Mattress Poll: UPDATE 2/20/2011

I was just wondering what kind of mattress that you sleep on. I currently sleep on a Simmons Back Care Pillow Top but it's never really helped my aches and pains in my lower back. For quite a while I've also had shoulder pain and hip pain while I sleep. I'm mainly a side sleeper and I'm looking for a better mattress that will allow me to sleep on my side without pain. I even put a memory foam mattress on top of my pillow top mattress. It helped me for a while but lately it doesn't help much either.

I think I'll be looking at the Tempurpedic mattresses to see if these would be best for me. I also recently injured my right shoulder and I'm still on pain meds for this. Even with the pain meds, I still have pain while sleeping. For those of you who do sleep on Tempurpedic mattresses, do they really help your aches and pains? How does the Sleep Number bed compare to the Tempurpedic?

I don't know what it is but it's way too soft. Sometimes it makes my back hurt but I'm renting a room right now and it came with.

The closest I'm going to get to a Tempurpedic is a memory foam "topper". I have that, plus a feather bed and a brand new mattress and box spring (serta I think). After years of sleeping on a cheap, "refurbished" (don't ask) mattress and years of abuse on my back working on the ambulance, it needs to be pampered!!

I have a memory foam mattress (not just a topper), and it's the best mattress I've ever had. It's not the fancy brand name of Tempurpedic, but basically the same thing. Prior to that I had a waterbed, but with my back problems, I could never get the right adjustment on it, and it was murder on my back toward the end. Prior to that it was an innerspring mattress. I'll never have one of those again!

I had looked into a sleep number before I bought the Memory foam, but besides them being outrageously expensive, I read too many bad reviews. They don't hold at the number you set them at (something about atmospheric pressure affecting them), and they also tend to build up mold and mildew - can't remember why tho. There's many places on line where you can read reviews on them. My brother had one and didn't like it either, and went with a Tempurpedic, which he wouldn't trade for the world.

Hope this helps, and that you can find the system that is right for you.

I detest buying mattresses. There are no standards, no way to compare ANYTHING!

I've needed a new on for a while now -- they say you should replace very 10 years; mine is 16 years and counting. I've been fretting over this for 5 years now. What if I spend the money and can't sleep on it?

I have the basic spring mattress, and plan to get that again. Which one? Every store has their own "model" for every brand, you can't do comparison shopping. Lying on it in the store for 3 minutes isn't going to tell me what a full night's sleep is like.

I am a stomach sleeper, and that makes it ever harder; only about 10% of the population are stomach sleepers.

Good luck, I hope you make a great choice for you.

I love my bed! I have box springs and a mattress. It is still comfortable after 10 or more years (I lost count). The best part of my bed is two kitties purring while I sleep. :love:

We have a pillow top. It's time to get a new one and I want a Tempurpedic. But I'd like to try one first. My niece has one (and loves it) but I have not slept on it.....yet. I was going to one night and then she was sick. :(
My parents and my brother and his wife have the Sleep Number. They all love it. Yes, they had mold issues, but the company has fixed that problem going forward and replaced the part for my parents and brother.
My friends parents have a Sleep Number and they HATE it. So it just depends.
Some hotels have tempurpedics. I wish I knew which ones, cuz I'd go stay in one just to try it out. LOL Don't they have a 30 day trial for them?
I also need to get one of those pillows that have the neck support. Right now I'm using a bath towel rolled up around my neck (chiropractor suggestion). But in the summer that will be too HOT!

I will check back on this thread to see how others respond. Great idea for a thread Tracey, thanks!! :D

Thanks for all of the responses.:) I really don't think that I want to have another mattress with springs in it. What I plan on doing is to put my current mattress in the second bedroom and then get rid of the bed in that room. The mattress in the second bedroom is in horrible shape and I can't believe that my former roommates never complained about it. I'm hoping that I won't have to pay much extra for the delivery people to switch my beds around like this.

