New Alexander Hybrid Mattress from Nest Bedding

Discussions General Mattresses Questions
51

Hi abbygrant,

This topic is starting to drift off topic but I thought I’d make a few comments about some of your more recent posts.

While it’s not possible to “diagnose” mattress comfort issues on a forum with any certainty because there are too many unique unknowns, variables, and complexities involved that can affect how each person sleeps on a mattress in terms of “comfort” and PPP (Posture and alignment, Pressure relief, and your Personal preferences) or any “symptoms” they experience … there is more about the most common symptoms that people may experience when they sleep on a mattress and the most likely (although not the only) reasons for them in post #2 here that may be helpful.

It’s certainly possible that your shoulder issues could be related to your pillow as well and there are some specific comments in the post I linked about shoulder issues.

There may be a fine line for some people that are closer to the “princess and the pea” than the “I can sleep on anything” end of the range but for others there may be a much wider range of mattresses and firmness ranges that would work well for them. Each person is different.

I would also keep in mind that there are no “standard” definitions or consensus of opinions for firmness ratings and different manufacturers can rate their mattresses very differently than others so a mattress that one manufacturer rates as being a specific firmness could be rated very differently by another manufacturer. Different people can also have very different perceptions of firmness and softness compared to others as well and a mattress that feels firm for one person can feel like “medium” for someone else or even “soft” for someone else (or vice versa) depending on their body type, sleeping style, physiology, their frame of reference based on what they are used to, and their individual sensitivity and perceptions. There are also different types of firmness and softness that different people may be sensitive to that can affect how they “rate” a mattress as well (see post #15 here) so different people can also have very different opinions on how two mattresses compare in terms of firmness and some people may rate one mattress as being firmer than another and someone else may rate them the other way around. This is all relative and very subjective and is as much an art as a science.

While other people’s comments about the knowledge and service of a particular business can certainly be very helpful … I would also keep in mind that you are the only one that can feel what you feel on a mattress and I would be cautious about about using other people’s experiences or reviews on a mattress (either positive or negative) or review sites in general as a reliable source of information or guidance about how you will feel on the same mattress or how suitable or how durable a mattress may be for you and in many if not most cases they can be more misleading than helpful. A mattress that would be a perfect choice for one person or even a larger group of people may be completely unsuitable for someone else to sleep on (even if they are in a similar weight range). In other words … reviews in general won’t tell you much if anything about the suitability, quality, durability, or “value” of a mattress for any particular person (see post #13 here).

Latex and memory foam are very different materials with very different properties. There is more about the differences between them in post #2 here but comparing the firmness or “feel” of a latex mattress to a memory foam mattress can be something like trying to decide which type of apple is closest to an orange because they will all be different from each other. Again … different people can also have very different opinions about how two mattresses compare because firmness/softness is always relative to the person and there are different “types” of softness that different people may be sensitive to.

If the Tempurpedic Cloud Supreme worked well for you then it would probably make sense to look at mattresses that were similar to the Cloud Supreme rather than looking at other types of mattresses with different combinations of foam materials. The Alexander Select medium would be one of several online mattresses that are described as being similar to the Tempurpedic Cloud Supreme that would be well worth considering.

There is no such thing as a mattress that is “good for athletes” … only a mattress that is good for a specific person (regardless of whether they are an athlete or not). Celiant does have some testing that indicates that it can help with rest and recovery but the specifics of a cover are much less important than whether a mattress “as a whole” is a good “match” for you in terms of “comfort”, firmness, and PPP and I would put a much greater emphasis on the other materials in a mattress than I would on the cover.

Phoenix

52

Hi zexpress,

The edge support in your BME was probably related more to the firmness level you chose (soft) than to the mattress itself.

