If you go to bed during the night feeling fine but you wake up with a back pain in the morning that is not related to any other activities you have done like heavy lifting, then there is something to blame. The cause of this sore back can be due to your sleeping position or mattress.
Besides, if you use an old mattress, it can contribute to your back pain because it’s no longer offering your back with the right support. Some other signs of a poor mattress include tossing and turning, waking up a lot during the night, worsening allergies, and many more. This page discusses the right mattress for your back pain.
How back pain affects your sleep
If you are experiencing increased discomfort in the back, it can affect more than just your workouts or posture. Unfortunately, back pain can affect the quality of your sleep leading you to have less sleep than you deserve. Therefore, it’s crucial to resolve your back pain quickly and get back to sleeping peacefully during the night
Back pain can make it hard to sleep. You see, it can be harder to sleep if you are experiencing an achy back. You tend to be aware of the back pain while lying in bed because there is little that distracts you.
Also, it can be hard to feel comfortable. When you are experiencing back pain, it may feel like it’s taking an entire night for you to find the right comfortable sleeping position that doesn’t worsen your condition. As a result, you may need to try several positions, which can lead to frustrated tossing and turning.
Some sleepers out there successfully paired their mattresses with adjustable bed frames after comparing different bed sizes, which can allow you to control the sleeping position using a remote. With this remote,you can lower or raise the frame into the right position that is comfortable to you.
And, even when you finally fall asleep, your back pain can make it hard to stay in the restorative and deep sleep that your body needs. Several studies suggested that there is a high prevalence of sleep disturbances in people with lower back pain regardless of whether it was acute or persistent. You need to sleep on a supportive mattress that can relieve your back pain and also enjoy a restful sleep.
The sleeping position also plays a huge role in either worsening or mitigating your back pain. Experts believe that there is a correlation between the back pain and sleep position. For example, they recommend that the right mattress for side sleepers suffering from back pain needs to be a slightly softer bed to cushion the pressure points. When it comes to the mattress firmness, it needs to be between 5.5 and 6.5.
For back sleepers, they require a solid medium-firm mattress designed to maintain spine alignment while supporting your hips. The mattress firmness needs to be at least 6 to 7 on the mattress firmness scale. Stomach sleepers should opt for a slightly firmer mattress that is between 6.5 to 7.5 range. This can keep your hips elevated to have a neutral spine posture.
Key things to look out for in a mattress when you have back pain
Keep in mind that purchasing a new mattress is usually a personal decision, but there are still a few things that you should look for, especially if you suffer from back pain. As explained earlier, the firmness of a mattress is important if you have back pain.
It was once thought that a firmer mattress provided the right support for sleepers with back pain, but this is no longer an accepted concept. A firm mattress doesn’t usually offer enough contouring for your spine, leading to some additional problems. A good approach is to choose a mattress that is aligned to your specific sleep needs and preferences rather than a one-size-fits-all option.
It’s also important for people with back pain to choose a supportive mattress that can maintain spinal alignment. Remember that spine alignment makes sure that you can maintain the natural curve of the spine to promote healthy posture and keep off pressure from your back.
Therefore, a soft mattress can cause lower back pain. When you rest on a mattress that is not supportive, it can cause your hips as well as other body parts to sink into the mattress, so you run the risk of having spine misalignment, increasing existing pains, and causing new aches.
It’s worth noting that you can find different types of mattresses and materials. Mattresses can be manufactured using a variety of synthetic and natural materials. That said, there are some materials that are considered to be better than others, especially when it comes to offering the extra support required to alleviate back pain.
In conclusion, your mattress can significantly affect your sleep. Ideally, if a mattress is too firm, it cannot have the comfort you need to adequately support your spine. And, if a mattress is too soft, you can also end up in sleeping positions that may cause pain.
Side sleepers usually require a softer surface so that they can relieve pressure from their pressure points. When it comes to the back and front sleepers, they usually prefer firmer surfaces since their body weights are more dispersed. But it’s always important to test a mattress before you decide to make a purchase.
As you can see, firm mattresses are not always ideal if you have back pain as was believed in the past. Essentially a good mattress needs to support your spinal alignment so that the muscles can relax. Therefore, it’s a good idea to look for mattresses with an orthopaedically centered design. Being comfortable with the mattress that you’re buying should always be the top priority when buying one. Besides this, there must be targeted pressure relief utilizing mapping technology. In this way, you can avoid tossing and turning while sleeping during the night in an attempt to get comfortable.