Mattress Forum

We slept for 13 years on a Simmons Beautyrest.  Only in the last year we would both were waking up sore so we figured it was time to change.  I researched & tried several mattresses.  Ended it up picking the Ava (tight top, plush firm) from the black label collection of Beautyrest (also called Carmen in some on-line stores).  That's really the one that seemed the best to us.  When we first got it it seemed softer than at the store but still comfortable.  Unfortunately I got it only a week before going on a 2 weeks vacation.  My comfort guarantee was only for 30 days.  It took me about 2 months to realize that it's too soft for me.  I figured I would get used to it.  After a few months I went to China for a couple weeks & slept on very firm beds during our stay.  We were very apprehensive about how firm the beds were but I rapidly noticed my back getting better.  By the time I got back I had no more back pain.  It only took a 3hrs nap on the new Simmons bed to bring all the pain again.  We decided to eat up the loss, move the bed to the guest room & get another bed.  So I started researching beds again!

I finally decided to try a Tempurpedic.  We got the Contour Select with the adjustable base.  We felt in love right away on the first night.  The smell was very mild & it didn't bother us.  It was a little hot but still very comfortable.  The more we slept in it the more we loved it.  Unfortunately I started having very strange sensations in my joints.  Kind of a burning sensation.  It started in my fingers, then my knees, elbows, ankles & toes.  At first I thought maybe I ate something I was allergic to.  But after a week, the sensation was getting worse & would only occur after laying in bed for several hours.  I woke up one morning thinking it might be the bed so I googled it & to my surprise I found that many people were reporting having adverse health effects to the toxic fumes of the Tempurpedic.  So I slept a couple nights in the guests room to test it out.  All the sensations went away (but my back aches came back).  I went back to the Temp & the sensations came back.  I was devastated.  Here I had finally found a comfortable mattress but I was having allergic reactions to it.  Fortunately this time I had a 100 days money back guarantee.  So I returned the mattresses.  We kept the adjustable bases (2- Twin XL) because we love that option.

After researching again, I decided on a "100% botanical" latex.  No quilting just the 6" latex with a cotton cover.  We picked the firm (suppose to be 32 IDL).  First the mattresses arrived & they seemed to us a lot firmer than at the store.  Kind of comfortable for the first hr but after a few hrs we both woke up extremely sore.  After a few days we couldn't stand it anymore.  We went back to the store.  They lent us a 3" latex topper to try on it.  It seemed too soft to me but the first night it was such a relief after sleeping on the hard surface.  After the 2nd night my lower back was really stiff just like when I was sleeping on the Simmons.  On a 1-10 for comfort, the new Simmons is a 5, the Tempurpedic is a 9.5 & the latex one we got is a 2 (the topper brings it to a 5).

This has been a very frustrating experience.  I would love to find a memory foam that would not be toxic.  Essentia is very expensive & there are no store in my area for me to try it.  Has anyone had any experience with a Magniflex or with a Ecomfort mattress?  How about the Natural Form that is used in the Hilton Garden Inns?  Does anyone have other suggestions?