Mattress causing back pain - or is it me getting old?? Advice please.

The fact that both you and your husband are waking up with back-ache leads me to suspect the mattress is at fault, or partly so.

I think it depends on the mattress when it needs to be renewed, but mattresses and backs are complicated.

Some of us need a firm mattress, others a softer one, and the weight of the couple sleeping on the mattress can contribute to how quickly it wears out.

Back-ache does tend to occur as we age, but it would be silly just to accept this.

Ask your husband to keep an eye on your posture, and you keep an eye on his - some of us develop bad habits, such as slouching, not holding our heads up properly, rounding shoulders etc. etc.

Start by turning your mattress if it is the kind that can be turned and see if that helps.

Close a door firmly and stand with your back to it, heels touching the door and the back of your head touching it too.

Where are your shoulders - if they are in contact with the door too, your posture is good, If they are not, or if you find it hard to straighten your neck, now is the time to consult a doctor, a physiotherapist, an Alexander paedagogue or a chiropractor.

Don't just accept the thought that you are growing older - there might be something that could be remedied now, but will get worse if you ignore it.

PinkCosmos

Thank you for your replies.

We did have a Panda mattress topper on our previous mattress. I had forgotten about that.

I think it is in the loft. I hope I didn't take it to the tip!! I will have a look for it tomorrow and put it back on the bed when I have aired it a bit.

It's just difficult with the sheets as they tend to flirt off as they are not deep enough, especially as the mattress is already deep. The fitted sheets are the deepest ones I could find. I might have a couple of flat sheets I could use.

I was looking at the Hypnos mattresses recently. They have them in all of the Premier Inns. I haven't stayed in one but they must be OK as Premier Inns get good reviews about their comfy beds.

We bought a Hypnos bed last year and so far we're very pleased with it.
Apparently Premier Inns don't buy them any more, they are very expensive.

Unless your mattress is soft I would have thought it would be fine. Our last (nearly new) mattress was too soft as we were missold it.

Dunelm do extra deep bottom sheets, 38cms, but they are available even deeper than that. You'll need to measure with the mattress topper on as well of course 🙂

Casdon - I take it back. I have just seen this on the Simba website. I assumed Simba and Emma were the same kind of mattress.

^Experience gravity defying comfort on the SIMBA titanium alloy Aerocoil® spring layer.

These tiny cones of comfort are the key to our incredible, upper comfort layer; they’re our pride and joy. They’re smaller and slimmer than the typical, rather tall and bulky bed spring, because they’re made from titanium alloy; using this magic metal means even a micro size (25mm high with a thickness gauge of 0.9mm, which is the size of a very thin paperclip) gives you the support you need, but being so small and fine you won’t feel a single one^

I can't remember what our last mattress was but it was about 6 years old and I was waking up with backache. I went to a local mattress shop and tried out lots and talked to the owner. I ordered one. I have only just realised that since I got it two weeks ago I have been totally pain free.
This is the one I bought.

I suffer the same as PinkCosmos. We bought a lovely firm, deep mattress (not a cheap one either) but after a while the back and hip pain came back. I went to see my GP and he said it was to do with the fact I need a knee replacement. I won't hold my breath on that one. He put me on some very strong pain killers but I only take them if absolutely necessary before I go to bed. I can't sleep on my back only on my side but couldn't do with a cushion or pillow between my knees.
cc I also take statins and now on 30mg Pravastatin and now and old muscle injury in my shoulder has reared it's head. I'm hoping to see my GP soon to see if I can get another injection.
I've wonder if a mattress topper will help.

I have just the same problems as the OP and am now propping one knee up on a cushion (I’m a side sleeper) which seems to help most nights. My joint pain started when I started taking statins, though I have also put on weight which probably doesn’t help. I’m away from home at the moment and hoping that a different mattress might make a difference.

PinkCosmos

*Damask Rose* - if you do go back to the comfy bed, please let me know the details.

Re. the Emma/Simba beds. They are basically just foam. IMO any mattress that can be rolled up and delivered in a tall slim box is not going to have any support at all.

We had one on a 100 (not 1200!) day trial. I rang them to say it didn't suit us as it was too soft. They offered us a mattress topper to firm it up! Needless to say, we sent it back anyway. It was about £500, which is a lot of money for a piece of foam. It might be OK for younger people but not so much for us older ones.

Other than one basic foam mattress at the bottom of the range, Simba mattresses aren’t just foam. They are foam top levels with springs underneath, and I found it really comfortable and supportive. That’s what I’m having next time. My son has an Emma, which is nowhere near as good in my opinion.

Pink Cosmos, if you are a side sleeper then it could well be that your body is not in alignment. A body pillow would help greatly, you put one leg below and one above and same with arms. However they are quite big

Try a pillow between your legs for now if side sleeping

I had lower back pain with hip pain and bought a body pillow. It did the trick after only a few days plus I did pilates`type exercises to strengthen my core, the muscles which support the spine.

Don`t despair, these things can well be temporary and can be fixed. I have a hypnos which is now 8 years old. It was not the mattress, just my muscles becoming weaker with age

Damask Rose - if you do go back to the comfy bed, please let me know the details.

Re. the Emma/Simba beds. They are basically just foam. IMO any mattress that can be rolled up and delivered in a tall slim box is not going to have any support at all.

We had one on a 100 (not 1200!) day trial. I rang them to say it didn't suit us as it was too soft. They offered us a mattress topper to firm it up! Needless to say, we sent it back anyway. It was about £500, which is a lot of money for a piece of foam. It might be OK for younger people but not so much for us older ones.

Thank you for your replies.

We did have a Panda mattress topper on our previous mattress. I had forgotten about that.

I think it is in the loft. I hope I didn't take it to the tip!! I will have a look for it tomorrow and put it back on the bed when I have aired it a bit.

It's just difficult with the sheets as they tend to flirt off as they are not deep enough, especially as the mattress is already deep. The fitted sheets are the deepest ones I could find. I might have a couple of flat sheets I could use.

I was looking at the Hypnos mattresses recently. They have them in all of the Premier Inns. I haven't stayed in one but they must be OK as Premier Inns get good reviews about their comfy beds.

I had the same problem and bought a Dormeo Octaspring zoned topper. With that and the free pillow included I have no more hip pain, sore ears or neck ache!
www.dormeo.co.uk/mattress-toppers/octaspring-mattress-toppers

Yep mattress toppers here as well and our beds were very expensive, hand made efforts.

Our ACs don’t have any problems with them though.

Some people find that a pillow between their knees aligns their hips properly, and helps with aches and pains.

Why not try a mattress topper, first?

I sleep on my back and wake up every morning with back pain. I have to have 10 or so minutes on my side before I get up. I’m also wakened during the night sometimes. On holiday last year I realised that I woke up with no pain. Unfortunately I don’t know what the mattress was but was considering a Simba/Emma one so thanks for review! I’m a few years older than you but I do think it’s the mattress (my current one cost over a thousand pounds and I’d happily pay that again to be pain free) rather than old age. I wish I could be more helpful re the name of the mattress, I may be going back to the same place this year and if so I’ll let you know!

I had exactly your problem. I bought a Panda bamboo mattress topper and it is wonderful. No more sore hips!