Latex diy build help - back pain (pars defect)

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I’m looking for some help from some of the experts here. I’ve been living with low back pain (pars defect L5-S1) causing muscle guarding and pain. The idea is that my build requires a very solid foundation, stability and even pressure distribution between my hips and into my lower back so as not to cause bridging which makes the muscle guarding worse.

I’ve so far built a dunlop latex setup using the following layers.

3" 44 ild dunlop
3" 30 ild dunlop
1.5" 20 ild dunlop
Thin cotton layer over the layers (until I buy a fitted zippered cotton mattress encasement when it’s all tuned in)

The mattress feels quite firm and I am waking up with low back stiffness after approximately 3 weeks testing. When I slide my hand under my back it feels as though there is firm contact support in the low of my back.

Do I need more medium transition? 24-27ild? Or more transition in support? 35-38il?

I am 5’8 180lbs athletic build, back sleeper with occasional stomach.

Comfort is of little concern to me, the bed feels quite firm and stable. I’m only trying to provide a positive environment for the improvement of my back.

Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated!

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Where did you purchase your Dunlop layers from? Add an inch or 2 inch of polyfoam/memory foam under the top layer of latex, and that can help. Even egg crate foam from Walmart helps too.

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Hi Jeb and thanks for reaching out on this! My advice is to add a 2" soft Talalay topper to go on top of the mattress you have now. This will give you a decent increase in secondary back 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.

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Try removing the soft dunlop to see if that’s better or worse. I believe it will be worse and agree that adding another 2" of Soft Talalay would fill in the small of your back and actually provide better support.