Mattress Forum

I have the same problem with trying to get enough cushioning for my shoulders while preventing my hips from sinking in too far and giving me lower back pain. Have tried all sorts of configurations of latex toppers -- including cutting them up to try zoning -- on 2 different spring mattresses. No long-term success yet.

I can recommend one thing to *avoid*, and that's 14 ILD Talalay latex. It's useless, except for children or small pets. Any adult will sink right through it. I'm built similar to Tessie, and I wasted a fair amount of money on 2" and then another inch of natural 14ILD (bought from a local mattress manufacturer). Don't go softer than 19ILD.

I also tried 2" of 5lb memory foam from FoamByMail.com, and had to sell it because it felt too soft and I woke up so freakin' HOT. (Worth noting, possibly, that the foam I received was not actually 5lb density. I did some measuring & math, and the foam was closer to 4.7 or so.) Still considering trying some 5lb ventilated memory foam (Overstock.com has some), but I'm leery.

My current mattress is a Simmons Beautyrest with 13-gauge pocket coils. I think those coils might be a little too sturdy for me.... (My previous mattress, locally made, used 14.5-gauge offset coils, and for some odd reason they were not supportive enough, even though I'm on the thin/light side. I'm still inclined to stick with an innerspring of some kind, but am not sure which kind would work best for me.)

Wish I could help more, but I'm still trying to figure this out, too. (My Simmons was OK, with my toppers, for a while, but for the past month or so, my shoulders have been crunched again and I'm waking up with numb hands.) It would be lovely if I didn't have to choose between lower back pain and numb arms....

Thanks for the advice! The mattress is king size. I may try the changes on one side first. I am side sleeper, 175 lbs. My wife is happy with her side of the bed, although her arms fall asleep during the night every once in a while. So the change to memory foam towards the top of the comfort layers may be good for her side of the bed too.

Catherine:

Thanks for letting me know about the problems with the 14 ILD latex. I hope you can find the balance between springs / latex that works for you.

I will share my own finding as I implement Sandman's recommendations and experiment with different layers.

I have ordered a fiber bed topper seen here:  https://www.overstock.com/Bedding-Bath/Candice-Olson-Luxury-300-Thread-Count-Down-Alternative-Fiber-Bed/7213229/product.html?fp=f&CID=212975&token=212975-2129752013110613837448180554569683038578232544-1-b93faa

It should arrive Friday and I'll let you all know how it is.  I wanted to try this because of the good reviews and I am exploring other options, meaning latex might not work well as a top layer for lighter weights.  If I like it, I still have the option of adding maybe an inch or two of soft dunlop, 14 -19 or so under this fiber bed.  Puralux in the less dense form, which I believe is around 20% natural dunlop 80% syn. is sold here on ebay.  He also sells covers for it :  http://www.ebay.com/itm/LATEX-MATTRESS-TOPPER-Cushion-2-Thick-QUEEN-SIZE/200622007364?rt=nc

Many people have told me that the more natural a piece of latex is, the harder it will feel, (more push back as I call it).  This is what I am trying to avoid.   I think at the top, I want cushioning but I do not want to feel the hardness where my body ends in the sinking process.  Not sure if I am explaining this correctly.  

There is also some nice looking soft dunlop that is mostly synthetic, maybe 10% - 20% natural, made by mountain top.  I believe this is a newer product.  Spindle Mattresses carries a 3" zoned topper seen here:  http://www.spindlemattress.com/products/3-latex-foam

I talked to a Mountaintop salesman and he said that the company can cut this in a 1" or 2" which is more what I am interested in, but he was unsure how I could purchase it.  I like the zoning idea at the top.  In theory, this seems like a nice soft topper with a little support... can't try it out anywhere though.  Here is the Mountin top site:  http://www.mountaintopfoam.com/our-products/

I'll be back with thoughts about the fiber bed.

Tessie

Tessie

 I have gravitated to using just 1".   More will hurt support, unless it is on a very firm mattress.   

A wool filled mattress pad can help with heat issues.  I am somewhat heat sensitive, but fine with current configuration.    Occasionally in summer I might put 1" latex on top, but never as comfortable that way. 

I have the softer shoulder zone on just one side of my queen.   I notice less shoulder jam on that side vs the other, even with 3" of foam above it. 

In your case, it might help if you cut out and put a softer piece in the shoulder area of the 2" 32 latex.   You would have to make sure it is in the right location and no guarantee it would work.    You would probably be able to put back the cut out piece, if you don't like the zone.

Flobeds vzone chart . 

Hi Sandman -- glad to see you are still here.

I am trying the shoulder-cutout thing (cut out a piece of the 2" firm-ish Dunlop topper that I got from Overstock a few years ago). It might be helping some, but not quite enough at present (one problem might be the supersoft foam that I have in the cutout area; could be too soft). Right now I have my 2" 22ILD Talalay topper (from Arizona Mattress Co.) on top of that, instead of the 1" 24ILD + 1" N3 toppers I used on top before. (Pretty sure I've tried every possible combo of toppers, plus a bunch of zoning experiments.)

I do love my Dormeir wool mattress pad. It's very stretchy, and I'm sure it helps with heat issues. For that one memory foam topper that I tried, though, dissipating the heat probably would have required a couple inches of wool instead of the thin layer that's in the pad.

Despite my earlier postings saying how much I despise memory foam, obviously I got desperate enough to try it -- and I am currently using a memory foam pillow. Go figure....

Tessie, I'll be curious to hear how you like the fiberbed.

I know that you have tried many configurations and products.  Have you ever tried a soft dunlop 14 ILD as a top layer?  I believe it is more synthetic than natural.  One is Puralux, from Latexco... it supposedly has a nice feel.  This is the one I am considering:

http://www.overstock.com/Bedding-Bath/Sleep-Invigorate-All-Natural-Latex-2-inch-Mattress-Topper/7482583/product.html

Just wondered if you have experience with this type of soft dunlop?  I have seen posts from women who like this over talalay latex.

Tessie

Hi Tessie,

I have not tried that. The Dunlop topper I have is from Overstock, but it's a medium rather than a soft topper. I believe that it's about 20% natural and 80% synthetic. I wouldn't be opposed to trying a softer Dunlop... if someone else were paying for it.

My hips seem happy with the medium Dunlop; it's just my shoulders that are the problem. It's the reverse with Talalay; my hips sink down too far unless I go up to about 32ILD... and then I get pressure points.

Maybe I need a slightly bigger cutout and something different in the cutout area. (The cheap electric knife I bought has gotten lots of use in various mattress surgeries and zoning attempts.)

-Catherine