast or slow response, resilience, firmness etc) and the options they have available that may be the best “match” for you based on the information you provide them, any local testing you have done or mattresses you have slept on and liked or other mattresses you are considering that they are familiar with, and the “averages” of other customers that are similar to you. They will know more about “matching” their specific mattress designs to different body types, sleeping positions, and preferences (or to other mattresses that they are familiar with) than anyone else.

There is also more information about the new breed of online mattress that I call “simplified choice mattresses” in post #1 here and there is more about the specifics of the BestMattressEver and the Casper mattress and some of the other simplified choice mattresses in post #2 here in the same topic.

While both of these use good quality materials and don’t have any lower quality materials or weak links in their design (although the BestMattressEver uses higher quality and more durable materials than Casper) … the quality and durability of the materials in a mattress has very little to do with whether a mattress will be comfortable or will be a good “match” for you in terms of PPP.

While I can’t speak to how any mattress will “feel” for someone else because this is too subjective and relative to different body types, sleeping positions, and individual preferences, sensitivities, and circumstances … outside of PPP the most important part of the value of a mattress purchase is durability and assuming that the materials in a mattress you are considering are durable enough for your body type and meet the guidelines here … the choice between different types and combinations of materials and components or different types of mattresses (including innersprings) are more of a preference and a budget choice than a “better/worse” choice. I certainly wouldn’t assume that innerspring mattresses that use high quality and durable materials and that don’t have any “weak links” (in the comfort layers especially) are any less durable than any other type of mattress.

I would also keep in mind that there are many different models of mattresses in every mattress category (see this article) so even though you may not like one particular mattress in a specific category … there may be others in the same general category that would be very comfortable and would be a good match for you in terms of PPP.

Once you get to step 3 in the tutorial if you let me know your city or zip code I’d be happy to let you know about the better options or possibilities I’m aware of in your area that you can test in person before a purchase.

The tutorial also includes several links to lists of the better online options I’m aware of if you are also considering another online purchase.

If you get “stuck” on any of the steps in the tutorial then you are always welcome to ask any questions you may have along the way that can help get you “unstuck”.

Phoenix

Thanks for the reply, Phoenix. I’ll look into your posts. In the meantime, though, I live in Houston, TX 77096, so are there any brands of innerspring mattress that are high quality and durable that I could find in town? Also, are there any retailers on your online list that you would recommend over others for the same type of mattress?

Hi SeventhSonofaSeventhSon,

The better options or possibilities I’m aware of in and around Houston (subject to making sure that any mattress you are considering meets the quality/value guidelines here) are listed in post #2 here.

I would also be very cautious about brand shopping in general because you are buying a specific mattress not the brand and all manufacturers have access to the same or similar components and materials. The name of the manufacturer on the label won’t tell you anything about whether there are any lower quality materials or weak links in the design that would affect the durability and useful life of the mattress. There is more about the risks of brand shopping in post #5 here and post #12 here. I would focus much more on the type and quality/durability of the materials inside a mattress (which are important to know anyway) than I would on the name of the manufacturer on the label.

While I do recommend the members here “as a group” because I believe that they compete well with the best in the industry in terms of their quality, value, service, knowledge, and transparency … I don’t make specific suggestions or recommendations for either a mattress, manufacturers/retailers, or combinations of materials or components because again there are just too many unknowns, variables, and personal preferences involved that are unique to each person.

Outside of the options that are available in your area (and you certainly have some good local options available to you) … the tutorial also includes several links to some of the better online options I’m aware of (in the optional online step)

I or some of the more knowledgeable members of the site can certainly help you to narrow down your options, help you focus on better quality/value choices that are available to you either locally or online, help you identify any lower quality materials or weak links in a mattress you may be considering, act as a fact check, answer many of the specific questions you may have along the way that don’t involve what you will “feel” on a mattress, and help with “how” to choose but only you can decide which specific mattress, manufacturer, or combination of materials is “best for you” regardless of the name of the manufacturer on the label or whether anyone else has the same criteria or circumstances or would make the same choice.

Phoenix

Thanks a lot for the info! I think I’ll swing by Texas Mattress Makers this week.

Hi SeventhSonofaSeventhSon,

As you’ve read I think highly of Texas Mattress Makers and they would certainly be well worth including in your research. I’m looking forward to your comments and feedback after your visit :slight_smile:

Phoenix