I have experienced back pain since 1997 and can remember exactly when and why the pain started: I lifted an 88 pound (40 kg) bag of water softener salt and put it into the back of my parents car. As I lowered the bag into the trunk, I heard and felt several cracks in my lower back. The pain and stiffness set in pretty much right away.
Since then I have had back pain on and off for years and it took me awhile to figure what I needed to do to alleviate the stiffness and soreness. I also learned through trial and error what helps and in particular how a bed can make a big difference.
Your choice of bed mattress can lead to back pain or exacerbate existing back problems especially if you have other factors causing the pain. An inferior mattress can put a strain on your back and neck and pull your spine out of alignment causing you to wake up with a sore back each morning.
I’m not a doctor and am not qualified to give medical advice but I know my body and through research, trial and error and wasted time and money on things that didn’t help me, I finally figured out how to get my lower back pain under control. While it wasn’t one single thing that helped, my choice of bed mattress – which I found by accident – has helped immensely.
Below is what else I’ve learned over the years.
How do I know if my mattress is causing my back pain?
As the average adult spends close to one third of their life sleeping, it makes sense to have a bed and mattress that suits your needs. Most people don’t consciously think in these terms and often go cheap with a mattress purchase and spend little time understanding what they need.
People spend time researching a car purchase, a vacation, buying new electronics and probably many other things that while important to some extent, aren’t something that they spend as much time using as they do their bed.
If you wake up regularly in the morning with a sore or stiff back it’s a common sign that your bed is the culprit. While your sleeping position could also be the problem sleeping on the wrong mattress is a guaranteed way to wake up with a stiff back especially if you already have back problems.
You may find that you need to have a hot shower and perhaps walk around to stretch out a bit before your get relief. If you go to bed reasonably happy and not in pain but wake up more often than not with a stiff or sore back, chances are you are either lying in a bed the wrong way, using the wrong pillow or are lying in the wrong type of bed.
Or all three.
But as I found out, I had other underlying reasons for back pain. Certainly before I hurt my back, I never had issues with the bed I used whether at home or at a hotel I was visiting or elsewhere.
When is it time to replace my bed mattress?
Despite what you’ve read, it isn’t as simple as replacing a mattress every 7-10 years. Replacing a bed mattress isn’t necessarily a matter of sticking with a specific time schedule and replacing it by that date. Instead, you need to observe your mattress and more importantly, listen to your body.
Some signs that your mattress is ready for replacement:
- You go to bed feeling fine but wake up regularly with a sore or stiff back.
- Your mattress is 8 years old or older. So age does have something to do with it but isn’t necessarily the key factor.
- The mattress has noticeable bumps or lumps and you sink in it when lying down.
- You wake up in the middle of the night frequently due to something bed-related ie. the mattress squeaks, is uncomfortable.
- You have allergies and find that the bed makes them worse. It’s likely your mattress has attracted dust, mites and other allergens.
Common factors leading to a sore lower back
There are many possible reasons for a sore or stiff lower back so before you run out and buy a new mattress, try to determine your specific situation.
Common reasons for lower back pain include:
- Muscle or ligament strain due to injury from some activity
- Sciatica
- Bulging, herniated or ruptured discs
- Arthritis
- Osteoporosis
- Curvature of the spine or some other deformity
- Spinal stenosis
I compiled this incomplete list by checking out various medical websites after searching for causes of lower back pain. You’ll probably notice that nowhere on this list – or any of the lists I consulted – even referred to your choice of mattress, tight hamstrings or other muscles that I had since learned all may play a part.
So every time I Googled reasons for lower back pain, I never came across the two reasons that I ultimately figured out on my own were my personal issues causing me the back pain. Instead I spent years and countless dollars seeing a chiropractor and massage therapist, buying foam back supports, doing back stretches and the like while completely ignoring the things that could have helped me due to lack of knowledge.
Other factors to consider that cause lower back pain
So beyond the short list of medical reasons you may have a sore back, there are other muscle related problems that could at a minimum cause you pain. They include:
- Tight hamstrings
- Tight and weak gluteal muscles (glutes)
- Overactive piriformis muscle
- Tight hip flexors from sitting too much
- Being overweight
- Poor posture and leading with your head tilted forward
Again, these are just a few reasons that I’ve come across. For your personal situation, think about your daily activity and routines that could cause you pain and speak with your doctor to figure out how to deal with them before you buy a new bed.
Getting medical help for a sore back
When my sore back got to be chronic and was something I started feeling regularly, I finally decided to ask my doctor for help. She referred me to a chiropractor who did an assessment on my back. He concluded that I certainly had tightness in my lower back but it went up to my shoulder area too. He also noted that I had a twisted vertebrae in my lower back near the area that I had hurt by lifting the bag of salt many years earlier.
