New Mattress Advice!

This is my first post on this forum, although I have read many other posts on here and learned a great deal of information about mattresses. In advance - Thank you for the help!

I, for the first time in my life, will be purchasing a new mattress. My main reason for this purchase has to do with lower back pain due to degenerating and bulging discs in my lower spine. I need a mattress that is fairly firm and supportive ( I sleep on my back only).

I have done research and read reviews, and I think I have settled on this mattress:
Sleep Science 10" King Memory Foam Mattress
http://www.costco.com/Sleep-Science-10"-King-Memory-Foam-Mattress.product.11472925.html

  1. Thoughts? Opinions? (On the mattress above)
  2. If I go with this mattress, what should I put it on? It is only 10" and I know that is going to be pretty low. Should I just put it on a big piece of plyboard on a bed frame, or should I buy a box springs (can you even put a memory foam bed on box springs?)? If I need to buy box springs, how do I know what will work best?

As you can probably tell, I am a newbie and essentially know nothing about mattresses. I appreciate any input!

Hi vjane89,

I’m guessing from your questions that you may not have read the tutorial post which is the first place I would start and has all the basic information, steps, and guidelines that you will need to make the best possible choices … and know how to avoid the worst ones.

You can read my thoughts about mattress reviews and why I wouldn’t use them to choose a mattress in post #13 here.

You can read my thoughts about buying from Costco or other big box stores in post #4 here.

There would be no way for you to know how well the mattress will work for you or how suitable it will be in terms of PPP (or your back issues) until you actually sleep on it so at least the return policy at Costco is a good one.

Outside of how well a mattress matches your needs and preferences though … a mattress is only as good as its construction and the quality of the materials inside it. Costco doesn’t have any information in the listing about the quality/density of all the layers in the mattress but you can read more about the Sleep Science Emma in post #2 here. As you can see the quality of the materials are low and certainly lower than I would consider.

Outside of the quality of the materials … Sleep Science also doesn’t meet the criteria I would use for a memory foam mattress (see post #10 here) because it’s made in China and isn’t CertiPur certified. You can read a little more about my phone experience with Sleep Science in post #2 here.

There is more about foundations and which ones are suitable for use with different mattresses and some good sources in the foundation post here. I would personally avoid using plywood or any solid non breathable surface under a mattress because of the lack of ventilation unless there was a compelling reason to do so that was worth the additional risk (see post #10 here). Memory foam mattresses will usually do best on a solid non flexing slat foundation or one of the wire grid types of foundations mentioned in the foundation post (and I would avoid a box spring with wire springs inside it that flex).

Phoenix

Great, thank you for all the wonderful advice.

I am going to spend the next couple weeks reading all of your informational posts and doing my research. It is important to me that I pick a mattress that will be beneficial to my lower back. I may even have to seek your advice some more.

:slight_smile:

As soon as I decide on a mattress, I will be back to let you know! Thanks again!!

Hi vjane889,

I’m looking forward to finding out what you end up choosing and of course any questions or comments you may have along the way :slight_smile:

Phoenix

Okay, I am hoping you can offer some more advice!

My mattress is ancient and the back support is very minimal (aka I wake up in pain). I recently stayed at the Four Seasons where I slept on a Simmons Beautyrest firm mattress and it greatly reduced my back pain. That is the point I realized I HAVE to get a new mattress, for the sake of my lower back. I was planning to get that same mattress until I stumbled upon this forum.

Today, I went on a wonderful visit to Escondido Mattress Factory . They were very knowledgable and helped me to understand my options, yet I still left empty handed. I plan on going back, but I just do not know what type of mattress is ‘right’ for me!

Is there any information out there about how much my lower back should or should not sink down into the mattress? That is what I struggled with the most today. I KNOW I am in desperate need of lower back support, but after years on an awful mattress, I have lost sight of what is best for my lower back. And of course, it is hard to tell after just laying on a mattress for a short period of time.

While at Escondido Mattress I spent time on their latex and innerspring mattresses.

(I sleep on my back - always)

I liked the innerspring mattress that was a step down from the firmest. It felt supportive enough and comfortable.
I also liked the latex…the firmest latex was too firm, but seemed supportive and comfortable with an additional latex topper. The next step down in terms of firmness seemed comfortable, but I was not sure if it was quite firm enough (but then again, I had no idea what exactly was considered to be ‘supportive’ and I ended up confusing myself).

As you can likely tell, I am confused! Which - latex or innerspring - is better for lower back problems?And should I be considering memory foam at all in my lineup of mattress options? How do I know if it is supportive enough until I get home and sleep on it for a while? I know buying a mattress is all about preference, but how do I make a decision if I am unsure of my own preference?

Please talk some sense into me! :stuck_out_tongue:

Thanks in advance for the help and advice!

Hi vjane89,

This is the part of mattress shopping that I can’t help with because there are too many variables, unknowns, and individual preferences to use “theory at a distance” to choose a mattress and only you can feel what you feel on a mattress (see mattress firmness/comfort levels in post #2 here). There is no “right” amount for you to sink into a mattress because different people have different preferences for the softness of the comfort layer but what’s important is that no matter how far you sink into a mattress that your spine is in good alignment in all your sleeping positions. The guidelines in the tutorial post (there are 3 links there that can give you some testing suggestions and guidelines) are the best way I know to make sure your mattress testing is a reasonable approximation of what you will experience when you sleep on the mattress. I would also make sure that you spend “enough” time testing the mattress (a minimum of 15 minutes while you are completely relaxed) so you have some confidence that it’s a suitable choice for you. I would also make sure you know the options you have available if you need to do any “fine tuning” after a purchase but good testing will greatly increase your odds of success.

I would also keep in mind that “feel”, spinal alignment, and pressure relief are all very different from each other and that going by “feel” may have lower odds of success than random chance alone (see this study). There need to be different levels of “support” under different parts of the body and some areas where your mattress needs to “allow” you to sink in more deeply (less support) and some that the mattress needs to “stop” you from sinking in to deeply (more support) so the end result is that you are in good alignment in all your sleeping positions (or in your case on your back). You can see from this diagram how a mattress that is too firm can lead to sleeping out of alignment just as easily as a mattress that is too soft.

Phoenix