When people say that you spend 1/3 of your life sleeping, I tend to just tune out. However, lately I’ve really been thinking about it…. maybe because I have a 3 month old and am still getting up a time or two at night! Sleep matters for babies and it matters for us. This is a sponsored post written by me on behalf of Sleep Number. All opinions are 100% mine.
I’ve never had a nice mattress. Don’t get me wrong, I’ve not been sleeping on a hard box spring. Just that I’ve never gone to a nice mattress store and bought a mattress that was purposeful. When my husband and I got married we worked for a ministry so, as you can imagine, that was not a priority. Then we moved to Australia and had to buy every single thing to start a home so again, we needed to get what we could get without overspending in one area. Now we’ve moved back to Florida in the home we’ll likely be in forever and getting a proper mattress has been on our mind.
I must say that I don’t have back problems or sleep problems. I put my head on the pillow and am out like a light. I am truly thankful for that and pray it continues on throughout life, but I know that’s not the case for many people. On the other hand, my husband says he’s never had regenerative sleep for as long as he can remember.
When I started thinking about how mattresses actually make a difference in the quality of our sleep I asked friends on my personal Facebook page to tell me how getting a proper mattress helped them sleep better and lessen aches and pains.
“I have off and on back problems and hip problems, and I love the option of making it firmer or softer depending on how my back is feeling.” Rachel, AL
“It does wreck you for other beds though- when we sleep on a strange mattress, we feel like we haven’t slept well and our backs are sore! But in our own bed, ah, bliss.” Amy, CO
“It was pricey but sooooo worth it. Especially being pregnant. I sleep so well on it and I never feel my husband tossing and turning. Any back issues I have are relieved when I sleep on it. And I really notice a difference if we have to stay on another bed like at a hotel, I hate it. So spoiled now! You spend so much of your life sleeping, so it was a very worthy investment!” Chrissy, MI
“My husband likes a firm mattress, and it seems to be better for his back. Firm mattresses seem to hurt my hips more, so I like mine softer. The sleep number allows us to each have the level of firmness that we need. It’s nice that we can have a mattress that works for both of us.” Amanda, IL
“Joe and I sleep completely differently so this helps a ton. We’ve had it for 10 years and it’s still in great shape.” Kelly, FL
“I honestly couldn’t tell you what brand ours is, but our old mattress caused me incredible back pain & migraines as a result. On the mend now that I have a firmer base beneath me. A good pillow is a must too!“ Morgan, QLD, Australia
“Just got a newer mattress after 6-7 years of a terrible one. Aches and pains in my hip and back lessened considerably in a few days, no joke. I knew our bad mattress was unhealthy for us, but I didn’t expect such quick results.” Christie, TN
So, off we went to the Sleep Number store to look around, try out some mattresses (and no I didn’t get to bring one home! I wish!). It was truly enlightening as to how far back in the bed dark ages I’ve been sleeping in.
So here’s what I took away from my Sleep Number store experience.
1. The goal is total personalization.
When you go into a Sleep Number store, the first thing they’ll do is let you lay down and work to find your sleep number. The sleep number is basically the amount of hardness/firmness your mattress needs to relieve your body of pressure while sleeping and allow you to rest better. Here’s an image of what they look for when they are testing you as you lay on the mattress.
So when you lay down with settings on ‘neutral’ you’ll see the red areas which show pressure. They adjust the mattress using an Advanced DualAir™ technology until the red areas are gone, and that’s how they determine your sleep number. Here’s an actual copy of my pressure test that was emailed to me after my trip in the store. My sleep number is 35, by the way. If you have a sleep number, what’s yours?
2. It continually monitors your sleep patterns and habits.
I will say I’m not a gadget person or super into apps and tracking. But that’s mainly because my habits and hobbies are more outside focused or crafty. However, I do love my sleep! Y’all know I talk about sleeping for babies, kids, and mamas all the time on this here blog so this intrigued me.
Sensors working directly with Advanced DualAir™ technology inside the Sleep Number bed measure average breathing rate, average heart rate, movement and bed presence to show you the quality of your sleep. So the picture below is a tracking example of the fellow redhead who assisted us.
Each morning the app will tell you about your deep sleep levels, restless sleep, your pulse, etc. At the end of the day you can enter in how much caffeine, exercise, types of food, etc. you had and after a while it will begin to develop patterns and show you how your daily habits are linked to sleep. It’s basically a bed and app that will teach you how to sleep. Sorta like a FitBit but on a much larger scale. And there’s nothing to wear, nothing to turn on, you just sleep.
3. They are like Build-A-Bear for beds.
This was where my husband (who watched the other 3 kids but listened to me afterwards) really got interested. The Sleep Number beds come in all the standard sizes, but you can also get the bed to be a Flex-Fit. That means the top portion of the bed is actually divided in a way that one person can incline their bed while the other lays flat. So it’s not just your bed, it’s your couch and reading chaise! Ha. Here’s my mom taking a spin on the Flex Fit bed. Oh and my little one examining bed linen.
You can get CoolFit™ technology which gives the bed an actual cool sensation as you are laying on it. You can get mattress pads that both heat and cool. It’s basically completely customizable down to the bed linen. If you are looking for a new mattress then they also do a 100 day in home trial. This may be good because, honestly, you don’t know what a mattress is really like until you sleep on it for a while.
If you’re interested in reading more about their mattresses, their clinical trials, and how your SleepIQ® affects the quality of your rest then go here to the Sleep Number site for cool information on SleepIQ® technology. Here’s a Sleep Number store locator as well to see how close to an actual store you are. We actually drove an hour away and made a day of it visiting family and eating at the Cracker Barrel. Bed shopping is hard work.
Please comment here and tell me how getting a proper mattress helped your sleep and any body aches and pains! I’d love to know :)
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