Discouraged... Does latex break in a lot after a week or two?

[jimsocal]

I thought I FINALLY had my mattress problems solved. My mattress was PERFECT for the first 2 weeks...
Then, about 3 nights ago it started to hurt a little.
I figured it was just ME... (though I had not done a lot of work - I did a lot of back work the previous days and slept great through those days...

But now for the past 3 nights I have had substantial back pain when sleeping. Not as much as before the new latex layer, but enough to make the last few hours of sleep a bit painful.

So did the latex "break in" in 2 weeks and is now too soft for me? Or what?

Or did the back work I did the previous week take a week to catch up to me?

I think I might have to change my configuration after thinking I had it perfect...

Ideas?
I am very discouraged by this. I REALLY thought I had it right, finally; I had great comfort for 2 weeks!

 

[sandman]

I think latex does soften up a little after some use. Most of the flobed buyers seem to gravitate toward a firmer configuration during the 90 trial period. I have wondered if that is because the latex is softening up a little bit as it breaks in.
I don't think it is a huge change though, and it probably happens gradually. Would 5-10% softer on a 1" piece make enough of a difference for you? It is hard to know.
However, since your problems seems to have come shortly after a doing some strenous work, it is possible (likely?) that is the cause. You may have strained or pulled something, and those injuries take a while to heal. So, I would probably stick with it for a while to see if it goes away.
You may be at the stage where you have to really restrict the amount of work you do that can strain your back. It is possible that your back is going to flare up from time to time, and the mattress may not be able to solve that problem.

 

[eagle2]

Jim: I'm going through a low back pain situation myself right now. I decided I was going to try and get in a little bit better shape so I started lifting some very lightweight dumbbells several weeks ago. For the first time in my life and exercise like this gave me low back pain. Don't ask me why I can't explain it!

The point is that the pain migrated lower and wound up in my hip joints. Now at this stage of life anything could be going wrong, because most things are. But I'm just trying to make the point that while the bed can cause back pain, and it can certainly exacerbate an existing pain. Many times our pains are caused by something else and we blame the bed.

So what I've been doing is to do some gentle stretching exercises because it is my suspicion that my hamstrings have shortened up due to lack of exercise. We have been going through a substantial winter here in the middle of the country and I have not been able to ride my bike or get much of any other kind of stretching exercise for my legs.

I just put the new mattress topper back on my FloBeds latex mattress. I'm going to see how this works after having washed it. But I'm already suspecting that I am going to gravitate back to my old mattress cover since it has worked so well for me.

Quite frankly I think of you fairly often as regards your problems with your mattresses when I see what very little change on the very surface of the mattress can cause in overall sleep comfort. What I'm finding is I need something between me and the very top of the mattress besides just a sheet. But very little!

And Sandman is right, as both he and I have found out with our latex mattress experience, latex will soften up a little bit as it breaks in. My guess is more in the 1 to 5% range. Quite frankly, the breaking in that my latex has done has been quite comfortable. It seems to slightly mold itself to my body once the heat softens it just a little bit. This is another reason I think you only want the minimal amount of cover between you and the very top of the bed. Too much and I don't think you get the benefit of the latex. Not enough and you may get heat buildup. At least that has been my experience so far. I also agree with Sandman in that softer is not better for me regarding latex and comfort. I believe F/F/XF is probably the best for me.

So keep on trying I'm sure you'll find an answer.

You have my best wishes Jim!

 

[sandman]

One added thought. I still think you should stick with it for a while, but at some point maybe try it without the 1/2" firm foam. Maybe you will have to try without your wool topper as well.

 

[randys]

I had similar experience today, sleeping on Costco latex bed without the 3 inch foam as it was too soft, and still not comfortable, not completely

one inch sensus coming in today, try that next

key for me is my bed is from costco and i can return anytime, 90 days or 2 yrs...they dont scrutinize returns until they are over 2 yrs old, they will then usually do it, i guess

 

[Leo3]

I feel your pain Jim. I changed my mattress again too. I thought I had it right until I wake up a few hours later with my hips hurting. I am going to stick with it and not change it; because your body has to adjust if we give it time. I think their is no magic combination for me. It seems like I have tried everything as you have.