Most foam mattresses don’t have or even really need side support if they have a support core that is firm enough and the comfort layers aren’t too thick and/or soft for the person sleeping on it. Having said that … there are exceptions to every rule and there is more information about edge support and foam mattresses in post #3 here and in post #33 here. With a foam mattress that is a suitable firmness level relative to the person sleeping on it (both in the support core and the comfort layers) then it normally wouldn’t be a significant issue for most people unless you often sleep or sit with most of your weight concentrated on the very outside edge of the mattress although the outside edges of a foam mattress would generally be softer than an innerspring mattress that has a specific edge support system.

The only way to know for certain whether the edges of a foam mattress will be suitable for your specific body type and sleeping style or your preferences will be based on testing the mattress in person (or a mattress that is fairly similar) before a purchase or by actually sleeping on it (if you can’t test it in person before a purchase) and of course if you are uncertain whether you are one of the few that may “need” or prefer firmer edge support then a good return/exchange policy may be a more important part of your personal value equation just in case the edges aren’t firm enough for you (regardless of whether they are firm enough for anyone else).

Phoenix

53

The hybrid has much better support than the soft BBME which makes sense. They have very different feels though and would have a hard time comparing them since the latex vs memory foam make it a hard comparison. I will say the hybrid doesn’t feel anything like a traditional memory foam mattress so if you liked the feel of a tempurpedic you’re not going to get that with the hybrid. You might want to consider the NovosBed. It is another memory foam mattress and they have different comfort levels including the ability to soften or firm the mattress after you receive it to make it more comfortable.

54

Hi
I am interested in your post you wrote that you were waking up w arms falling asleep . That has been happening to me almost every night since I got my Satvaa luxury firm mattress ! Crazy ! Has happened like 2x in my life and now every night for past 2 weeks ! The Satvaa guy online told me usually happens from too firm , but you said & I agree I think too soft. Mine is not too firm and pillow top makes it soft as well. How did You find it its happens due to a too soft mattress ? I’ve been hunting all over Internet for a cause before I return a little afraid to get their firm one but may have to try ! Any help would be so appreciated!
Thank you

55

[quote=“Meri831” post=61350]Hi
I am interested in your post you wrote that you were waking up w arms falling asleep . That has been happening to me almost every night since I got my Satvaa luxury firm mattress ! Crazy ! Has happened like 2x in my life and now every night for past 2 weeks ! The Satvaa guy online told me usually happens from too firm , but you said & I agree I think too soft. Mine is not too firm and pillow top makes it soft as well. How did You find it its happens due to a too soft mattress ? I’ve been hunting all over Internet for a cause before I return a little afraid to get their firm one but may have to try ! Any help would be so appreciated!
Thank you[/quote]

I have had this issue a lot when the mattress it too firm, never when its too soft. This happens to me a lot at hotels with really firm mattresses and I get around it by sleeping in a side/stomach position with a pillow sorta propping me up a bit. Definitely have not experienced it on the BBBME or Hybrid. For me when a mattress is too soft I have pain in my lower back.

Now of course everyone is different in weight and body type so of course I imagine its possible for someone to have this happen for other reasons but in my experience it has always been the reverse.

Abby based on what you have described in terms of the mattresses you’ve liked and not liked you probably just don’t like the feel of latex and want something more like the Tempurpedic kinda feel which is unlike most of the mattress in a box mattresses. The Hybrid is going to sleep a lot more like a regular mattress then a memory foam one, at least based on my experience over the past month. I would definitely say check out NovosBed. Apparently they are a member of this site and while theirs is a mattress in a box like the others they give you the ability to adjust the firmness after the fact with a zip on topper. This way you can get a medium and if end up wanting it softer they will send you a free topper that you can then zip on to soften the top layer.

56

Hi Meri831,

As zexpress and “the Saatva guy” mentioned … the most common reason would be a mattress that is too firm but it’s certainly not the only reason for the “symptoms” you are describing because it can also be a result of your sleeping position and it could also be a pillow issue as well.

Did you read the comments at the beginning of this post (and the post it linked to about mattress "symptoms)?

