When, Why, and What Mattress to Buy

Most of us don’t think much about our beds much. We might think about the number of hours we lie there, but do we really stop and think about the quality of the sleep we’re getting? As we think about sleep quality, some names might come to mind. You might have heard of the Tempur Pedic mattress, a Stearns and Foster, or even the Sealy black mattress. But how do you know what and when you should buy?

When

Most experts say that if you’ve had a mattress for five years it’s is probably started to show its age. You should start watching it carefully for signs of excess wear. Not only that, but the mattress accumulates dander and dust through the years. This can start to wreak havoc on your allergies, which can in turn wreak havoc with your sleep. If you’re sleeping with a partner, you can also wreak havoc with their sleep. Five years is the time to start checking, and on average most people start to experience decreased quality of sleep at the nine or 10 year mark. If your mattress is getting close to 10 years old, it’s time to start looking at that Tempur Pedic one.

Why

The most important reason to replace your mattress is simply to get quality sleep. Sleep statistics tell us that close to 80% of us are not getting the seven or eight hours that is recommended. Our mattresses have the capacity to affect our sleep by this amount. A bad mattress can lead to a lack of REM sleep, to pain in the back and neck, and to multiple awakenings throughout the night that keep us from entering deeper stages of sleep that help us to feel really rested. This is important, as a poll done in 2018 by the National Sleep Foundation found that 65% of us can tell that the quality of our sleep the night has an impact on our effectiveness the next day.

What

Should you get a Tempur Pedic or a Sealy? Should you spend hours pouring over mattress reviews, or would it be better to go straight to the mattress store and try some out? Here’s some of the things you need to know.

1. Memory foam are popular for those who need orthopedic support. These are also great for people who sleep on their side because it provides extra support to the hip and shoulder. If you get hot at night, though, you will probably find this mattress uncomfortable. It’s also harder to move around on a mattress like this.
2. Spring mattresses are the most inexpensive. The coils inside these provide support and some bounce. If you are sleeping with a partner, look for one with individual springs rather than interlocked springs. That way you’ll feel movements less from the person on the other side.
3. Latex is customizable but expensive. If a mattress is made of latex you can actually change out the layers to make them what you want or to replace layer if necessary. However, they are definitely far more expensive than other mattresses.
4. Mattress stores aren’t the best place to try out a mattress. Getting into a bed with all your clothes on under lots of bright lights for a minute or two tells you nothing about how you’re going to feel on that bed sleeping on it seven hours a night. Some mattress stores will give you the opportunity to test drive a mattress for a few nights, and others will host active and helpful mattress review sites where you can find out precisely what other people have to say about that Tempur Pedic mattress you have your eye on.

Your mattress will have a lot to do with how you sleep tonight, and that will affect everything that you do tomorrow. Whether you want the Tempur Pedic or Sealy, a memory foam or spring mattress, make sure you got the right mattress to guarantee you a good night sleep.