Hello! I’ve had lower back pain almost every day for over a year. A while back I switched from a saggy old mattress to a DIY all latex mattress. I am mostly a side sleeper with fairly wide shoulders and hips and about 220lbs. I went with a stack of latex that was extra firm-medium-soft (all dunlap 3" layers), wrapped in a stretchy cotton encasement. When this didn’t work for me I added a couple soft toppers (I was having pressure/pain on my hip while laying on my side, plus back pain in the morning). I’ve tried every logical combination of the three latex layers +/- the soft toppers and nothing seems to resolve my back pain. I think all latex has too much pushback for me. I also tried a 3" memory foam layer on top/in the middle and it made everything worse.
A couple weeks ago I finally went and ordered texas pocket coils in 15.5g medium firmness with edge support. I’ve been sleeping on that with the 3" soft latex on top all week and have had no change in back pain. Last night I tried adding my 1.5" soft poly foam on top, no difference. Tonight I’m trying no latex, just the coils+soft poly foam to see if that gives me the support my back needs. I’m borderline at the weight where the site suggests a firmer coil, but I feel like these coils are almost too firm and not conforming enough.
I’ve been using a “mattress checker” app that measures how straight your spine is when you lay on your side. It can be helpful for comparing the various setups, but nothing seems to give enough at my hip for my spine to ever be close to straight. Even laying just on the coils my spine isn’t straight. It seems like my hip needs to sink in further so that my waist is supported to keep my spine straight. I end up with hip/back pain while I try to fall asleep and then have back pain during the day. What else can I try to give me some relief? It feels like nothing is making a difference
How tall are you? I agree latex might be too buoyant but it seems like it should have sunk in enough to prevent pain.
I think what might be happening her is another case of too much influence of latex in the build. I’ve seen a lot of people have issues with a 3" top layer.
Those quadcoils are also very supportive. Id rate them as a 7.25/10 firmness, with the 14.75 an 8.5 and the 13.5 a 10.
For example, the nest and wild hybrid I recently bought uses the 15.5g, with a lower coil count of I think 850 and it’s still plenty supportive even with 200 less springs in the build and I weigh 210lbs at 6’1". Id rate the spring layer in that as a 6.5 firmness.
What I believe needs to happen is either less latex, or changing the materials used for the top of the mattress. It’s not commonly recommended here, but polyfoams of different configurations can be bought on foambymail.com and you can arrange those in different ways. Personally id buy them in 1" layers.
A couple of layers you could buy to try in different configurations:
1 1" luxhd for under the springs
2 1" HD36
HD36 convoluted 2.5"
HD36 convoluted 1.5"
Luxhd convoluted 1.5"
Luxhd convoluted 2.5"
All this should cost about $200. I believe the balanced responsiveness of these foams should help it be easier to get comfortable.
When it comes to latex I’ve preferred 2" and 1" layers so that they can be arranged more easily. I think latex can be great for a build but it needs to be settled either with other materials or stitching. Unless you like a very latex controlled build which I don’t like it to be able to influence the feel as much as it wants but many do.
If that does not work you might just be better off with an already made bed. The way they’re stitched and already put together, I’ve noticed tends to help a lot with feeling good about my beds.
I’m now trying just the coils with 1.5" eggcrate poly foam on top. Still not super comfortable to sleep on, but my back pain isn’t any worse so I’ll give it a few nights. For the foams you are suggesting are you thinking those work well individually or are you suggesting them more as a stack? For some of those that would be 4-5" of foam if they’re combined.
I’m concerned about buying a premade mattress since I won’t really know if it works for me without sleeping on it for at least a week. I have slept on two medium-firm mattresses at my mom’s house and they gave me terrible back pain. I have access to a purple mattress that I could try for a night, but it’s not very convenient and I’m not confident that’ll work either.
You’ve already tried so many combinations. I’d test one setup at a time instead of changing multiple layers together. It may also be worth checking your side-sleeping position and hip support.