There is more information about Saatva mattresses along with some of the other simplified choice online mattresses in post #2 here and in post #1 here and the rest of the topic and a forum search on Saatva (you can just click the link) will bring up more comments and feedback about them as well.

While it’s not possible to predict how any mattress will feel for someone else with any certainty because there are too many unknowns, variables, and individual preferences involved … there are certainly other “simplified choice” mattresses that use better quality and more durable materials and I would also be cautious about buying any mattress based on the “marketing information” that is on their website.

If you are looking at online options then outside of the simplified choice list the mattress shopping tutorial also includes several links to lists of many of the better online options I’m aware of (in the optional online step) that include many different types and categories of mattresses in a wide range of budgets and firmness levels that would be well worth considering.

Phoenix

57

ADMIN NOTE: This was originally a reply to this post but was split into it’s own topic because it was outside the scope of the original topic it was posted in.

[quote=“Meri831” post=61350]Hi
I am interested in your post you wrote that you were waking up w arms falling asleep . That has been happening to me almost every night since I got my Satvaa luxury firm mattress ! Crazy ! Has happened like 2x in my life and now every night for past 2 weeks ! The Satvaa guy online told me usually happens from too firm , but you said & I agree I think too soft. Mine is not too firm and pillow top makes it soft as well. How did You find it its happens due to a too soft mattress ? I’ve been hunting all over Internet for a cause before I return a little afraid to get their firm one but may have to try ! Any help would be so appreciated!
Thank you[/quote]

Like Phoenix and Zexpress said, everyone is different. When I sleep on an innerspring mattress (like visiting my Mom or sleeping in an hotel) , I always wake up with aching shoulders and upper back. It feels like my shoulders are being pressed together by a giant vise-grip. But my arms almost never went to sleep and became numb on those mattresses, and they are not falling asleep now on the Bear mattress. I don’t know why. I believe that those mattresses are too firm for me and are causing the shoulder aches and pains but for whatever reason my arms don’t fall asleep. I do sleep on my side and sleep with my arms around a latex foam pillow and keep another pillow between my knees. I had to learn to sleep like this when I had a herniated disc in my neck. I slept on a water pillow for years, but recently switched to a Nest Bedding Easy Breather pillow. This Nest pillow seems to be working well for me so I don’t think my pillow is the problem. I switched from the water pillow because it was really heavy, it’s hard to get the right amount of water in it, and I was always worried that it may leak water onto my foam bed and ruin it…

I tried 2 very soft mattresses and woke up several times during the night with my arms asleep and numb. It was not the same as my painful achy shoulders from the firm mattresses. So I came to the conclusion that something about the soft mattresses was causing this, but I wasn’t sure why. I thought that it was something about me that did not work with a soft ,mattress.

I was strongly considering an Alexander Signature because they claim to be very similar to the TempurCloud Supreme, which was my old bed and I loved it. But I stumbled on the Novosbed and ended up ordering one of those today. Many online reviews said it was dense memory foam most similar to Tempurpedic. I did a lengthy online chat with Gaille at Novosbed, and she said that perhaps the arms falling asleep and numbness on the soft beds were caused by my shoulders sinking right through the soft top layer and resting on the firmer support layer, which must be too firm for me. Perhaps this is correct.

Anyway, I am very anxious to get my new Novosbed. I will sadly return the Bear. (Sadly because I wanted to love it,) Until I get my Novosbed I will sleep in the guest room on my old TempurCloud Supreme. My husband gets the master bedroom with the TV all to himself for a few days. :slight_smile:

58

Congrats on the new purchase eager to hear how it works out for you… It definitely sounds like from what you have liked in the past that this might be more along the lines of what you are wanting. I am now 30 days in with my Hyrbrid so will probably make a decision on what to try next relatively soon. I have always enjoyed the feel of memory foam mattresses but as a hot sleeper I have always been cautious. Looking forward to your opinions. Which model did you go with? The medium?

