Latex Mattress too Firm?

Talk To The Experts Sleep EZ
1

I’m looking at a latex mattress to replace my “old” pocked innerspring mattress. I’m about 5’11 and weigh about 245. I usually sleep on my back but sometimes my side. Our bed was okay at first but always felt a bit firm. After about 4 years I started getting lower back pain which I found was relieved if I slept on something a bit softer. The mattress is now 5 years old my pain has just gotten worse. I get upper and lower back pain. I’ve been sleeping on the couch and to my surprise I have significantly less pain. The couch seems to let my hips sink in a bit more.

I’ve decided to start looking at a new mattress since I don’t want to keep sleeping on the couch indefinitely. Someone in my family has a SleepEZ bed which they love. They did 3 layers of Talalay latex going from soft to medium to firm. I think they also added an extra Talalay soft topper. Here are two things I noticed:

  1. The bed seems too firm to me. While it’s more supportive than my current bed, it feels like I’ll have lower back pain again. I looked at the layers and confirmed the soft layer and the soft topper were on top. Does this mean I should avoid latex and look for something softer like memory foam? The couch I’m sleeping on allows my hips to sink in quite a bit and I haven’t been in pain at all.

  2. There were definitely some body impressions left where my family member had been sleeping. The mattress is 5 years old and they only used one side of it, so one side is unused. I could definitely feel a major difference, one side felt more supportive and new, while the other had a dip it (I laid in the unused side for testing). Correct me if I’m wrong, but if I get a bed like this and it starts get impressions after 5 years, I can I just replace the top comfort layer? I assume rotating the top layer would also help? I’m admittedly a heavy person but I want to get something that will last, or at least won’t require a full mattress replacement after 5 years. Being able to replace individual layers seems like a plus.

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Hello SleepyHound

Thank you for your inquiry.

Latex, like any other new sleep surface can take time for your body to adjust to it. This adjustment period can offer up a false result if you do not allow your body the time it needs to adjust. Unless you slept on your family member’s mattress for 1 to 2 weeks, it is difficult to know whether or not the mattress is the correct configuration or comfort level for you.

SleepEZ’s layered mattresses offer the ability to customize the latex layers from contour to support (top to bottom), based on your height, weight and preferred sleep positions. We offer you a 90-day layer-exchange policy, as well as a 90 day return
policy should the mattress not work for you. This basically takes away the risk of purchasing your mattress sight unseen.

Based on the information you kindly provided about yourself, I would recommend you start with a 10" (3-layer) model. I suggest a configuration of Medium Talalay over Medium Dunlop over Firm Dunlop. Being a side/back sleeper at 245lbs, the medium Talalay will provide adequate contour, while the medium over firm layers below offers gradual support. I recommend the top medium layer to Talalay due to it being a slightly softer and more contouring latex than that of the Dunlop.

I recommend calling SleepEZ to discuss further mattress and comfort options, as well as the inquiry into the two separate comfort levels you experienced with your family member’s mattress. This maybe due to each side of the mattress having two separately different layer configurations.

Good luck, and we look forward to future updates/posts!