With one-third of our time spent in bed, it’s no wonder sleep is an essential part of our daily lives. Sleep quality has a consequential impact on your overall health and well-being. When you sleep soundly, your daytime tasks are much easier and more enjoyable. After a poor night of sleep, though, most everything seems more difficult.
For many people, a common issue that can be difficult to alleviate is back pain. While there are many causes of back pain, one culprit revolves around sleep. That is, your mattress may add to your existing back pain—or causing it outright.
Can a Mattress Cause Back Pain?
It can be challenging to know whether or not you’re experiencing back pain from your mattress. That’s why below, we explain the nine tell-tale signs that your mattress may be to blame, along with how to find the best mattress for back pain relief.
9 Signs Your Back Pain is From Your Mattress
1. You Awake to Stiffness and Soreness
Your mattress isn’t likely to provide adequate support for your body if you feel stiff and sore when you wake up. A mattress that is too yielding can cause your body to sink into it, leading to poor spinal alignment. On the other hand, if your mattress is too stiff, your body may be unable to fully relax at night, resulting in sore back muscles.
2. You Have Difficulty Finding a Comfortable Position
It’s possible that your mattress is failing to provide the support necessary for a restful night's sleep and overall comfort if you frequently change positions throughout the night. While some people naturally toss and turn at night, when you first get into bed, you should find it easy to get comfortable. If it’s difficult to get comfortable, it’s likely because your mattress itself is uncomfortable and not suited to your sleep preferences.
Finding the right mattress is crucial to getting comfortable. Many people turn to zero gravity beds to enjoy maximum comfort and support. Others find it impossible to get comfortable because they have different mattress preferences from their partner. If the latter is the case with you, you could likely benefit from a split king bed and mattress that allows you and your partner achieve the perfect sleeping position for a restful sleep with minimal pain every night.
3. You Feel Better Away from Home
Do you find that you wake up feeling rejuvenated and pain-free after sleeping elsewhere, such as in a hotel or a friend's home? If so, your mattress is likely the source of your discomfort. This is a great way to pinpoint whether or not your current mattress is a problem.
4. Your Mattress is Old or Deteriorated
If your mattress has served you for many years and has deteriorated due to wear and tear, it’s time for a replacement. An old or dilapidated mattress can cause your body to sink into it, leading to poor spinal alignment, lack of support, and heightened back pain.
It’s usually time to replace it if you’ve had your mattress for ten or more years. Lower-quality mattresses may not even last for a full ten years. A few surefire signs that your mattress is too old are if it doesn’t provide the same level of comfort it used to or if it is sagging or lumpy.
5. You Wake Up at Night
Waking up throughout the night is a solid indication that your mattress is the problem. You could find yourself waking up to pain or discomfort throughout the night and having trouble falling back asleep.
Although waking up at night is a common occurrence for some adults, if it’s a new or worsening issue, it could be because your mattress isn’t providing enough support and comfort to keep you asleep.
Your mattress should provide you with deep sleep, not midnight wake-up calls.
6. Your Mattress Sags
A sagging mattress is another sign of wear and tear. Because sagging happens over years, you may not notice it right away. When your bed sags, it usually dips below your lower back, preventing you from getting support where you need it most to avoid back pain. A sagging mattress can also result in spine misalignment, which further contributes to your back pain.
Check if your mattress is sagging by stripping off the sheets. See if you notice a dip near the middle of your bed. Or, next time you get in bed, pay close attention to where your back is and how your mattress feels against it. If you don’t feel like your mattress is supporting your back, it’s probably not.
7. You Sink Into Your Bed
Spinal alignment is crucial if you want to avoid back pain and other issues. If you sink deeply into your bed, your spine may slip out of a neutral position, resulting in back pain. While some mattresses, like memory foam beds, are known for their sinking feeling, they should also support your spine when you sleep.
8. You’re Always Tired
Is your back pain making you feel tired most of the time? It could very well be because of your bed. Constant fatigue is often a symptom of regularly lacking quality sleep. Fatigue, in combination with back pain, can point straight to your mattress.
9. Your Back Pain Dissipates After Waking
If your back pain is at its worst right after you wake up and lessens throughout the morning, it’s probably because your back is recovering from an unsupportive and uncomfortable night lying on your mattress.
Lose the Back Pain With a New Mattress
While it can be hard to determine what exactly is causing chronic back pain without seeing your doctor, sometimes the answer is simple. Upgrading your mattress to a high-quality, supportive, and comfortable one from Ergomotion can be exactly what you and your back need to sleep soundly and wake up feeling great.
ErgoEssentials Mattress - Our cheapest option, offering cooling, comfort, and the perfect amount of support.
ErgoSwitch Dual Sided Mattress - Offers reversible firmness levels, gel-infused memory foam, and a breathable design with edge support.
Dawn House Mattress - Designed for perfect sleep, featuring a cooling cover, reactive memory foam, and a flex channel air base for enhanced comfort and support tailored to all sleep styles.
Dawn House ErgoCopper Hybrid Mattress - Combines copper-infused memory foam with foam-encased coils, offering comfort, temperature regulation, and support
Pairing these innovative mattresses with Ergomotion adjustable bases can transform your sleep experience, offering customized comfort and support that may alleviate back pain, ensuring you wake up rejuvenated and ready to start your day.