Is There Really a Best Mattress for Back Pain?1

Throughout the ages, bad workmen have blamed their tools. Nowadays, people with back pain are blaming their beds.

You've got back pain. Every time you roll over in the night it feels like someone is ramming a red hot poker into your back and when you wake up in the morning you're in agony. You drag yourself into the shower where it takes 20 minutes of heat treatment to get you to the point where you can bend down to put on your socks.

By the end of the day you've loosened up, you don't feel too bad, but after another restless night, come getting up time you're as stiff as a board.

Because you spend so much time in bed, because when you go to bed your back doesn't feel too bad and because when you roll over in it and get out of it you're in pain, it stands to reason that your bed must be the cause of your back pain!

So you fork out a couple of thousand dollars for a new bed. When you try it out in the store it 'feels firm'. The sales person agrees with you that your back will feel much better with a firm bed. They'll also tell you not to get something too cheap; cheap means 'no good'.

Having said all that, there's definitely a lot to be said for getting a new bed. In actual fact you need a bed that gives firm postural support without being too hard. You can liken it to the difference between a firm handshake and a bone-cruncher.

If the bed is firm you'll feel more comfortable, it won't take as much effort to roll over.

The other thing you need for a good night's sleep is pressure relief and these days you can get it with beds that have gel padding or dense, durable, soft foams (sometimes called memory foams) that mould into your body shape.

Maybe your old bed has too much 'give' in it. Certainly it's not like the old wire beds that used to sag in the middle like a hammock, but it's worn, you can see indentations and no matter how often you turn it over and around, it's still uncomfortable, particularly when you roll over.

But here's the rub. When it's all boiled down, being persuaded to buy another bed, without doing something to improve your strength and flexibility is just another furniture store swiftie. I'll lay you London to a brick that never in a lifetime of traipsing around furniture stores will a sales person give you a sheet of paper containing a set of exercises to relieve back pain.

Trying to relieve your back pain by buying a new bed is pretty much the same as going to the chemist and purchasing a box of anti-inflammatory tablets. The pain is eased for a while, but only enough to take you mind off what you need to do to yourself to treat the underlying cause of the problem that's causing the pain.

Which is? Tight and weak muscles throughout your body have taken the bones in your lower back out of alignment. Along the way ligaments, tendons and muscles have been stretched beyond their pain threshold. You'll know if discs have been herniated because it hurts like hell when you sneeze and cough.

Lying down in bed won't make it better. In fact come morning and it will feel worse. If you do want to lie down, the best position to get into is the static back position, lying on the floor with your lower legs supported on an ottoman.

Surprisingly, loosening tight muscles and strengthening weak muscles doesn't take a lot of effort. All you need to do is spend a bit of time each evening, on the floor while you watch TV.

In the meantime stay tuned, highly tuned and if your bed is worn out, buy a new one. You'll probably feel more comfortable. But don't even think for a moment that a new bed is going to treat the underlying cause of your back pain. You've got to do that yourself.

John Miller