Back Pain
Back pain and how to manage it
We spend around a third of our lives in our beds. With so much time spent laying down, the mattress we have on our bed is vital, not only to ensure we’re comfortable but also to minimize or alleviate back pain.
The mattress you choose can easily be the difference between a good night’s sleep and a sleepless night filled with pain and discomfort. So what makes it the ‘right’ mattress?
Let’s take a look.
Mattresses, like many things in life, are entirely subjective. The right mattress for me will be different from the mattress that’s right for you. Some people like a harder mattress, while others prefer something they can slowly sink into.
When it comes to back pain, however, there may not be a ‘perfect’ mattress, but there are things to look out for that can help relieve the situation that makes a mattress perfect for you.
Whether you suffer from back pain now or want to reduce the risk of it in the future, you need a mattress that supports your spine.
The spine is an incredibly strong and flexible part of your anatomy, made up of bones, flexible ligaments, muscles, tendons, and highly-sensitive nerves. It’s a wonder of biological science, but it’s not unbreakable nor is it necessarily guaranteed to last a lifetime.
A good mattress, meaning one that is right for your particular needs, should offer the right amount of support in all the right places to this important part of your body. It used to be that everyone from Doctors to those old wives’ tales would say that only a rock-hard mattress would help with a bad back, but research has now shown that depending on the back pain you suffer with, a harder mattress can create further problems. The right mattress for you is dependent, not only on the type of pain you suffer from but also on your age, size, and height.
Not all mattresses are created equally. Terms such as ‘orthopedic’ or ‘Posturepedic ‘all tend to cloud the waters when buying a mattress. It’s important to look at the configuration of springs (including open coil mattresses, pocket sprung, etc.) or, if you want a foam mattress, then there you have the choice between latex, visco-elastic, and memory foam. The list goes on. When choosing a mattress, it should, above all else, do several simple things well. It should be firm enough to support your body without sagging, whilst allowing you to turn comfortably. The supportiveness of the mattress refers to how well (or not) it keeps your body on a flat and level plane. Neither your top nor bottom half should be higher than the rest of you when sleeping. This is a key factor in preventing or alleviating back pain. If your existing mattress is starting to sag in the middle, this will have a huge impact on your spine and will cause you problems. If this is the case with your current mattress, it’s time for a new one for sure.
Another key aspect of a good mattress is its comfort. Comfortability refers to how it holds to the contours of your body. A mattress with good comfort will support your body equally along its length. Any gaps in that support can result in stress or unnatural pressure being placed on your upper or lower spine. This all brings us back to firmness. Soft mattresses tend to offer good comfort but lack adequate support. A mattress that would be generally classed as ‘medium’ (again, this is subjective), tend to be firm enough to offer robust support whilst being soft enough to provide good conformability, which makes them probably the most effective in relieving pain. Firm mattresses on the other hand offer great support but provide little (if any) conformability. As we said earlier, the choice is up to you and your condition.
Whatever you need, we can supply a mattress that is perfect for you. Granted we don’t have a shop to try them out in, but that shouldn’t stop you. Shop around in your local stores, try them out (if you share a bed with someone – take them with you when you look), and once you’ve decided, come right back here and order it cheaper than anywhere else. We stock all the top-selling mattresses from the leading suppliers so we are sure to be able to supply the mattress you need. We look forward to helping you. Sweet dreams.