Mattress comfort layers - latex

[phoenix]

Hi sparky.

Welcome to our Mattress Forum!

Thank you for all the background information you provided which can certainly make it simpler to offer input and also thanks for your kind comments … I appreciate it!

When that started I realized the top memory foam layer was pretty mashed. Each of us had a little furrow we were sleeping in. I didn’t think that was necessarily a bad thing - I liked my furrow! When the discomfort started to be a nightly thing I first thought it must be from pressure on my hip but after doing research here (lots of great info here!) and elsewhere I think it’s more likely misalignment from my pelvis sinking too low.

It’s always nice when people coming here go through a few of the mattress basics and track down the possible cause of the “symptoms” they are experiencing … what you’ve described is certainly typical for the aging and breakdown of foams within a mattress which usually leads to sagging, postural issues, and the type of pains that you are describing.

As an experiment we turned our current mattress over. The bottom layer of our tempurpedic is a very firm foam (polyfoam?) but it has a little give and we were able to sleep on it for a few nights. Although the firmness wasn’t especially comfortable it wasn’t HORRIBLE and the pain in my legs/hip went away. I think that confirmed that discomfort’s from sagging down into the old memory foam.

This is certainly a creative approach that can buy you sometime before needing to replace your current mattress. You did not mention this but I’m assuming that you’ve already checked the support system under your bed to rule out any bending or sagging under the weight of the mattress and the people sleeping on it. Generally, foams wear out from the top down as the upper layers of a mattress are subject to more compression than the lower layers. While the bottom polyfoam (Yes! to your “?” :)) layer of the mattress would be in better shape than the top comfort layers I’d keep in mind that the Base layer(s) in all the Tempur collections from more than a decade ago used AirFlow System of convoluted foam which in theory helps the layers to breathe but in practice with a 15 year old mattress even if you get the comfort/support just right for you …. the flipping of your mattress may somehow compromise the structural and support integrity you need for proper alignment. The new “configuration” with the firm 4" (which they used for many of their beds at the time) on top of the “mushed” memory foam can contribute to collapsing and bending to a certain extent of the poly layer into the “furrow” created by the foam breakdown of the comfort layers. (The degree depends on many factors such as the polyfoam thickness and age, convolution dimensions: pinnacle base thickness and height, IFD and of course density)

We got it this week and have had only 2 nights on it. When laying on it it’s very comfortable and my husband is fine. But I think I’m sinking in too much. It almost feels the same or softer than the memory foam felt. I haven’t had the same pain at this point but my legs definitely feel a little something. I don’t know if it’s my imagination since I’m obsessing over how it feels. So I plan to keep trying it for a while longer and maybe I’ll get used to it. I do tend to be the princess and the pea-ish so I’m worried that I’m never going to be able to find something perfect.

I don’t know which Tempur model you own but it would be interesting to open the zipper and see if the comfort layer can be removed and replaced with the 3" of latex from Sleep EZ … this way you’ll get a few more data points but I’d certainly give the now new set up a little longer to allow your body to go through the adjustment period before you decide the type of changes you may need based on your body’s feedback.

You are very light which means that depending on your primary sleeping position you won’t sink in as far into a foam material as people who are heavier and layer thickness also plays a role in the design of a sleeping system that is the most suitable for you. You may need to adjust the “standard” layer thickness -/+ an inch or so to sink in just enough to relieve pressure without allowing the heavier hips to sink in too far. Only working with softness options instead of thickness options may not be enough for some people who are either more sensitive, smaller (where changes can have a bigger proportional effect relative to the body) or have a body type and weight distribution that is outside the “averages”. You can read more about the effect of thickness in post #14 here but this depends more on the specific construction and combination of materials in the mattress and on how well your testing or personal experience indicates the mattress “as a whole” matches your specific needs and preferences in terms of comfort, firmness, and PPP (Posture and alignment, Pressure relief, and your own Personal preferences) than it does on just the thickness itself.

The balance between “allowing” the shoulders and hips to sink in enough to relieve pressure and at the same time “stopping” the pelvis from sinking in too far and affecting spinal alignment is part of the art and science of all mattress construction this is why I’d suggest that you work closely with Sleep EZ as they have an excellent track record of finding great “out-of-the box solutions” that involve using their products in combination with other products and making recommendations for any particular needs. As you can see this can get quite complex but again the three specifications of a foam material that control most of the pressure relief (along with layer thickness) are ILD/IFD, compression modulus, and point elasticity (and temperature sensitivity with memory foam) which together with the thickness of the softer layers create the pressure relieving “cradle” and needs to be balanced against it’s “opposite” which is support and alignment.

I’m looking forward to finding out what a few more nights of sleep on the new set up will bring … and of course any additional comments or questions you may have along the way that I or any of the Expert members of the site can help with.

Phoenix