Luckily I have several mattress stores to choose from and I think that most of them also have payment plans. Most of the Tempurpedic beds have a 20 year warranty too. I think that both Mancini's and Mattress Discounters lets you sleep on the mattresses for about 60 days and if you still aren't satisfied then you can return it provided it's not stained or in bad condition. I believe that Sleep Train lets you sleep on the mattress for 100 days. I also found a Tempur-Pedic Authorized Dealer which is close to me so I'm going to call them first to find more about their prices/deals etc. I hope to finally get a good nights sleep and wake up pain free soon.:)

Sleep Number! 10 years! Just sayin' ;)

I have the memory foam also. I tried a water bed with seperate cylinders thinking it would be better but NOT. Then I decided to try a spring matress that said ortho-pedic and it was the worst thing I ever bought. I went back to foam and chose the memory foam and haven't looked back once.

My Sleep Number is 45.

Well I ordered my new mattress and I decided on a Tempurpedic Cloud Luxe which is the most luxurious of the Cloud Collection. It's both soft and firm at the same time whereas the Cloud is just soft. When I called the Tempur-Pedic Authorized Dealer store I found out that they're actually called "Relax The Back" so they specialize in back related products and ergonomic products.

They had 6 different Tempurpedic models on display and 2 similar models that are only sold by their store. I went around once and then I narrowed it down to 3 mattresses. I laid down on the Tempurpedic Cloud Luxe for several minutes on my right injured shoulder and I was so relaxed that I could've fallen asleep right there.:) I know I made the right choice. Yes, it's expensive but I don't plan on buying another mattress again. I'm sure this one should last me the rest of my life. All Tempurpedic mattresses have a 90 day trial period so if for some reason I don't like it then I can return it.

They'll order it on Monday and it should arrive in 2-3 weeks. Then they'll deliver it free of charge and also remove the old bed in my second bedroom and put my current bed in my second bedroom free of charge.:) The lady said that they'd only charge me extra if they had to go to a different location to get another bed. Luckily I have excellent credit so I qualifed for more than the price of the mattress and foundantion. They're also giving me the bed frame for free. They're also letting me pay this off on a 36 month payment plan. At first the lady said 12 months but I told her that I would need more time because she had even told me that they had 36 month plans when I called her. She went in the back to talk to the owner and I was approved for the plan I wanted.:)

I'll keep you updated and let you know if my sleep and aches and pains go away. I also asked the lady about sleeping on your stomach which I used to do until my back hurt too much. She said that this is the worst position to sleep in because it hurts your spine and also your neck. She said that sleeping on your back or side are the best positions to sleep in so I'll continue to do this. I also brought in my memory pillow so that I could try out the mattresses with it. The lady suggested this when I called her and it was an excellent idea. They had the Tempurpedic pillows which felt too hard to me. Sorry for rambling on and on.

Not rambling, that was all good info.

Good job getting the payment plan you wanted!

Now for the wait. . . . .

I have top of the line Stearns and Foster. Does it make a difference, I don't think so actually. I think I got ripped out of a good $2500 for my mattress. I am heavier, so I wanted something that would hold up to my weight, and any one else's weight that would also be on it. This one had really well supported sides and is a good 20" tall. I still think that if I would have thought things through a little better, not been so impetuous, and researched a bit more, I would have found a mattress a little cheaper that also would hold up to my weight. The last Stearns and Foster I had before also SUNK in the middle about 6", and I'm hoping I don't have to deal with that with this one. They are expensive and supposed to be superior, but the sagging is not acceptable.

I was at one point thinking about the Tempur Pedic, but I was unsure about how they support a larger sized person, and if they would also sag in a few years as well.

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Originally Posted by jenn_librarian

I have top of the line Stearns and Foster. Does it make a difference, I don't think so actually. I think I got ripped out of a good $2500 for my mattress. I am heavier, so I wanted something that would hold up to my weight, and any one else's weight that would also be on it. This one had really well supported sides and is a good 20" tall. I still think that if I would have thought things through a little better, not been so impetuous, and researched a bit more, I would have found a mattress a little cheaper that also would hold up to my weight. The last Stearns and Foster I had before also SUNK in the middle about 6", and I'm hoping I don't have to deal with that with this one. They are expensive and supposed to be superior, but the sagging is not acceptable.