So I started visiting him for a chiropractic adjustment and over time, generally saw him every two weeks. While some people don’t believe in chiropractors – my chiro even mentioned that some other medical doctors he knows don’t take his work seriously – I have to say that the adjustments did help for a time.
My chiro’s office also had a massage therapist so I would occasionally see her for a session and I found that helped too. Of course, there is an expense to both services and while I had insurance that covered it, it wasn’t unlimited so I tried to balance appointments with need and cost.
But over time, I started to realize that something still wasn’t right and that perhaps there was more to my back pain that just back stiffness and tightness.
Tight hamstrings and back pain
For me, I finally noticed that tight hamstrings were contributing to my back problems. It wasn’t until I came across an article discussing how tight leg muscles, gluteal muscles and other muscles in our legs that affect back health that I started focusing more on that part of my body. I had assumed that if I have a sore back, the cause must be something in the back area. In my case, it wasn’t that simple even though the medical professionals I saw had kind of convinced me that was the case.
Every few months I would suddenly feel stiffness in my lower back and for years I just assumed I’d twisted it or otherwise aggravated it somehow during the day. It took me some time to figure out that when my already tight hamstring muscles tighten up, it pulls down on my back and it stiffens up even more.
If you have tight hamstrings like I do, what can you do to alleviate the pain and loosen your back up without making it worse?
For me, I lie on the ground against a wall and stretch
each leg one at a time. I found this stretch really helps me and I can immediately feel my back loosening up. I need to do the exercise repeatedly and it usually takes a day or two before my back feels better completely.
Alternatively you can lie with both legs up the wall at the same time. I’ve done this one too and it works for me as well.
So I started to get my back pain under control although it did still flare up from time to time seemingly without warning. It wasn’t until we moved homes and bought a new bed that I really figured out how to “deal” with my bad back and it didn’t involve any work on my part.
A new bed and mattress = less pack pain for me
Purely by chance, when my family moved to a new home, my wife and I ended up buying a new bed that finally got my back pain under control for good. We bought a European-made bed with a wooden frame with adjustable hardness setting and a mattress on top. So while other beds I had used throughout my life were the standard box spring and mattress on top style, this one is a bit different.
I immediately noticed a difference. My back pain went away almost overnight. I had already known that my bed choice made some sort of difference because since hurting my back I had noticed that sometimes on vacation in a hotel, the cheap hotel bed and mattress caused me back pain from the first night staying there. I had assumed it was the entry level worn bed that was the culprit.
Plus, I didn’t actually know if I needed a soft mattress or a hard one. A soft mattress seemed like it could make sense as soft usually means comfortable right? But a firm mattress could provide better back support I thought. Maybe that’s what I needed. The truth is that I wasn’t sure.
But unless you’re actually sleeping in a bed for a few weeks, how can you tell? Who buys a mattress and then sends it back and buys another? You can lie on a mattress in a bed store for 60 seconds and feel comfortable. But sleeping in it 8 hours per night every time is a different story.
What to do?
An adjustable bed base gives you options
The new bed we bought was slightly more expensive than other similar styles beds but really the only thing we bought that added to the expense was the adjustable head and foot. So we can adjust the mattress and prop up both the head and foot of the bed. Adjusting the head of the bed can help take pressure off your spine and so can raising the foot of the bed. It gives you options that you wouldn’t otherwise have with a standard bed and box spring bed.
Other than that we got a standard mattress and really didn’t spend an inordinate amount of money on the entire bed set. But the difference for my back is night and day and I refuse to believe it is a coincidence. In the years since we bought this bed, I have visited a chiropractor and massage therapist precisely zero times.
A firmer bed base helps me avoid back pain
The mattress we have is fairly standard. There is nothing overly special about it. It’s not particularly firm or soft. The key for me I believe is the adjustable base of the bed. On the wooden base of the bed I can manually move plastic discs to the left of right to adjust the firmness of the base. I tend to keep it at the firmest position and it works just fine for me.
Some beds come with a sleep number where you can adjust the firmness of the bed to meet your specific needs. Again, having options at least allows you to try different things to see what works in the comfort of your home over time.
While I occasionally still get a sore back, I usually find it’s my hamstrings acting up again. I go back to doing the wall exercises a few times for a few days and it typically goes away.
What is the best bed mattress for lower back pain?
The simple answer is that there is no simple answer. You need to figure out your own personal situation based on your symptoms. It’s a hard nut to crack because we all want a quick fix but rather than running out and buying an expensive bed mattress, you’re better off confirming your trigger points and causes of lower back pain first.
