DR. ARNAN SISSON // February 16, 2024

Today we’re going to answer the age-old question, what is the “Best” bed we can sleep on? What is the type of bed that’s going to not just prevent back and neck troubles, but more importantly make us feel like 100 bucks after waking up? I’ve heard strong arguments for a super firm bed, cushiony soft bed, water beds, and even hammocks! Luckily for the reader today we’re going to end all the confusion and go over what makes the ideal bed.

We spend a lot of our lives in our beds, so the above question is a good one to have answered. And to answer it I go back to the questions I ask my personal clients.

For every client that comes in with back pain, neck pain, or just on a pure wellness basis; I always ask about the bed they sleep on. It can very well be a large reason why a person has back pain that forces them to consider painful back surgery or even contributes to a sense of sluggishness from a night of poor sleep.

When I speak to anyone about their type of bed, I don’t necessarily think the firmness or softness is the most important factor. By far the biggest thing I look for is a sag to the bed. This is just a dip or indentation that develops from years of use or is just from a poor-quality bed.

If this is the case it can wreck your neck and back, along with significantly dropping sleep quality. And with this in mind, there are a few solutions to fix this. The first would be to simply buy a new bed without dips. If this is not in the cards financially then I’ve had a lot of success getting clients to place a layer of plyboard under the mattress to even out these dips.

While I think the “type” of softness and firmness isn’t necessarily the most important factor; there have been a few studies that have looked at which type produces the greatest sleep quality. These studies compared soft, medium-firm, and very firm beds. The verdict was that the medium firmness outperformed the other types.

So, if you are looking to ease back or neck troubles, or better yet improve sleep quality in general then look for the dips. And if you are to buy a new bed it may be smart to ask the sales person to direct you towards the medium firm beds.

That’s it for today, everyone, remember knowledge is power!

P.S. If you have a great bed but still have some back pain, check out our free 13 step cheat sheet on back pain. It has some great tips to help you enjoy sleep and life in general again!