I was at one point thinking about the Tempur Pedic, but I was unsure about how they support a larger sized person, and if they would also sag in a few years as well.

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I'm sorry to hear this Jenn. Several of the Tempurpedic Mattresses that I tried out yesterday were very sturdy and firm. They were too firm for me though. They now make many different kinds. The only bad thing is that they are very expensive and the price is set so it doesn't matter where you buy them. The stores can offer free delivery,set up,haul away of bed, free bed frame, and most of them are also offering better payment plan options especially if you buy the more expensive mattresses. Tempurpedic also gives you 90 days to try them out so if one mattress doesn't work for you then you can exhange it for another different one. Here's their website which has all of the different kinds of mattresses:http://www.tempurpedic.com/tempur-pe...FQUSbAodN3wNBg.

I put other because I have a very different situation. I have severe reflux that can only be controlled by elevating my head 40 degrees while sleeping. I have Baroreflex failure that causes dangerously low blood pressure in the mornings if I eat breakfast after a long nights fast. I am on a feeding tube so to correct this issue I feed all night by a pump. Because all of these requirements, I made a Bedroom down stairs. A hospital bed was a perfect solution for all of my issues so I got a bed but it lacked any appeal so I cut the bed up and made a wooden frame that I covered with microswede. I made the armrest big enough for a 23inch HD television. During the night I have my Bed and TV and in the day it becomes a studio couch. I made the mechanism for rasing the TV with a drill motor and the mechanics that were on the bed for raising it up and down. The mattress is memory foam so the bed is comfortable. I set the sleep cycle on the TV for 2 hours start my feed pump and usually conkout around the time that reruns of "Office" comes on. Pictures of bed attache. These are the day shots. Sorry about the poor picture
quality.

And the engineer in Bill (kokopup) shines thru. What an ingenious idea. Who woulda thunk???????

My dad has a bad back so he's been sleeping on the couch for many years now. Now my mom's back has been hurting her so she's been sleeping on a recliner. I think that she said that her brother does the same thing. Whenever I've had to sleep on my couch it was very uncomfortable and I felt cramped. When my parents were visiting my brother and his family in Texas, they said that the bed in the guest room really hurt their back. They ended up sleeping on my brothers leather sofas. I guess everyone requires something different.:)

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Originally Posted by kokopup

I put other because I have a very different situation. I have severe reflux that can only be controlled by elevating my head 40 degrees while sleeping. I have Baroreflex failure that causes dangerously low blood pressure in the mornings if I eat breakfast after a long nights fast. I am on a feeding tube so to correct this issue I feed all night by a pump. Because all of these requirements, I made a Bedroom down stairs. A hospital bed was a perfect solution for all of my issues so I got a bed but it lacked any appeal so I cut the bed up and made a wooden frame that I covered with microswede. I made the armrest big enough for a 23inch HD television. During the night I have my Bed and TV and in the day it becomes a studio couch. I made the mechanism for rasing the TV with a drill motor and the mechanics that were on the bed for raising it up and down. The mattress is memory foam so the bed is comfortable. I set the sleep cycle on the TV for 2 hours start my feed pump and usually conkout around the time that reruns of "Office" comes on. Pictures of bed attache. These are the day shots. Sorry about the poor picture
quality.

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Wow, that is really impressive.

John and I bought Hästen beds about six years ago. It was quite expensive, but I'm not impressed!! :( The ones we got are called "Natural". I got the medium one and John wanted the soft. There's a 25 years guarantee on them, but what can I do - it's not broken. I just feel it's sinking in the middle... and I'm not overweight! I tried the "Excel" one which I liked better, but it cost about $730 more.

http://www.hastens.com/en-us/

I like firm but springy mattresses. Have tried a few in England (old ones) I really liked - and a very good one in Hotel Wilson, Barcelona. Wish I had asked where they bought that!

