[The Aaronator]

Here is the dilemma. I have always slept on a firm mattress with the belief that it was better for your back and posture etc. but my wide shoulders make it a little uncomfortable when I lie on my side, even with a stack of pillows. Recently I stayed overnight at a B&B and slept on the softest mattress I have ever laid on and had the most comfortable and therefore good nights sleep I've had for a long time, so now I am severely tempted to change my existing one for a softer model.

So, should I change to a soft mattress for comfort, but with possible back problems or stay with the hard (uncomfortable but healthy) one.

What do you think? What is your experience?

[fatdoc]

memory  foam mattress on a plinth with memory foam pillow. I got a middle of the range one from komfi.co.uk

apart from being hot in the height of summer ( where I like to sleep on the trampoline) it's simply awesome

[SA Chris]

Got memory foam mattress too, sleep well and never get any aches or anything. Like sleeping on a bag of kittens.

[tomtom]

Hmmm.... I'm tallish and tend to get achy backs -

Soft matresses are the work of the devil for me. One or two nights on a soft mattress can give me all sorts of lower back pain...

I've also tried memory foam mattresses and while I quite like them (MrsTT hates them) the one downside is that I tend to get very clammy/sweaty on them... for some reason they dont (I've tried a couple) seem to offer as much under back/arse/leg breathing as a conventional one... Though my spare bed has a £100 argos 'firm' mattress and a memory foam topper (bout an inch thick) that I find as comfy as below.. though not when (ahem) sharing..

I ended up spending £500 on a 'conventional' sprung mattress from John Lewis.  Yup, I never thought I would spend that much on a mattress..  But I tried lots of cheaper options at various shops - and in the end went and lay down on several at JL's and ended up getting their 2nd or 3rd from 'firmest' one... I think its firmly sprung but with a soft topping or something...  People often seem to think you can spend £500 on a bed then £150 on a mattress - I'd go the other way round - you'll sleep alot better!

[SA Chris]

Living in Scotland getting clammy and sweaty is rarely an issue. Mt conventional spring, do you mean pocket sprung. My brother is my height and is plagued by lower back problems and he swears by his.

[tomtom]

Yes, think its pocket sprung.. its a bit of a boggling choice - no substitute for going and lying on loads...

[Paul B]

I'm fairly miffed that I have 25 year guarantee for a broken mattress sans reciept. Ikea mattress that propped on its side whilst we redcorated has had some inner collapse, flipping it the other day resulted in two large troughs and as you know. We're not big people.

[underground]

I'm fairly miffed that I have 25 year guarantee for a broken mattress sans reciept. Ikea mattress that propped on its side whilst we redcorated has had some inner collapse, flipping it the other day resulted in two large troughs and as you know. We're not big people.

You might argue that ikea haven't been in the uk anywhere near 25 years. Have they?

[lagerstarfish]

firm mattress with memory foam topper

three pillows available - even if I only need one most of the time

don't sleep with PaulB; your bed will explode/decompose/collapse

by way of explaination - I have broadish shoulders and the topper means that I can lay on my side without getting pins and needles - in either the recovery position or the palm-under-pillow position

I can only fall asleep initially lying on my back with all of my spine feeling well suported

[Paul B]

You might argue that ikea haven't been in the uk anywhere near 25 years. Have they?

or I didn't buy it aged 0 months even.

To be of more help, I find the sinking part of memory foam very annoying but maybe a topper isn't so bad for this as its only a few inches thick at most?

[Jim]

considering you should spend about 1/3 of your life in bed, I would spend loads of money on a bed/mattress. I went round a few bed shops and tried loads of different mattress' out and then bought the one I liked best off the interweb for the best price I could find. Didn't like them memory foam ones at all. got a semi hard fully sprung type with a mattress topper and mattress protector on top of that.
Don't read anything into the fact that my back/neck is fucked at the moment, thats been ongoing since last winter when I tweaked my neck in the cave

[The Aaronator]

I have broadish shoulders and the topper means that I can lay on my side without getting pins and needles...

I also get bad pins and needles in my shoulder and down my arm when I lay on my side. I once woke up on the day of an important competition with a complete dead arm that still felt a bit numb when I started climbing - hence the worst result of the year!

One of my friends said he trained himself to sleep with his downside arm behind his back when laying on his side and reckoned that it cured the problem, but I can't make it work for myself.

I am tempted to try a thick memory foam topper on my existing mattress which would be an economical way of trying it before forking out hundreds on a new mattress...

Cheers

[duncan]

Studies suggest that people with backache have less pain with medium-firm mattresses than they do with firm mattresses.

Replacing a mattress fairly regularly also seems to help.