I am not sure if latex really changes, I think it is our bodies that are changing and they are ever trying to adjust to us swapping out layers in our mattresses

Though I am considering tossing out the whole bed and doing what you gave up with ALL LATEX. I am convinced my springs don't spring! I do have my Sealy Trufoam (or whatever it was called) foundation that had the foam and memory foam mattress over it. That sure work right? Build my own latex bed. I have 5 1/2" latex now, how much more do I need if I am 160-165 lbs, 5 10" in order not to bottom out? Did someone say 9"? I think I may get samples of 44ILD for the base.

Any suggestions?

I still think Jim your wool may aggravate your situation. Are you sure it isn't stopping your back from getting the support it needs under the small of the back? Amazingly my back hasn't been hurting with 5 1/2" of latex. Gasp I now that sounds like a lot, but as I said my springs do not give. What I want to know is why does the hips (side sleeping) feel no pain and comfortable when I initially lay on it, then hours later, pain city.

 

[jimsocal]

Thanks for the replies. I feel very sheepish, posting how great my mattress was, and then having back pain from it. But I thought since latex doesn't break down and it felt GREAT for 2 weeks, that I was "in the clear". Or who knows, maybe it's that bottom layer of 1/2" HR foam that has broken down? I could remove that... but then I think that might really throw off everything... unless I could replace it with 1/2" of very firm latex... or even 1"... which I don't have.

I could try the 1 and 3/4" dunlop on the bottom but again, that seems like a drastic change...

I have now had varying degrees of back pain for 4 nights and while it's not AS bad as it was before buying the new latex layer, it is definitely not good. Is it just my back? I don't really think it is. My back has hardly been hurting at all during the day, maybe a tiny bit but not much, but then my back starts to hurt after laying in bed for about 4-6 hours. So to me, that means it's the mattress. I could be wrong, mind you, but I think it is.

I think tonight I will try it without the wool topper. That dang wool topper has screwed me up before! I LOVE the feel of it! But maybe the difference between the latex breaking in 5% or whatever, is now making the wool topper more noticeable, as that extra 1/2 of non-supportive material (the wool) is now bothering me. I'll take the topper off for tonight!

I can't tell you how bummed out I am about this! I really truly thought I could just sleep well and be happy about it for at least a year or so...

 

[sandman]

Jim, it is also possible that only by laying down for an extended period you can feel the strain that has occured in your back. I did some gardening yesterday, with a lot of bending and moving stuff. My back did not really feel sore yesterday, but it was a bit sore this morning when I woke up. I doubt it was the mattress, because it was not sore the previous morning. Most likely the combination of the work I did plus lying down for 8 hours. Perhaps back soreness is really a cumulative thing. If there is no strain to start, then lying down might not cause any problems. However, if there is some strain, then lying down will aggravate it.
I am not a back expert, so this is just specualtion. However, I have noticed this pattern in me before, so I must conclude that something happens overnight that will aggravate the back a bit if it is already a bit aggravated. It is possible that no mattress will prevent that. The only test really would be to try not to aggravate your back for an extended period and see if the problem persists with the same mattress combination.

 

[eagle2]

I will also add that I have been installing a new 5.1 sound system in the house. Much squating down and getting back up again. To much strain for this old man. Now my hip joints are really protesting. Actually sleeping in my bed for a good eight hours I believe helps the situation somewhat. But when I get up in the morning, as Sandman indicates, I do feel stiffer for the first few minutes.

The thing I have found is to do some stretching exercises and things get somewhat better. So our physiology responding to our activity, particularly in light of the fact that we may have had some previous injuries, are the underlying factors for our pain. Our beds can compound this pain if they are not doing a good job. But many times I feel we blame our beds when in fact it is our body's and our minds becoming exercise about our pain. We humans love to blame an outside influence for our difficulties.