Tracey, I hope you'll like your new mattress! :)

We've had the same mattress for 20 years. My husband talks about buying a new one but I don't see anything wrong with ours...I could sleep on a rock.

An old Sealy mattress. I've been stalling on replacing it because most places will take out your old mattress when they deliver the new one, but I don't want anyone to see the my disorganized home :eek:!

I have a question for pillow top mattress sleepers - how do you turn it over, or do you not have to turn it? Does the pillow top come off?

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Originally Posted by caseysmom

We've had the same mattress for 20 years. My husband talks about buying a new one but I don't see anything wrong with ours...I could sleep on a rock.

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I wish I could. I've always envied people that can fall asleep as soon as their head hits the pillow.

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Originally Posted by cassiesmom

An old Sealy mattress. I've been stalling on replacing it because most places will take out your old mattress when they deliver the new one, but I don't want anyone to see the my disorganized home :eek:!
I have a question for pillow top mattress sleepers - how do you turn it over, or do you not have to turn it? Does the pillow top come off?

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With my pillow top you never have to turn it over and no the pillow top is attached inside the mattress so it can't come off. I guess you could rotate it to face the other way if you notice one side of it wearing more than the other side.
Elyse, I'm sure that the people setting up the new beds and hauling away the old ones aren't there to judge any ones home. Everyone has some clutter some where.:)

I voted Tempurpedic, but ours is that type, but not that brand. I probably should have chosen "other", oops. ;) We love it. I can sleep anywhere, but my husband is very particular and he loves the memory foam mattress. My parents just got medical grade beds and mattresses and they are fantastic! I would totally sleep on them...they have vibration options, as well as being adjustable. I haven't slept on them but I lay down on them the last time I visited and would definitely recommend them.

We have a pillow top and I love it.

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Originally Posted by krazyaboutkatz

My dad has a bad back so he's been sleeping on the couch for many years now. Now my mom's back has been hurting her so she's been sleeping on a recliner. I think that she said that her brother does the same thing. Whenever I've had to sleep on my couch it was very uncomfortable and I felt cramped. When my parents were visiting my brother and his family in Texas, they said that the bed in the guest room really hurt their back. They ended up sleeping on my brothers leather sofas. I guess everyone requires something different.:)

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Near the end of my pregnancy with Nathan I couldn't get comfortable in my bed and I ended up sleeping on the couch- I was much more comfortable there. Near the end of my pregnancy with Topher I couldn't get comfortable in either the bed or on the couch, but I slept great in our recliner. Whatever works! :)

I just wanted to let you know that on Fri. afternoon my new mattress was delivered. I wanted to let it breathe for a while so I didn't sleep on it until last night. Well so far I'm very pleased with it. After years of waking up with back pain, I can now say that this is now a thing of the past.:) No more back pain, no hip pain during the night, no shoulder pain, no leg pain either. Unlike memory foam that your body sinks into, the Tempurpedic bed lets your body sink in a little bit but also supports your body. I know I'm going to enjoy this bed for many years to come.:)

I also found out that Mancini's is having a tax free Presidents Day weekend sale on all mattresses including the Tempurpedic. I called "Relax The Back" and told them about this and now I'll also be getting my mattress tax free too.:) My old senior cat Storm is really enjoying my new mattress too. I bet it'll help him with any aches and pains his old bones may have too.:) I would recommend Tempurpedic mattresses to any one who wakes up with back pain or any other aches and pains or who just has a restless night of tossing and turning. If I could afford it, I'd buy one of these for my parents too.

Kokopup, I am in awe! :D

Finn's Mom, what is a "medical grade bed." How would I look at one, even jut online?

Krazy about Katz, Fantastic!

KAK, Still "very pleased"?

I sleep on a memory foam mattress that is not by tempuredic. The bed is also adjustable.

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Originally Posted by Freckles

KAK, Still "very pleased"?

