Nothing is more relaxing than snuggling into bed after a long day. But buying a mattress? That event is almost ZERO parts zen. There's much to consider when hunting for the centerpiece of your bedroom -- but the mattress-buying process doesn't have to be a nightmare. Here's a quick briefing that will ensure your shopping trip is as smooth as a midday nap. There is indeed a "cheapest" time to buy. Most experts recommend purchasing a mattress near a holiday -- like Presidents Day, Labor Day, the Fourth of July, and Memorial Day -- or in the month of May, when mattresses are usually marked down in showrooms. In January, you can start prepping for your mattress purchase at "white sales," which are deeply discounted sales for bedding. Higher prices does not mean better sleep. One of the biggest complaints when buying a mattress is price, and figuring out why they cost so damn much. This is usually attributed to large markups, which depends on the brand. We recommend staying in the $500 to $1200 range, as anything over that price doesn't necessarily indicate better quality or better sleep, and probably has the same amount of cushioning and support as more expensive mattresses.
You can negotiate your price. Though it may surprise most people, it is possible to negotiate the price at most of the bigger mattress chains. Robin Wilson, an eco-friendly interior design expert, says that if you bargain "at a department store, you might be able to get tax taken off the mattress price, or delivery for free." You'll also have a better chance of getting a discount or redeeming a coupon if you go to the store to purchase a mattress, rather than buying online. "Firm" mattresses are not the same "firmness" everywhere. Yes, labels may tout a mattress's level of firmness, but one brand's "firm" may be another brand's "soft," according to Consumer Reports Expert Shopper Tod Marks. "The only way to determine if the cushiness and the firmness is right for you is to lie down on the bed and try it for yourself," he says. It's harder to return a mattress than you think. Most mattress retailers (from IKEA to Tempur-Pedic) will allow you to try out your mattress for up to 90 days, but they differ on the amount of money you'll get back if you return it.
Other stores require an exchange fee or disposal fee, which can cost hundreds of dollars. There are organic options. The squishy foam on mattresses is often made from petroleum oil, which (not surprisingly) can cause health problems for some. Organic mattress brands like Keesa use their own foams that put plant oils into the mix. While they may be more costly, all-natural mattresses are worth it, says Wilson. "We spend one third of our lives sleeping," she explains. "Consider your mattress a health investment." You can order a mattress online as easily as you can order a pair of shoes. Yup, you'll find mattresses right in the Amazon store, many listed with free shipping. And a whole new suite of boutique mattress retailers (like the newly-popular Casper) operate solely online, sending mattresses to your door in a nice, neat box. These new online retailers often allow returns for a full refund, without any fees or charges whatsoever. But the old standby brands -- which you might find on discount sites like Overstock -- likely won't do the same, so it's smart to go test them out in a store first.
You don't need to buy your mattress from a brand you've heard of. The aforementioned Casper is an online retailer that aims to ease everyone's mattress-buying headache with a 100-day trial period and sleek design. Other sites like Saatva (which has an eco-friendly focus) and Novosbed (which also boasts free delivery, free trial periods and free returns) also deliver to your door in a snap. Hop on the bandwagon, because this is the future of mattresses.If you talk to most people and the subject of sleeping on an air mattress comes up, they will talk about air mattresses as an necessary evil in some circumstances, like moving, traveling, camping and having more guests than your house can accommodate. If you ask them about why they prefer a regular mattress, chances are that among the first arguments you will hear is that a regular mattress provides better support for your back and is better for your back overall. Should you ask why is that, this is where their argumentation becomes vague and it becomes obvious, and let me be blunt here, that they don’t quite know what they’re talking about.
Having reviewed dozens (maybe even hundreds, don’t know any more) of air mattresses and knowing the subject inside out I decided to write a short article and make a few things clearer and, frankly, ‘demolish’ a couple of common misconceptions about air beds and a healthy spine. I personally have a history of back problems so I also know first hand that some of the things even doctors told me are not quite right. Let me first demystify what ‘healthy” means in terms of the position of your back while side sleeping with a graph that explains it a lot better than I ever could with words: So, you see that when sleeping on a surface of optimal firmness, it will allow your pressure points like the shoulders and the hip bone to sink into the mattress just enough so that the spine is properly aligned and there is no pressure on the vertebrae and the spine does not form an arch. Let us now take a look at another image of the optimal position of your neck when sleeping:
There is one air mattress that’s proven to be the ultimate solution for any kind of back problems proven in official studies by Dr., but it comes with a price to match. (for the rest of us, I’ll provide you with some cheaper options later on in the text.) I am talking about it’s majesty – the Innomax Medallion. So you see, again, with the pillow we are aiming for natural. Natural straight position of the spine when you are sleeping on your side and a natural curve of your neck when sleeping on your back. In the third image we can see what can go wrong with the way your pillow aligns your neck vertebrae in side sleeping: I don’t like to dilly-dally so I’m going to give you two lists here – best mattresses for back pain in two price ranges: Let us speak in plainer terms – as you can see in our images, when the bed is too firm your hip bone and your shoulder are not allowed to ‘sink’ into the sleeping surface enough and this forces your spine into an arch.
It this happens for one or two nights, you might just be stiff, but over time this can lead to a chronic problem. This was one of the worst advise I personally got from a doctor – to sleep on a surface that is a hard as a board. For a while I thought that how bad I felt was due to that old ‘it will get worse before it gets better’ but since the ‘better’ was not happening I consulted a few more specialists and used common sense to get a bed that will allow me to sleep with my spine properly aligned. This is what I look at when I choose my bed and what I am looking at when choosing an air mattress. I am not aiming here for medical advise, but looking into what favor you can do to your body by choosing the right surface to sleep on. Our body is not a straight line and sleeping on a surface that is too firm can cause pressure points and cause all sorts of issues with our back and joints. Now we are getting to the bottom of things, that is why air mattresses (if chosen properly) can even provide benefits to a person suffering from back pains.
If you read through so many reviews (and I probably read tens of thousands over the years) of some of the best air mattresses on the market you can often see people saying that they thought an air mattresses would be just a temporary solution and then chose it as their main bed. This gets us to the gist of the analysis of how an air mattress can actually help with the back pain. Almost all air beds nowadays offer it and it can be the solution to choosing the right mattress for you. If you sleep on it and feel bad in the morning the next night you try making it a bit sturdier. Then probably it is to firm and you have to many pressure points that cause the spine to arch as we talked about and as you saw in the images. Next night you make it softer and see how you feel. You do this until you find the firmness that makes your spine straight as an arrow in side sleeping and you get that good night sleep you’ve been longing for. You can’t do this with a regular mattress, even if it’s perfect for you to start with, no doubt it will sag over time.
Even with the high-end regular mattresses that you paid multiple times the cost of an air mattress, there is no way around it. If not in 6 months, maybe not even in a year or two, but it will happen. That is where the strengths of an air bed shines through. Adjusting it until you have your optimal support. This did miracles for my back. And the soft foams and finishes on the better air mattresses can provide the same luxurious feeling that you find in an expensive regular bed. In other words, you can adjust your air bed to distribute the weight and relieve the pressure points just right. That’s all there is to it. This is not something I am just saying, this has been proven over and over again in official studies (Lancet 2003; 362 1599-604 is a good example). So, things are not so simple after all. If something is not paid thousands of dollars for, doesn’t mean it’s not as good for your back or even better than the high class regular mattresses. I think we might have a myth debunked here, don’t you agree?