Just a quick update and question here…
Sleeping on the F, F, M is killing my back now, could it be my needing to get used to it?
I sleep on my stomach - and also on my right side.
My left lower back hurts and is shooting mild pain down my leg right now. I also have middle back pain on the other (right) side.
Not sure if this is from stomach sleeping or side sleeping - but the F,F,M feels too soft. The F,M,F combination felt too hard.
Seller recommended giving the current (F,F,M) a week’s try possible. It’s been about 4 nights; pain is increasing.
Phoenix, I found a post where you talk about it being uncommon to put F under M but do you or anyone else here suggest I try it again and see if it softens up? Maybe I can achieve something more supportive with that if I give it time.
Or, could this be just my body getting used to latex? I’m fairly young and healthy but I do have some slight misalignment with my back and legs, I was told once by a chiropractor.
I know you can’t feel the mattress for me but any ideas based on experience or what others have said?
Thanks
It certainly could be … or it could also be because the current layering isn’t the best match for you. There is more in post #2 here about some of the more common “symptoms” on a mattress and some of the possible reasons behind them. The first thing I would always do though is to talk with the manufacturer because they will be more familiar with their mattresses and how different types of people do with different combinations than anyone and you can go into much more detail with them about the specifics of your “symptoms” than is possible on a forum.
I’m not sure where you read this but a softer layer over a firmer layer would be much more common than the other way around … especially in the top two layers (although the other way around or what I call dominant layers can also be a useful option in some cases). Most layering combinations have the firmer layers closer to the bottom. Like Neal suggested I would also tend to stay with the initial FFM for a while before switching things around but if this is impossible then I would definitely talk with Neal about your options. Two of the options you have to rearrange your layers would be what you have tried (FMF) which would give you a firmer sleeping surface and a little less deeper support or FM (two layers) which would give you a support layer that became firmer faster than having two layers and a little firmer sleeping surface. Additional options would also be possible with a layer exchange depending on the outcome of your conversations with him.
I would like to try the FMF again before I ask him about it. (Yes - I had my question about that backwards.)
When you mention “2 layers” do you mean simply taking out one of the F layers and having my mattress consist of 2 layers (F,M) only? And if so, how could that be different than it is now with the F,F,M?
When I got my latex mattress (from a different company) my original combination of X-firm dunlop, firm dunlop, medium talalay, and medium talalay topper felt to firm for me after only sleeping a few nights on it. My shoulder started to hurt. So I switched up the layers, I stole one of my wife’s layers and adjusted it slightly to find out a combination that worked for me. One thing I did eventually was I had my wife check my posture and alignment after laying in the bed for 15 minutes or so like I was testing the mattress at the store. If she said it looked like it was out of alignment I immediately went to the next combination. Only making small incremental changes. I found that if I tried going to bed when my alignment and posture was poor to start with, it did not improve at all during the night.
What I ended up with is the following combination. Firm Dunlop, X-Firm Dunlop, Soft talalay, and medium talalay topper. As you can see I used the dominating layer effect to help get my posture and alignment correct. Thanks for the suggestion Phoenix Although I am still not 100% about this combination I am still in the testing phase I will say I have had over a week of sleeping on it and my pain has decreased significantly. Although being sick has also not helped with my current testing.
The key to switching the layers around though as I have found out is to only do small incremental changes at a time. IE. Swap only 1 layer at a time and test.
Yes. Thinner layers or thinner mattresses will have less “range” of compression from soft to firm (see post #14 here) and it may maintain much of the surface softness but feel firmer overall because the layers would compress to a greater percentage of their thickness so I thought it may be worth trying as an option (after your other combinations) to see if it made any difference (although as CentralPA mentioned I would go very slowly with “incremental” changes and not make rapid changes that your body doesn’t have time to keep up with or identify a “pattern” that you can assess).
Thanks.
I have now spent another night on the F,F,M continuous pour.
Last night I struggled against the softness of the bed. My hips especially sank in where the holes in the latex are bigger for extra softness. I finally ended up getting a little sleep by sleeping across the bed where the holes are smaller and bed is firmer.
I need no more experiments with this combination. It isn’t working.
Today I will ask the owner about what he suggests although the options i have now are either F,M,F (which felt too hard the one night I tried it) but I might give that a few nights. I will also ask him about taking out one layer (ending up with either F,M or M, F).
At last resort I could also turn the latex sideways and cut it making my bed shorter which is fine for my 5’3" height so I’m sleeping “down” the smaller holes I need for support.