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Yes, I am.:) I was also able to get two free Tempurpedic pillows and I chose the ones that help your neck. Now my neck feels so much better too.:) My old Target body pillows were causing my legs to hurt because I sleep with them between my legs. I found out that Tempurpedic also makes body pillows. I ordered one and I picked it up last night. Boy, what a difference.:) Yes, it was pricey and it does weigh more but it supports my legs so my leg underneath the body pillow doesn't get squished and then start to hurt. I would still recommend Tempurpedic beds to any one with aches and pains.:)

On Tracey's recommendation, I also went out and got a Tempur-pedic mattress. While at first I wasn't too impressed with it, I did love the pillow immediately. I have slept on it four nights and discovered that I am not getting up as much during the night. I still wake up to turn over, but I fall back to sleep so much faster.
Bruce has liked it from the beginning (but he does not like the pillow for sleeping, only for watching TV). So that's a bonus (since it was kinda his birthday present, heehee).
I am also planning on getting the body pillow Tracey is talking about. :D

Thank you so much for recommending this! :)

Just curious Tracey and Taz Zoee - how are the new mattresses working out? Both my husband and I have the same symptoms Tracey was talking about and we have a new mattress bought five months ago. We're wondering if the new mattress (very firm) is causing the problem. It's outside the guarantee returnable date so we're reluctant to replace it unless we're sure a Tempur-Pedic would be an improvement.

Well, to be honest, my back and neck have been hurting me for the past few days. I don't know if it has to do with the mattress. But I never really experienced the "waking up pain free" that several other people have with the Tempur-pedic. I do think I sleep much better, getting up less throughout the night.

The only other problem I have with it, and we read this in the reviews, is it is soooo HOT!! And it's winter right now. I'm actually dreading the summertime. I wake up sweating even when we don't have the heater on in the house. My co-worker gave me a suggestion of putting a comforter under the sheets to help with a little air flow between our bodies and the mattress. So I'll probably try that out when it warms up outside.

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Originally Posted by Louie and me

Just curious Tracey and Taz Zoee - how are the new mattresses working out? Both my husband and I have the same symptoms Tracey was talking about and we have a new mattress bought five months ago. We're wondering if the new mattress (very firm) is causing the problem. It's outside the guarantee returnable date so we're reluctant to replace it unless we're sure a Tempur-Pedic would be an improvement.

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I'm still waking up pain free. My sore shoulder will still sometimes hurt though. The pillows have really helped my stiff neck. I know that my previous mattress was just too firm for me. Good luck in finding a solution to your problems.:)

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Originally Posted by Taz_Zoee

Well, to be honest, my back and neck have been hurting me for the past few days. I don't know if it has to do with the mattress. But I never really experienced the "waking up pain free" that several other people have with the Tempur-pedic. I do think I sleep much better, getting up less throughout the night.

The only other problem I have with it, and we read this in the reviews, is it is soooo HOT!! And it's winter right now. I'm actually dreading the summertime. I wake up sweating even when we don't have the heater on in the house. My co-worker gave me a suggestion of putting a comforter under the sheets to help with a little air flow between our bodies and the mattress. So I'll probably try that out when it warms up outside.

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Cindy, I'm sorry to hear that you're still having pain.:( I had also read that some people had complained about the Tempurpedic mattresses getting too hot. This is one reason why they recommend that you use their mattress protector so that it can allow the mattress to breathe. I was also told that the Cloud series runs much cooler than the others. I don't use heat at night and I just put extra blankets on top of my bed when it's colder at night. So far I've been fine. If you're already waking up in a sweat you may want to try something in the Cloud series before your 90 day trial is up. Good luck.:)

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Originally Posted by krazyaboutkatz

Cindy, I'm sorry to hear that you're still having pain.:( I had also read that some people had complained about the Tempurpedic mattresses getting too hot. This is one reason why they recommend that you use their mattress protector so that it can allow the mattress to breathe. I was also told that the Cloud series runs much cooler than the others. I don't use heat at night and I just put extra blankets on top of my bed when it's colder at night. So far I've been fine. If you're already waking up in a sweat you may want to try something in the Cloud series before your 90 day trial is up. Good luck.:)