59

I’m still enjoying it, although I recently added a mattress protector and it made the mattresses noticibly firmer. Prior to that it was a medium soft. Now id say it’s firmness is medium.

60

Thank u so much for getting back to me. I certainly don’t remember when I was younger that buying a mattress was such a huge production !
I am going to look at the links u told me about. I am mostly a stomach sleeper and I weigh 102 lbs. I had a v flat pillow almost my whole life (same pillow since I had my son who is 30! Now and last year I bought an “Indulgence Isotonic” and I love it was v surprised. I seem to be the princess and the pea with mattress , but will continue my search. Thanks again

61

Hi
Thanks for your reply. What is a BBBME? I don’t want a foam bed. But…My sister did just get a sleep number bed and she loves it. I slept over her house recently while she was away and told her I loved her bed , but I don’t need such a fancy $$$$ one , and my husband passed away so the number thing is a waste for me. Is the sleep number a foam bed ? I don’t really know. I did sleep great on it though.
I’m just going to have to pay attention before my trial time is up to my arms falling asleep. It’s just the weirdest thing .

62

Hi abbygrant,

Congratulations on your new mattress :slight_smile:

The Novosbed medium is one of several mattresses in the memory foam list that “approximates” the Tempurpedic Cloud Supreme and you certainly made a great quality/value choice. I hope that it turns out better for you than the other mattresses that you’ve tried.

I’m looking forward to your comments and feedback once you’ve received it and have had the chance to sleep on it for a bit.

Phoenix

63

Hi Meri831,

It means Brooklyn Bedding BestMattressEver which is one of the simplified choice mattresses that are in the list I linked in my last reply. It’s a latex/polyfoam hybrid.

“Foam” is just a generic name that means a material with air bubbles inside it. It can refer to different types of materials. There are three main types of foam (memory foam, polyfoam, and latex foam) that are all different from each other and most mattresses in the industry contain some foam layers. Your Saatva mattress for example includes some memory foam and some polyfoam layers.

Assuming that the materials in a mattress you are considering are durable enough for your body type and meet the quality/durability guidelines here relative to your weight range … the choice between different types and combinations of materials and components or different types of mattresses are more of a preference and a budget choice than a “better/worse” choice (see this article).

Sleep Number is an airbed that uses an air bladder as a support core on the bottom and then has different types and combinations of foam layers (polyfoam or memory foam) on top of the air bladder depending on the specific model.

You can see my thoughts about airbeds in general this article. While any mattress can be a good match for a specific person because each person’s needs and preferences or the criteria that are most important to them can be very different … in general terms I would tend to avoid them unless there is a very compelling reason that an airbed would be a better choice for you in “real life” (outside of the many “marketing stories” that you will hear about them) than the many other options or types of mattresses that are available to you.

If you are committed to an airbed and you are convinced that there are no other types of mattresses that will meet your criteria then there are some other airbed options that are listed in post #3 here that may be much better quality/value choices than Sleep Number/Select Comfort.

The best place to start your research is the mattress shopping tutorial which I linked in my last reply which includes all the basic information, steps, and guidelines that can help you make the best possible choice … and perhaps more importantly know how and why to avoid the worst ones.

Two of the most important links in the tutorial that I would especially make sure you’ve read are post #2 here which has more about the different ways to choose a suitable mattress (either locally or online) that is the best “match” for you in terms of “comfort” and PPP that can help you assess and minimize the risks of making a choice that doesn’t turn out as well as you hoped for and post #13 here which has more about the most important parts of the “value” of a mattress purchase which can help you make more meaningful quality/value comparisons between mattresses in terms of suitability (how well you will sleep), durability (how long you will sleep well), and the overall value of a mattress compared to your other finalists (based on all the parts of your personal value equation that are most important to you).

If you would also like to include some local options in your research that you can try in person before a purchase then if you let me know your city or zip code I’d be happy to let you know about the better options or possibilities I’m aware of in your area.

