Why does your mattress cause you back pain?

If you go to bed feeling great and wake up miserable, it’s a good sign your mattress is causing back pain. A mattress that’s too soft will cause your spine to fall out of alignment all night long, and a mattress that’s too firm will cause joint pressure in your hips that leads to pain in your lower back. You’re certain to feel this pain as soon as you try to get out of bed.

It’s hard to get comfortable when you’re, well, uncomfortable. If your spine isn’t neutral on your bed, you’ll try all night to find a better sleep position when the problem is actually your mattress. As mattresses age, they lose their shape. A memory foam mattress will stop being able to cradle your shoulders and hips as it should, and an innerspring mattress will start to sag. An old mattress and back pain go hand in hand.

There are a few simple steps you can follow when you want to go about fixing the recurring pain:

• A mattress that’s too soft will cause your back or hips to sag and your spine to fall out of alignment, which can lead to significant pain. A mattress that’s too firm will put too much pressure on your joints, especially if you sleep on your side or your back. That’s why if you want to reduce your back pain in bed, you need a mattress that offers support but that also contours to your body to provide pressure relief and relieve pain.
• Waking up with lower back pain often means your spine was rotated throughout the night. If you sleep on your side, try placing a pillow between your knees. If you sleep on your back, place a pillow behind the backs of your knees. And if you sleep on your stomach, try placing a pillow under your hips and lower abdomen and another thin pillow under your head.
• If you sleep on your side, a memory foam mattress pad conforms to your body to allow your shoulders to sink in while keeping your spine aligned. Back sleepers can also benefit from a reasonable foam mattress pad because it conforms to your lower back.