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I know, Bruce keeps telling me this. I'm afraid a cloud series would be too soft for him though. I will discuss it with him though. Maybe I should get the mattress protector and see if that helps any. I have just a cover that was on our old mattress on it right now. I can see the cloud series being cooler because it has the soft layer before you hit the memory foam layer.
I notice that I am only hot when I get up in the middle of the night and get back in bed. It's not like being hot is waking me up at all. I will see what we can do before we get into the heat of summer (and before my trial period is up). :)

I forgot to add that when I was still sleeping on my old mattress, I had a memory foam topper that was several inches thick and then I bought another thinner one that I put on top of that. I guess the memory foam didn't breathe very well because I would wake up feeling very hot too.

Since you bought the Rhapsody mattress which is firmer, it may be too firm for you but just right for Bruce. I guess that's the problem when couples share a bed. I also remember you saying that you didn't buy the foundation either. I read that this can also make a difference with the whole mattress experience. Yes, I would definitely buy the tempurpedic mattress protector and see if this makes a difference. Good luck.:)

Yes, we didn't buy a foundation because we have a waterbed base. If we got rid of that we'd lose all our clothes storage. I mean, its possible, but a pain. The guy that sold us the mattress said the waterbed frame would work. Just as long as it was a flat solid surface.
I think I've also noticed the warmer it is in the house the less hot I get. I know that sounds backwards, but this morning the house was 62 degrees and I was not sweating when I woke up. Last week it was colder (mid 50s) and I was roasting! What the heck?? :p

Thanks for the update. We have always liked a firm mattress which is why we bought another one recently but boy - both of us are hobbling round like a couple of old cronies with painful backs and hips. (Actually come to think of it we are a couple of old cronies). Since we can't return this one to exchange for the TempurPedic we'll have to count our pennies and see what we can do.

We've had our Tempurpedic for about 4 months now and I must say I am loving it. I'm not sleeping all night (as I've said before, I'd need to be knocked over the head to sleep all night), but I have noticed I haven't had as much back and/or neck pain. However, I am starting to get a little achey here lately. I believe this is because I never did go get the mattress cover that is supposed to help keep you cooler. And with the weather warming up around here the bed gets super soft. It says the room should be around 65 degrees (or cooler) for best results. Well, that doesn't happen when we do not use the AC. But I am still very pleased with it! :D

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Originally Posted by Taz_Zoee

We've had our Tempurpedic for about 4 months now and I must say I am loving it. I'm not sleeping all night (as I've said before, I'd need to be knocked over the head to sleep all night), but I have noticed I haven't had as much back and/or neck pain. However, I am starting to get a little achey here lately. I believe this is because I never did go get the mattress cover that is supposed to help keep you cooler. And with the weather warming up around here the bed gets super soft. It says the room should be around 65 degrees (or cooler) for best results. Well, that doesn't happen when we do not use the AC. But I am still very pleased with it! :D

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Cindy, thanks for posting this. I was wondering how you were liking your tempurpedic mattress. I'm glad that it's working out for you.:) Mine is much more comfortable now that I've broken it in. I don't have A/C at all and when we recently had the hot spell in the 90's-100's, I didn't notice my mattress getting any hotter. I do have the Cloud Lux which is supposed to stay cooler than some and I also have the tempurpedic mattress cover on that was recommended. I do have to push my comforter to the side or else I would be way too hot.

I don't sleep through the night either but I've always been a light sleeper. Still no back pain when I get up.:) Sometimes due to my work or just by overdoing things in general, I will get shoulder pain. When this happens I just have to sleep on my back more than normal but that's fine too. No more hip pain either and not as much neck pain as I've had in the past.:) I'd still recommend this type of mattress to any one who wants comfort from aches and pains.:)