Phoenix

64

I just don’t understand. I thought I was adjusting to the hybrid, plus the mattress protector seemed to make a difference. But last night was the worst & actually painful. I swapped pillows because my neck & shoulders were bothering me so much. Then the old issue of being too soft & not supportive enough around the hips occurred as well. I have to say I’m disappointed at this point, I really thought my issues were abating, but apparently not.

65

Hi Loiroi,

I would be a little cautious about paying too much attention to a single night’s experience which can be an anomaly and pay more attention to “patterns” instead. Everyone can sleep poorly sometimes on a mattress that they normally sleep well on for many reasons.

Having said that … if there is a clear pattern that you aren’t sleeping well and your experience is consistent and things don’t seem to be improving over time then the reasons why you aren’t sleeping well on a mattress aren’t as important as the fact itself. The goal of the trial period is so that you can try a mattress in your bedroom instead of a showroom to find out how well you sleep on a mattress and if it becomes clear that a mattress isn’t a “good enough” match for you in terms of PPP then you can just exchange or donate/return it. Each person is unique and a mattress that is “perfect” for one person may not be suitable for someone else to sleep on and the only way to really know for certain is based on your own personal experience.

Phoenix

66

Thank you Phoenix for your reassuring & thoughtful words. I wanted the hybrid to be the “right” choice. From reading other forum responses, I realize that it’s a process that might involve choosing & returning more than one mattress. I will continue to give this mattress a try, but it’s been frustrating of late.

67

My wife and I have been sleeping on the Nest Alexander Hybrid for a little over a month now, and we both really like it. This was in fact our 3rd bed in a box. We first tried the Leesa which was to firm. Then I learned about quality aspect of mattresses on this site, and was disappointed to find out Leesa only uses 3 lb. memory foam. So it got donated to charity. We then tried the Brooklyn Bedding #BME-soft. We liked it, but in the end just didn’t provide enough support for us. (My wife and I are 160 lb & 125 lb side sleepers.)

Finally at the beginning of January we ordered the Nest Alexander Hybrid. We have finally found our sweet spot in a mattress. We’ve been sleeping on it over a month now. It provides us great support in side/back sleeping positions, but is also giving enough that it doesn’t give us any sore spots while sleeping on our sides. The quality of craftsmanship seem to be fine. Here’s a few of the qualities we like:

  1. Even though it has 6" of memory foam, there is no sinking or stuck feeling. The top of the mattress is very responsive to changes in position. The 1.5" quilted cover helps in this regard I suspect.
  2. The edges of the bed are quite supportive. My wife and I sleep on a queen bed, and I tend to sleep all the way to the side of the bed at times. I can also sit on the edge just fine. (Something I couldn’t do with the Leesa or #bme.)
  3. It does not sleep hot. I don’t sleep particularly hot, but my wife does. She has not complained once about this mattress sleeping hot. (we do use bamboo sheets)
  4. We appreciate the bounce of the pocketed coils. I suppose it’s just familiarity, but it really works well for us.
  5. A few of the posts above suggested quality problems. Our bed does have a few loose threads, but there is no quality problems with this bed. Everything is aligned well, and seems to be very well made.

Unless something goes majorly wrong in the next few months, we will not be returning this mattress. I know mattresses are one of the most subjective purchases we make, but we really like the Nest Alexander Hybrid.

68

I ordered the Novosbed soft, which was recommended by their customer support. I received the bed yesterday, which was very quick. I slept on it last night and slept very well with no shoulder pain. My first impression was that it did have a very similar feel to my old TempurCloud Supreme. I will give an update in a few weeks.

69

Glad to hear the first night went well. How would you say it did on sleeping hot? Not sure if you typically have issues with that. Heat is my biggest concern of going to regular memory foam mattress vs something like the Alexander which has the quilted cover on top.

70

Hi chadb97,

Thanks for taking the time to share your comments and feedback … I appreciate it :slight_smile:

As you know you certainly made a great quality/value choice and it’s great to hear that your third choice is working out so well for you.

Phoenix