I will add this notation. I put back on my bed the 100% cotton cover that I acquired several weeks ago. This time it had been washed and I put it on without stretching it tightly over the mattress. It slept much better than I originally reported. So the point is there are many small factors that can contribute to a good nights sleep........ but then we all knew that..... right?

 

[Leo3]

Sandman, your mattress cover does affect your mattress feel.

I have been saying this and feeling this. I am soooo sensitive, that when I make the bed if the sheets they are pulled to tight it affects the pain level of the side sleeping. That is why I use a plush blanket instead of a mattress pad; they feel like a rock (the mattress pad).

I am using jersey sheets so they stretch. But the queen size made in foreign countries are too small and pull too tight. So I got Kingsize sheets, and they fit the bed. Except now I have bagging, so I have to clip the sheets to the mattress and pull a bit.

I know I would feel a pea under the mattress, is that a kids nursery ryhyme I keep reading about here. Princess and a pea?

 

[jimsocal]

I took off the wool mattress pad last night just to see...
It seemed a little better but still I had some pain and difficulty sleeping towards morning.
I'm hanging with this for a night or two more and see if it gets better or worse before I do anything drastic like try that Dunlop piece on the bottom or try taking off a layer of latex...

I am operating on the assumption that it COULD be my back just being "out" that is causing the problem, not the latex breaking in...

But if it doesn't get better in a week or so or if it gets too much worse I'm sure I'll succumb to trying to change a layer or two...

I will try not to strain my back but that seems highly unlikely. It seems every few days or so I just HAVE to do something that strains my back. I mean, aside from putting myself in a wheel chair, there just is no real way to avoid straining one's back. Life seems to require a certain amount of reaching, stooping, lifting and bending that does strain my back.

While I am following the advice of you who think maybe it's just my back not the mattress, I have to admit I am skeptical about this theory.

But for once I'm going to follow you guys' advice instead of doing what I would do which is change a layer...

 

[randys]

adjustable beds, like the ones that go up so you can read or watch tv

they are the answer for all of us, you can adjust so there is no pain, but the cost is nuts

 

[jimsocal]

Saturday afternoon I took off the wool layer.
But Saturday night I continued to have pain in my back during the night and upon awakening - again, not terrible pain but "too much" in any case.
I stuck with it anyway.
Sunday night I had much less pain, though still some.

I am beginning to wonder if there is something I do or don't do different from time to time that causes this back pain or if it is the mattress?
I am suspecting that one thing might be the LaZBoy I sit in while watching movies, for example...

I'm going to start keeping a diary of my sitting and other activities that could negatively and positively impact my back and thus my sleeping, and see if there is any corralation.

 

[Leo3]

I have heard of people sleeping in the recliners when they have back pain (my neighbor). So I don't think that is it.

Have you noticed you are waking up and find yourself almost like a pretzel? I mean laying on your back and kinda laying on your side? I had that this morning and my back is killing me!

 

[Kait]

Years ago, when I first started noticing that I had low back pain, I found that it wasn't just my mattress that caused it...chairs, couches, even the seat in my car all contributed to it. I got rid of couches, chairs and had my car's seat re-done(not as expensive as you'd think). Helped a great deal.
Right now, my bed is the best support in the house. One couch(X-Soft HR foam, thick cushion)hurts my low back, my art-deco chair I had reupholstered(the custion has XXSoft HR foam) KILLS my low back, and the recliner in the other room has worn the seat to the point it is too soft(sinks too much, looks fine) and hurts my back. I had our wonderful, three year old couch re-foamed last winter to the tune of $500...it has cushions and then a smaller one on top....tried to get the gal to replace the EXACT density of foam that it had in the first place...but it is firmer. She used medium HR foam and it is solid. My back is bothered by sitting too long on there too...my hips go to sleep. It was so perfect for three years, then the cushions sunk too far and I could start to feel the metal pieces in between the sections. I did not replace the center cushion, the curvy piece because it is always covered in pillows and no one sits there....it is still wonderful.
I think you have to cover all your bases to get relief. Even if everyone thinks you are weird.
Right now I am sitting on a hard seat chair that was my dad's...all foam died a long time ago...I put a little chair cushion on top and I am happy. My family wonders why I don't use the big, cushy, desk chair that I've pushed into the corner...but that hurts my back. Most people just don't get it.
Kait