It seems the problem for me anyway is that the holes they make aren’t really helpful. I’d rather have the whole latex piece be the SE firmness all the way down the mattress. The holes also get bigger again at my shoulders but that’s what’s causing my head to “pop up” too high and neck pain.
After doing more reading this morning it seems to me that like any other foam experience I’ve had, this may be about having that top softer support layer be thinner than the 3" it is now.
I will see what the owner thinks about this and if he has any thinner layers.
I do wish I had someone her to check my alignment.
Are your layers 3" each?
Feel better .[/quote]
Yes my layers are 3" each.
Also is your mattress talalay or dunlop? I read somewhere and Phoenix can correct me that dunlop can feel slightly firmer when flipped over. So if your medium layer is dunlop and you flip it over, it might firm up enough to fit the difference of the F/M/F and the F/F/M you have been trying out.
Phoenix please correct me if I misinterpreted this from what I had read earlier….
When you say “flipped over” do you mean “smooth side up”? That side does feel firmer.
Since the softer layer on top was way too soft for me, I already changed it back to F, M, F for tonight. But I think I will do what you suggest (oppositely) and put that top Firm layer “smooth side down” and see if that softens up this configuration.
If that doesn’t work I will try F,M (2 layers only) with the M layer on top - and smooth side up - as you suggest.
Thanks again.
The continuous pour process has less settling of the latex particles so there may not be as much difference between the top and bottom firmness as molded Dunlop but the “skin” side may be a little firmer and it’s certainly worth a try.
Our fills are shredded natural latex, millet hulls, kapok fiber. All of them are mold and mildew resistant, non habitable for dustmites. And each pillow has a very different feel to it.
I now completely understand what Phoenix means about people having different ideas of what “soft” and “firm” are. Having tried the very same mattress that LookingNow has , i would never think of it as being too soft (it was a comfortable firm for me) . But for her it is too soft of a firm. Its funny because i was happy to have found a latex that had a firmer feel overall than what i was finding elsewhere (albeit not many), so to hear it being described as yet too soft brings home Phoenix’s points on the difficulty of comparing firmness levels based on an individuals perceptions.
Lookingnow, did you try the the Firm, Firm, Firm configuration…was it too firm for you in the showroom? Since you do sleep on your side as well, i can see how maybe that setup couldve been overlooked.
I’m so glad you like your mattress. And thank you for posting this because it implies to me that perhaps many other latexes out there are not as “sturdy” as the ones we got from Spindle. I knew it was a good product; it’s “attractive” if you will but I had nothing to compare it to. Validates it was a good choice for me.
It could be that I am lighter in weight than you? I’m 130 lbs. so maybe you compress the mattress more and feel the harder bottom layers more than I do.
I am a petite woman also so 3" of M foam might be like an ocean to me whereas it could be more like a pond to you.
I did not hear that firmnesses feel that different to people but I can see how this can really be so specific.
May I ask how tall you are and if your body conforms to the zoning well? Do your hips rest on the firmer small holes or beneath that section on the larger softer part of the layer?
Oh - yes I tried the FFF and it seemed too firm in the showroom for me.
I’m really comfortable somewhere in between the M & F which is why I have the M in the center of the 2 F layers
I’ll see what happens if I switch them out for monozoned layers
Hi LookingNow, i actually have not had the chance to pull the trigger and buy my mattress yet, but hoping to by end of this week.
You know, i didnt even realize the latex had zoning but im glad to hear that it does. I am 5’3" as well but im heavier than you at 160lbs. My weight is evenly proportioned though so i dont have a particular part of me that is alot heavier than another. Not sure if this is why i felt like the FFM was a comfortable firm to me…for me, i know i would not like it firmer because i also veered equally towards the FMM. Like you said, you need a specific firmness for your stomach sleeping which i think can make things tricky it seems.
As far as different latex models, i wish i could tell you i tried many, but i only experienced talalay at a local manufacturer which to me was a much bouncier type of latex. I also tried whatever type is in the Nature’s Rest latex mattresses (they dont say which latex is used) at Cardi’s furniture, but it felt bouncy too. So, when i layed on Spindles continuous Dunlop, i was relieved to feel softness without feeling a jello-like sensation on top, which to me gave them a firmer, less “bouncy” feel than i had previously experienced.
Although I am still not 100% about this combination I am still in the testing phase I will say I have had over a week of sleeping on it and my pain has decreased significantly. Although being sick has also not helped with my current testing.