If every day you wake up sore, with a heavy body, you can feel every muscle in your body bothering you... most likely you need to replace your mattress with a new one that helps you sleep better and reduce such pains, which are aggravated during the night. In this article we will talk about fibromyalgia and how to choose the best mattress if you suffer from it.
When you buy a new mattress, the most important thing will always be your needs, since inadequate sleep can alter your quality of life and your performance in your day to day. And when you have a chronic disease, this takes on special relevance, as it can make all the difference for better or for worse.
What Is Fibromyalgia?
Fibromyalgia or chronic fatigue is a condition that is based on generalized pain throughout the body, say muscles, bones and joints. Additionally, it usually occurs with insomnia and fatigue. The cause of this disease that affects so negatively to anyone who suffers from it is not known to this day.
It is characterized by pain in various parts of the body that intensify when touched. The lower and upper back, arms, shoulders and knees are among the most affected areas.
Due to the perennial pain, insomnia and fatigue, which are typical, the mattress you use can worse your symptoms, by making pressure points on the body and the constant movement during the night. Getting a good night's sleep is a difficult task for fibromyalgia sufferers.
It is more common to observe this pathology in middle-aged women, but it has also been seen in men and young people. There is no inflammation, so its characteristic symptom is pain.
What Characteristics Should A Good Fibromyalgia Mattress Have?
Changing mattresses is a great step in improving the quality of life for people with fibromyalgia, and could potentially help with the intensity of pain at night. Additionally, by reducing pain, the quality of your sleep will improve, and with it your insomnia and your fatigue.
What should you look for when choosing a suitable mattress for fibromyalgia?
Firmness
A medium firm mattress is the most suitable. Neither too soft nor too hard, since it must respect the neutral position of the back and must adapt to your figure without effort, if the firmness is not suitable, it will not adequately support your weight and will make pressure points on your body, which could cause you pain. A medium firmness will relax this pressure and help your circulatory system.
Thickness
The thickness of your mattress is also a fundamental aspect to deal with, since it must be thick enough to support the weight of your body throughout the night. 15 cm of minimum thickness is recommended, less than that will generate discomfort since it will not be able to hold you correctly, but this also depends on the size of who uses the mattress. That being said, the 15cm recommendation is workable for everyone.
Breathability
With humidity and cold, the pain caused by the disease can be aggravated, there is the importance of a mattress with a good ventilation system, such as memory foam. And it is never too much to consider buying a hypoallergenic mattress.
Which Is The Most Suitable Material?
We will review some of the materials that can improve your sleep and comfort as a fibromyalgia patient.
Foam Mattresses
These mattresses have a bad reputation for being low on budget and of poor quality, but this couldn't be further from the truth. Years have passed, and foam mattresses now possess a very high quality, even becoming pioneers and favorites in nighttime comfort. And they do not abandon their quality of being very economical. That said, we recommend that you buy a mattress with a mixture of foam with other materials such as springs or memory foam as this will increase your comfort.
Spring Mattresses
Like foam mattresses, spring mattresses are improving their technology. Currently, these mattresses are optimal to hug the shape of your body; to achieve this, you must confirm that your mattress has enough springs and that they are correctly spaced and placed. Nothing like trying a mattress before purchasing it. They usually include additional materials to make it more comfortable, for example, with a layer of memory foam.
Memory Foam Mattresses
These mattresses are considered revolutionary, innovative, and the amount of benefits they provide are innumerable. Memory foam is perfect for supporting the whole body, adapts perfectly to your shape without pressure points and is excellent for circulation. It prevents you from going around and around trying to find the perfect position, which will decrease the pain in your bones and muscles, and this makes it one of the best mattresses for you.
With a medium firmness and a suitable thickness, it is a stable and safe mattress for your back and your spine. It doesn't have to be completely made of memory foam; you can experiment with mixtures until you find the right one for you.
That said, it is important that you ask for a memory foam mattress with good ventilation, since there are many with breathability problems, and you can suffer from heat or cold which will make the pain worse.
Fibromyalgia Pillows
We cannot leave out the importance of a good pillow when you suffer from fibromyalgia, since you can have the perfect mattress, but if your pillow is not at the same level, you will not benefit from investing in your new mattress. Everyone has their preferences regarding their pillow in size, thickness and firmness, it depends a lot on your sleep position, even so, we are going to give you some recommendations to help you have the perfect bed equipment.
Just as we said that memory foam mattresses are the best for fibromyalgia, the same goes for pillows, this is the most optimal material. It will relax your neck, keeping it in its natural position, this will make your muscles rest properly and the pain will decrease. It will help your back and your circulatory system, relieving all tensions, guaranteeing a peaceful night's sleep.
In addition, they have an excellent ventilation system, since they are thermosensitive. They will adapt to your body temperature. If your pillow and your mattress are made of the same material, that’ll keep the support stable and pressure points evenly distributed.
We hope you follow our advice and allow yourself to sleep peacefully by choosing the best mattress, enjoy your night's sleep and forget about the pain.
Finally, we will give some recommendations for better sleep if you have fibromyalgia. Many of your ailments will be due to insomnia, permanent fatigue and lack of energy. You are tired of explaining that you wake up more tired every day.
Therefore, we give you five ideas so that you can sleep better after you get your recommended mattress and pillow, and so you can recover your body step by step.
1.- Comfortable, dark and quiet environment.
2.- Balanced routine.
3.- Get up and go to sleep at the same time each day, to regulate the circadian cycle.
4.- Avoid naps.
5.- Meditate and relax before bedtime.
We hope our advice and recommendations are helpful. Sweet dreams.