What I noticed personally is that my choice of bed in the past did exacerbate my back soreness and tightness. Once we bought the adjustable bed, the back pain largely went away. When it returns, I know that in all likelihood it’s my hamstrings and I can stretch them accordingly. For you it might the same thing or one of the other common causes of lower back pain.
Bed mattress rumors and facts
The main reasons that your current bed may cause you to experience back pain is often due to the misinformation that is out there regarding mattresses and the marketing behind them.
Mattress replacement frequency
Mattress companies offer 20 year warranties on their products and then tell you to replace your mattress every 7 -10 years. Huh?
Instead, you should replace your mattress when you wake up every day with a sore back, if not before. Your back and body will tell you when to replace it. You can also go back up to the top of the page and review the bullet points for what to look for.
Having said that, once your mattress hits the 8 year mark, it’s probably time to replace it regardless.
Mattress rotation frequency and method
In order to ensure your mattress wears properly and has a chance to keep the filling evenly distributed, you should rotate it every 3 months as follows unless your manufacturer recommends something else:
Single-sided mattress: Rotate it 180 degrees.
Double-sided mattress: Rotate it 180 degrees and then flip it over on the other side.
Some manufacturers may recommended a more frequent rotation schedule when the mattress is new and then a 6 month rotation thereafter.
Firm or soft mattress
This is another personal preference decision. I used to think a soft plush pillow top mattress would be good for my stiff back but it actually made it worse. My back only felt better when I woke up, had a hot shower and walked around. I now realized a firmer mattress and adjustable bed support is better for me.
New bed and mattress adjustment
Some bed manufacturers offer a comfort guarantee of 30 days to try a bed out in your home with the option of sending it back if you don’t like it. Of course, most people won’t actually use the guarantee even if they have plans to. If you return the bed, you’ll have to disassemble it, pack it back up in the box that you probably already cut up and recycled and send it back at your expense perhaps minus a stocking fee on top. Then you have to buy a replacement bed. Too much work for most people!
Having said that, some online mattress retailers now offer free trials up to 100 days, free returns and things of that nature. Your body might need at least a month if not more to get used to a new bed and your bed is also getting used to your body. It might be worth a try.
Do your best ahead of time to understand exactly what kind of bed you need, what causes your back pain if any and try out different beds to see what makes sense for you before purchasing.
But also carefully think about what you can do to make your situation better outside of just the mattress. I spent too many years relying on medical professionals telling me part of the answer and honestly ended up figuring out how to deal with lower back pain myself through trial and error. Not ideal but it ended up working for me.
Are memory foam mattresses bad for your back?
If you suffer from back pain, you may have been advised to check out memory foam mattresses. I remember the first time I tried a memory foam bed in a mattress store…It was a high end model and the most expensive one in the store. I laid down on it and it felt like I was lying on a giant pillow. It was so soft and plush. It also cost around $2,500 for the whole bed package so I kept looking.
While memory foam mattresses have an immediate soft and comfortable feel to them, owners often complain that they develop back pain over time and find that the mattresses can be too soft.
If your body contours to the mattress, it could put your spine out of alignment and this could be exacerbated depending on what position(s) you sleep in and the type of pillow you use.
Research has shown that a medium firm mattress can improve lower back pain better than a firm one although as I found out, your personal situation might be different. Plus, it also depends how you sleep, your health, your pillow and many other factors that should be considered.
I didn’t need to spend thousands of dollars on a new bed to correct my back problem and you might not need to either. I’ve found through research and trial and error that the type and cost of the bed I choose is less important than picking one that suits my needs and the ability to adjust it as needed.
Summary
Can a mattress cause back pain? In my experience, it certainly can but other issues that you have can exacerbate the problem. For me, it’s tight hamstrings.
Before you run out and buy a new bed, do an inventory of your situation. For me, it took me several years to realize that my back injury and tight hamstrings caused me back pain that was exacerbated by using the wrong bed mattress. I used trial and error to finally figure out what works for me.
One caution too, again from personal experience. I have in my life relied far too much on medical professionals to help me:
I had heartburn for years before I finally found out that I had a stomach valve problem that required surgery. This was after one doctor basically told me there was nothing that could be done and I just “had to live with it.”
I took weekly allergy shots for years before I finally decided to quit and have noticed no difference in my allergy symptoms after stopping. They didn’t help when I was taking the shots either.
And I saw a chiropractor and massage therapist for back pain for several years when in fact it was my hamstrings and bed choice that was the problem, something none of them advised me to consider.
While I’m not suggesting ignoring medical advice, in all three cases for me I had to find the correct answer myself and find the ultimate answer to my problem myself. You know your body better than anyone else so make sure you do what is right for you.
And don’t forget about the importance of cleaning your mattress, too. While you can’t pop it in the washing machine, you can still clean it manually.