Available in Extra Firm, Firm, Medium, Soft
Dispatched for free in 5-7 Weeks to mainland UK
Available in Extra Firm, Firm, Medium, Soft
Dispatched for free in 5-7 Weeks to mainland UK
Available in Extra Firm, Firm, Medium, Soft
Dispatched for free in 5-7 Weeks to mainland UK
Available in Extra Firm, Firm, Medium, Soft
Dispatched for free in 5-7 Weeks to mainland UK
Sciatica causes radiating pain in the legs, hips and lower back, making it challenging to get a good night’s sleep.
The discomfort can be short-term, or it can last for a while. In either circumstance, having a mattress that softens sore spots and takes the pressure off the lower back can be crucial to getting a good night’s rest. Choose the best mattress for sciatica today.
Individuals with sciatica experience pain and numbness in the lower back, buttocks, legs and hips. The pain can arise on one or both sides of the body; in extreme cases, sciatica may impede bladder function.
Unfortunately, sciatica sufferers frequently have trouble finding a comfortable and relaxing sleep position. This is worrying as poor-quality sleep can lead us to encounter pain more vividly, initiating a negative cycle that’s difficult to break.
A mattress for sciatica relief has excellent pressure relief and support that minimizes aches and pains and aid you in getting adequate rest. Some sleepers may also have different needs, such as motion isolation to lessen disturbances from their partner’s movement or firm edges to simplify getting in and out of bed.
Sifting through the confusing terminology that saturates the mattress industry can feel overwhelming. However, buying a mattress for sciatica comes down to a few fundamental points. Concentrating on the following aspects can help you see past the marketing hype and choose the most suitable mattress for your sciatica.
Quality Fibres
A mattress with poor-quality fibres may succumb to early sagging or indentations, affecting its ability to support and relieve pressure points. Higher-quality fibre mattresses may cost more, but they offer long-lasting relief.
Mattress Feel
Mattress feel is subjective, and your best feel will depend on your body weight, type, sleeping position and personal preference. For example, people with sciatica should look for a medium to medium-firm feel mattress to support the lumbar area without placing unwanted pressure on the shoulders and hips.
Pressure Relief
Pressure relief is vital for individuals who experience sciatica, especially side sleepers whose sciatica spreads up in the hips. Mattresses with memory foam layers or natural fibres tend to function best at pressure relief, cushioning heavier body parts to reduce pressure build-up.
Edge Support
A mattress for sciatica has good edge-to-edge support, making you feel more secure when sleeping near the edge. This can be invaluable support when getting in and out of bed, mainly if your sciatica makes some movements awkward or painful.
Contouring
Fibres that mould to the body’s curves encourage good spinal alignment and help relieve pressure, which is essential for individuals with sciatica. Natural fibres and memory foam naturally offer the best contouring, and some white fibre mattresses also do well in this category.
Ease of Movement
Many individuals with sciatica find the pain worsens after staying in the same sleep position for lengthy periods. For these people, pillow top and natural fibre mattresses provide a responsive sleeping surface that makes it more comfortable and easy to change sleeping positions.
Pocket Spring Mattress
Pocket spring mattresses provide support, edge support and airflow, pressure relief and motion isolation. This makes pocket spring mattresses ideally positioned to deliver the balance of pressure relief and support required to relieve pressure on the sciatic nerve.
Natural Mattress
A natural fill mattress offers unrivalled pressure relief that cushions and soothes pressure points. Natural fibres conforming capabilities also cradle the lumbar area to stop pressure build-up in the gap between the mattress and lower back.
The sciatic nerves develop in the lower back and manoeuvre through the back of the legs, buttocks and soles of the feet down to the toes. Sciatica results from a problem with the sciatic nerves, most frequently an irritated or pinched nerve provoked by a herniated disc. Sciatica risk factors include injury, poor posture, sedentary lifestyle, obesity, bone spurs or arthritis.
Sciatica is often expressed as a radiating pain that begins in the lower back and spans down the back of the legs and feet. It can present as tingling, numbness, heat, throbbing, inflammation, aching, sharp pain, or even muscle spasms in the areas impacted by the sciatic nerve. These symptoms can be severe, mild, chronic or acute, often occurring only on one side of the body. Patients may find comfort by applying ice or taking anti-inflammatory drugs, but surgery is sometimes needed for extreme cases.
