QUESTION: I seem to be in the 1% of people that has real trouble finding a mattress that works for me. Ideally, I'm a side-sleeper, but with a too-firm mattress I wind up tossing and turning and, in the end, on my back. A firmer mattress can also cause stiffness in the morning, which generally wears off during the day, but can be pretty uncomfortable. Yet with a softer mattress, I wind up compressing my shoulders and wake up with a lot of discomfort in that area which can become a constant pain. Also, with a soft mattress, my neck gets strained and is stiff in the morning, probably from sinking into the mattress. If I had to choose between the two, I would go for the firmer side of the scale, but there must be a solution that really works. I'm male, 5'10'' and 185 pounds with a history of only minor lower back pain, which comes and goes, but isn't significant. Recently, I've tried the Sleep Number bed, which was really OK except it reeked a chemical smell and so I needed to return it. I then went w/ a Simmons Belmont Worldclass (too firm), moved to a Simmons Cyprus latex (too soft and gave me pains going down my arms in the morning) and lastly am on a Sealy all latex mattress, Dunlop Crocker Grove, which I thought would be much firmer, but is really way too soft, akin to a marshmellow. I actually am sinking into to it deeply, which is causing lots of shoulder, arm and neck pain. I never thought getting a decent night's sleep would be so confounding.
ANSWER: For many, there isn't one mattress that does it for them. For many, the combination of a firm mattress with a soft topper is the answer. Turn your mattress over and sleep on the firmer underside. If that is too firm, then get a soft 2" latex topper. When the mattress is soft, which allows you to sink further, the distance between your head and the mattress is less. You'll then need a thinner pillow to fill the gap. I'm guessing that is the reason for your neck hurting.