 

[Leo3]

Kait, I just was reading this website on hip pain and chairs and furniture click here

It explains it all so clearly, now if I can find some flat chairs. I have been sitting on a contour chair and it pushes up on my hips, where the bursa is and the pain is extreme. I reupholstered my office chair a few years back due to the contour chair and put firm foam, and it is improved. But I see my expensive recliner and couch the foam has butt mark! So that foam has broken down. This would never had happen before companies decided to put cheap foam in. This is an expensive recliner I paid $1000 or more for several years ago.

So I am thinking of getting a Bevco chair that has a flat seat and putting my own padding on it. They sell that. Made in USA.

Then I will work on my mattress some more.

 

[fantasticalice]

This is the best stuff EVER! For years I have been telling my kids my toilet seat was killing me. They laughed their asses off. I just put wood in my Pottery Barn, overstuffed rocker, bingo, the neck pain stopped. What a wonderful piece of information. Working in a Health Club, I am gonna blow em' out of the water Mon morning!
Alice

 

[Pete]

jimsocal wrote:
I thought I FINALLY had my mattress problems solved. My mattress was PERFECT for the first 2 weeks...
Then, about 3 nights ago it started to hurt a little.
I figured it was just ME... (though I had not done a lot of work - I did a lot of back work the previous days and slept great through those days...

But now for the past 3 nights I have had substantial back pain when sleeping. Not as much as before the new latex layer, but enough to make the last few hours of sleep a bit painful.

So did the latex "break in" in 2 weeks and is now too soft for me? Or what?

Or did the back work I did the previous week take a week to catch up to me?

I think I might have to change my configuration after thinking I had it perfect...

Ideas?
I am very discouraged by this. I REALLY thought I had it right, finally; I had great comfort for 2 weeks!

And this is why I hate latex. IMO, inexpensive, 2.8/ft3 density, traditional poly with an ILD of 35, topped with 2" of 5.3/ft3 Sensus is the only choice for those with back trouble. Who cares if you have to drop $600 for new poly/memory foam layers every 3 years? Latex is overpriced and overrated.

 

[Slides]

Pete wrote:
And this is why I hate latex. IMO, inexpensive, 2.8/ft3 density, traditional poly with an ILD of 35, topped with 2" of 5.3/ft3 Sensus is the only choice for those with back trouble. Who cares if you have to drop $600 for new poly/memory foam layers every 3 years? Latex is overpriced and overrated.

Doesn't memory foam and poly foam break in as well?

 

[jimsocal]

Slides wrote:
Doesn't memory foam and poly foam break in as well?

I think he is saying they break in but they cost a lot less to replace, and I would agree to some extent...
BUT:
I think latex breaks down much less and slower, over time, than other foams. I don't think MOST people would even feel the breaking in that my latex seems to have done. However, for me, it was enough to go from 100% comfort down to only about 70-75% comfort, now. Of course I still do have some HR foam on my bottom layer so that could be the problem. But I hate to buy new foam right now so I'm trying to live with my current configuration (above; minus the wool) and see if I "get used" to it.

I also think latex and HR foam have completely different feels and different type of support. The latex is much springier, the HR is more of a "dead" type feel. I used to hate the latex feel but am now getting used to it, I think.

I do think that a huge part of my back problems are from sitting watching movies. Unfortunately I have bought several "for your back" type chairs and all of them hurt my back! Also I just plain sit too much, here, there and everywhere! I have become almost totally sedentary and I know that's bad and I am working on that.

Not sure what to do about sitting. Can't really afford to buy a chair right now... I'm going to look at that link Leo or someone posted above, though...