Hello everyone,
I’ve had quite a time since last February when I decided to replace my 12 year old mattress. It pains me to admit it, but I’m currently on my seventh (!!!) mattress, and don’t feel like I’m much closer to a happy conclusion. Needless to say, whatever my initial budget was, I blew that up long ago… (My friends think I’m crazy and I think I agree!) But I’m not giving up…!
My basics: I’m in NYC, 42 years old, 130 lbs, primarily a back sleeper, healthy. I’m also a professional pianist, so, though my posture is good, my shoulders and back muscles get a huge workout everyday, and if they can’t recover at night, I’m sunk.
The mattress I owned before was a double-sided cheapy Kingsdown innerspring from Sleepy’s. Nothing overly cushiony, just enough to support me and float me. My desire was to find something like it but better quality. I know the business has changed, but I figured I could find something out there like it. Ha-ha.
The sordid details: I went through 3 from Sleepy’s: increasingly firm, as, for some reason, my pelvis would sink too far in all of them (i.e., the Simmons Avondale firm) until ending up with a Carolina firm, which was just a rock. At which point, I gave up on Sleepy’s and tried 2 of the Simmons Truenergy line from Macy’s. Better on my shoulders, but still pelvis issues, and to me, like swimming in foam! Couldn’t ever adjust to it. Well, those went back and, though I really knew better, I got talked into trying the MySide Green from Sleepy’s. Wow, that thing caused me so much back pain I could barely breathe. Eventually I turned it upside down, put on a foam topper, and slept on that through the winter. (Eventually I cut the pillowtop off, will Youtube the results at some point, seeing it in its cheap glory is something else!)
Anyhow, earlier this year I headed up to Norwalk mattress factory. Didn’t like their innerspring beds much (nor their salesmanship, that’s another story) - they all use 13 gauge linked springs, no variation, and I didn’t find the poly foam on them very comfy. I took a chance on one of their cotton-quilted latex mattresses, figuring if it was too firm I could put a topper on it. Well, it is wayyy to firm (a 36 ILD core) so I sought out Bob at Custom Sleep design, and right now have a 3" 19/14 ILD split. And I’m still miserable!
It’s hard to determine what goes wrong, I can fall asleep right away on anything, it’s what happens when I’m asleep. Or doesn’t happen: I don’t sink into a very deep sleep, and my muscles don’t relax or recuperate all night. So a dull fatigue/ache/soreness follows me around all day. My brain seems aware of the slight shakiness, the potential for moment, of the latex, and is on guard all night (I actually sleep on the 19 part, the 14 is too quivery for me). And I don’t feel like I sink into it enough: even the soft stuff I find too resilient. As good as Bob is being to me, I wonder if any combo of Talalay will ever work for me.
So I guess my questions are: should I go back to trying to find the innerspring my subconscious seems to want? (For instance, I like the feel of the cushion-firm Stearns & Fosters or Serta, but have stayed away due to the companies reputation. Who DOES make good versions of these?) Or: is there a sensible way to try to make my latex configuration work? Draw in a different kind of foam? I’ve stayed away from the all-out memory foam beds, they seem firm to me, but plenty of my friends swear by them.
So there it is: Hello! I’ve had quite a year and half, would love to resolve this and get back to living my usual, hyper-active life. Any thoughts?
Ed