Many individuals with sciatica may have difficulty finding a comfy sleep position. Lying down can put tension on the lumbar area and hips, leading many individuals to flare up when attempting to sleep or waking up after lying in the same sleep position all night. In addition, people with sciatica require a mattress that can spread body weight and support the lower back to help take pressure off the sciatic nerves.
Odds are your sciatica keeps you tossing and turning to find a comfortable sleep position. Those who experience intense sciatica may also have issues with bladder control. In these cases, choosing a mattress that isolates motion transfer will help lower disturbances to a sleeping partner during night bathroom visits. Other methods to reduce sciatica pain include elevating the knees and putting a pillow between your knees to hold the hips in line when side sleeping.
Different sleeping positions put pressure on other parts of our bodies, which can significantly impact sciatica pain. Side and back sleeping are generally praised as the best sleep positions for individuals with sciatica, but as we’ll see below, this advice comes with caveats.
Back Sleepers
Back sleeping promotes healthy spinal alignment and is generally regarded as the most beneficial sleeping position. That said, there are a few aspects that sleepers with sciatica should watch for to guarantee they’re obtaining the maximum benefits from their mattress.
One of the most significant problems for individuals with sciatica to look out for when sleeping on their backs is inadequate support to the lumbar region. A mattress that is too firm can leave gaps between your lower back and the mattress, leading to a build-up of pressure in the lumbar area.
By contrast, a mattress that is too soft may let your hips sink in too deep, putting pressure on your lower back. The best mattress for sciatica sufferers who prefer sleeping on their back must balance support and pressure relief. You may get further relief from using a thin pillow beneath your knees.
Side Sleepers
Side sleepers often develop pressure points in the shoulders and hips as a consequence of these regions digging into the mattress. This can be painful for individuals who have sciatica in the hips. For this reason, choosing a mattress that buffers the hips and shoulders is crucial. Memory foam mattresses and natural fibre generally have the best pressure-relieving capabilities.
It may be compelling to go with the softest mattress to soothe pressure points. But mattresses that don’t deliver adequate support in the lumbar area may also induce lower back pain due to the hips curving at awkward angles. The best mattress for side sleepers with sciatica will contour to the body curves, filling in the lumbar area and letting the shoulders and hips sink in sufficiently to maintain the spine on an even plane.
Side sleeping is a perfect choice for individuals who only encounter sciatica pain on one side.
Stomach Sleepers
Sleeping on your stomach is not usually advised for individuals with sciatica as it can probably aggravate symptoms. In addition, since most people carry most of their weight around their hips, this weightier area tends to sink into the mattress, which places pressure on the lower back and neck.
If you have to sleep on your stomach, you’ll do best with a medium or medium-firm feel mattress that supports the hips to help promote a more natural position for your spine.
Mixed Sleepers
Individuals with sciatica frequently find they occasionally need to change sleep positions to take pressure off a given area. Therefore, a mattress for mixed sleepers should simplify movement in addition to support and pressure relief. Pocket spring and memory foam hybrid mattresses can provide the added responsiveness that keeps you from feeling stuck in the mattress when you change sleeping positions.
The best mattress for sciatica sufferers will deliver ample cushioning around the sciatic nerve, which derives from the buttock and travels down the thigh and lower leg. A mattress should also relieve pressure in the lower back, where individuals often feel sciatica-related pain. While cushioning is necessary, the mattress should provide proper support and withstand deep sinkage in lower body areas.
The best feel is somewhat subjective because it depends on the sleeper’s body weight and sleeping position, but added support around the lumbar area, buttocks, hips and thighs is usually required to reduce sciatica pain. A soft-feel mattress may be comfortable if you weigh less than 10 stones, but those who weigh more may prefer a medium-soft or medium-feel mattress.
The simple answer is no, but the wrong mattress definitely won’t help. Sciatica generally occurs due to problems with discs in the lower back that apply pressure on the sciatic nerve. Sleeping on a mattress that doesn’t deliver enough support to the lower body likely won’t cause sciatica on its own, but this can undoubtedly aggravate symptoms for individuals who already have sciatica. Conversely, a supportive mattress that buffers the affected areas may not stop your pain but can eradicate pain and help you sleep better.
Our mattress experts have vast experience in everything to do with sleep products and mattresses, from finding a mattress for your sciatica to exploring which mattress is best for upper back pain. Send an email to [email protected] or call us at 01612509200 with your questions and we’ll assist you in finding what you’re looking for.
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