Try learning to sleep on your back if you don't already, it's better for your neck (and hence arm pins-and-needles).   If you have to sleep on your side, use two pillows. 

[SA Chris]

I also get bad pins and needles in my shoulder and down my arm when I lay on my side. I once woke up on the day of an important competition with a complete dead arm that still felt a bit numb when I started climbing - hence the worst result of the year!

I used to get that (apart from doing important competitions) but found using a thicker pillow helped.

[slackline]

Two used mattresses going spare (most useful for climbers to pad out their cellar/homeboard rather than sleep on though  ).

[webbo]

Studies suggest that people with backache have less pain with medium-firm mattresses than they do with firm mattresses.

Replacing a mattress fairly regularly also seems to help.

Try learning to sleep on your back if you don't already, it's better for your neck (and hence arm pins-and-needles).   If you have to sleep on your side, use two pillows.

i too get pins and needles if i sleep on my side.i would love to sleep on my back but the chances of surving the night would be very unlikely due my snoring being loud enough to wake up most of the street.

[duncan]

i too get pins and needles if i sleep on my side.i would love to sleep on my back but the chances of surving the night would be very unlikely due my snoring being loud enough to wake up most of the street.

It's worth experimenting with different pillow combinations, sometimes more/thicker than you are used to can help, as can a thinner roll (such as a rolled-up towel) to support the neck, stuffed into the pillowcase on top of your usual pillow.

If you have a rock-hard so-called 'orthopaedic' mattress, sleeping on a duvet on top of the mattress for a few days will give you an feel for whether a softer bed will be more suited to you. 

[Probes]

I lie on my arm and it goes numb all the time. 

Ive a bad back, 15 years on an original ikea futon, thats as hard as a rock, apart from getting a numb arse occasionally it seems to work for me. Anything softer tends to put my spine in funny positions.

[Moo]

This thread is a bit sex and the city, can we have one about pimpin mortgages next please?

[lagerstarfish]

Thinking about it, I do occasionally take the topper off the mattress for a bit of a change and have the occasional night sleeping on the floor if my back feels like it needs it. The change seems to do me good.

Jasper has taken this slightly further by sleeping on the floor at The Broadfield recently. I don't know whether this helped his back or his marriage.

[webbo]

i too get pins and needles if i sleep on my side.i would love to sleep on my back but the chances of surving the night would be very unlikely due my snoring being loud enough to wake up most of the street.

It's worth experimenting with different pillow combinations, sometimes more/thicker than you are used to can help, as can a thinner roll (such as a rolled-up towel) to support the neck, stuffed into the pillowcase on top of your usual pillow.

If you have a rock-hard so-called 'orthopaedic' mattress, sleeping on a duvet on top of the mattress for a few days will give you an feel for whether a softer bed will be more suited to you.

i've done the bit with the towels even to the extent of having a rolled up one fastened round my waist as advised by one physio.
Given that i'm a somewhat mature,slightly balding,over weight who snores loud enough to wake the dead if sleep on my back.none of the suggestions although well meaning are likely to make me an attractive bedroom partner to my long suffering wife   

[moose]

As I remember from recently trawling around Ikea and lots of bed superstores, the recommended type of mattresses also depended on your weight. 

I'm very light and boney so was suited by a quite soft mattress.  Heavier folk with a bit more "padding" are perhaps best suited by something a little firmer.  In the end, I went for a cheap base with a comparatively pricey soft memory foam mattress from Ikea.  Was a lot cheaper than the comparable option from the likes of Dreams and is very comfortable - soft but supportive (which I need as I have the usual tall man's proneness to back badness).

[Paul B]

I think the first was the original North London store (Neasden?), which opened in 1989 or maybe a year or two before. My first mind-scarring encounter with home ownership/ renovation involved purchasing one of their "beech" self-assembly kitchens in 1990 ... * shudder *

After requesting old card statements I found the transaction which a snotty lady denied took place. A day later a nice lady rang up and they're sending somebody out (I'm not joking) to "inspect" my mattress!

[tomtom]

I think the first was the original North London store (Neasden?), which opened in 1989 or maybe a year or two before. My first mind-scarring encounter with home ownership/ renovation involved purchasing one of their "beech" self-assembly kitchens in 1990 ... * shudder *

After requesting old card statements I found the transaction which a snotty lady denied took place. A day later a nice lady rang up and they're sending somebody out (I'm not joking) to "inspect" my mattress!

You are the UKB consumer champion Paul! Keep up the good work and let us know what happens! 

[Paul B]

Ikea sent out an 'expert' from some furniture research agency to inspect the mattress. Its properly f*cked andd supposedly the damage has been done by sitting on the edge to put on socks+shoes. You have been warned!
I now have to choose something of similar value. No doubt that will entail a trip to the store itself