Speaking of the influence of The Guys At Work, I am struggling to find my Sleep Number because of one of The Guys At Work.
A couple of months ago I suggested - repeatedly- to The Man Who Doesn’t Like Change In His Life that perhaps we had gotten mature enough to live without a waterbed. We’ve had our waterbed since 1975, or thereabouts, and what with my aging knees, it was not getting any easier to get in and out of. I’d about come to the conclusion that I would be placed directly from my waterbed into my coffin, when one evening The Man announced that we were going out to buy a new mattress. I leaped in the car, panting like an excited puppy.
“Where are we going to shop?” I asked.
“Brookfield Square” The Man replied.
“There’s no mattress store there,” I assured him. “Boston Store has a separate furniture store out further on Bluemound.” I assumed that was where we were headed until The Man pulled into Brookfield Square’s parking lot.
I reaffirmed that there is no furniture department at Boston Store, to which The Man Who Is Right replied, “But there is a mattress store in Brookfield Square. It sells Sleep Number mattresses.”
Well, I have walked 4 miles-a-day for 3-5 days a week for over 35 years. As last winter was tough walking through the perpetual snowdrifts, my walking-friend and I walked in the mall at Brookfield Square. All winter. Three to five times a week. As I told The Man Who Is Usually Right, I’d have seen a mattress store if there was one.
Well... You can already guess the rest of this story. He was right, of course. I kept insisting, as he parked the car. I asked where this store was in the mall. The Man assured me that it was right next to Boston Store. I said, “It’s not there.”
But it was. Dang!
“Why did you decide to try a Sleep Number mattress,” I asked. “A Guy At Work has one and recommends them. So we tried them on. We laid on this one and that one. They seemed really comfortable. The Sleep Number store clerk has a machine that tests what your best Sleep Number is. She said mine was 35. I was impressed that she could tell that. I guess I impress easily. Much easier than I sleep, actually.
We tried no other mattresses. Our ridiculously expensive Sleep Number bed was delivered and installed the next day. We’ve had it a couple of months. Some nights I sleep okay. For instance, last night I probably slept fairly continuously from 1 AM till 7 AM, which is incredibly long for me. Most nights I have trouble getting comfortable enough to go to sleep. I think this bed is way to warm, for some reason. I’ve changed the pillow. I’ve changed the sleep number. I’m up to 50 now. I’ve added air. I’ve subtracted air. Oh, yes. I forgot to mention that a Sleep Number mattress is just a very expensive air mattress with some kind of divider down the middle.
I would have returned the sucker within a few nights of delivery. The Man Who Could Sleep Propped Up In A Corner thinks the mattress is just fine. I’ll probably be laid out on it (at a Permanent Sleep Number of 82) when I die.
My deepest thanks, again, to The Guys At Work.
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Hiya!
I work in Customer Service for Select Comfort, creator of the Sleep Number bed. We check the blogosphere to see what people are saying about our beds and to offer help if needed. Feedback from our customers is very important to us at Select Comfort, and we welcome the opportunity to assist you with your new bed. We're sorry to hear that you're not totally overjoyed with your recent purchase, and want you to know that there are resources to help you find the best night's sleep possible.
Not knowing which of our models you own, there are certain recommendations we'd offer based upon the specific model, so a call to our Customer Service department at 1-800-472-7185 would probably be a good idea.
An important thing to remember is that in order to get accurate and consistent readings of your Sleep Number you must always be laying on the bed, in your sleep position, whenever you look at the remote. The Sleep Number is a measurement of the air pressure inside of the bed, and your body weight has a large influence on the reading.
To improve your sleeping comfort, please try the following tips:
Check to see if there is a heat source under or close to your Sleep Number bed.
If you have a Pillowtop-style mattress, the foam topper pad can retain and reflect heat while you sleep. To reduce this extra warmth, remove the foam comfort pad which rests on top of the air chambers and place it underneath the air chambers. [note: this may not be possible depending on which model bed you have; please call customer service for further instruction]
Often times, the type of bedding that a person uses contributes to the warmth of the bed. If you find the bed to be warm, we suggest using 100% cotton bedding or a temperature balancing fabric like OUTLAST®. This includes your mattress pad, sheets, blanket and comforter. A recent development has been the introduction of OUTLAST® fabric technology which is designed to reduce the temperature swings that can cause restless nights. We offer this revolutionary new fabric in our InBalance Mattress pad and also offer it in a pillow protector. To view our accessories collection online, go here: http://www.selectcomfort.com/accessories/index.cfm or visit any of our stores.
To help you find your comfort level - and minimize pressure points:
While lying on the bed, inflate it to 100 (you cannot over inflate the bed), lie on your back without a pillow until your body adjusts to the horizontal position.
Place your pillow under your head and get into your normal sleep position.
Decrease the firmness in increments of 5-10 until the mattress feels comfortable; cradling and conforming to the unique contours of your body. This will probably be softer than you have been sleeping.
At this point, pay special attention to how the mattress feels in the curve of the waist (side sleepers), or the small of the back (back sleepers).
Increase firmness by 5 points until you feel the mattress rise up to support the curve of the waist (side sleepers) or small of the back (back sleepers).
Leave the mattress at this level for a minimum of 3 nights. After that time, you will know if that is your ideal comfort setting or if you need it a little firmer or a little softer. If you need to adjust the firmness, you should adjust it in small increments of 5-10 points, sleeping on it again for several nights before readjusting.
Another important and often overlooked part of a good night’s sleep is your pillow. Your head and neck should maintain their alignment as if you were standing upright. When lying on your back, if your pillow is too thick, your chin will angle towards your chest causing stress on your neck muscles. When lying on your side a thick pillow will cause your head to angle towards the shoulder that is not on the mattress. A pillow that is too thin will cause your head to angle too far toward the shoulder that is on the mattress. Again, both of these situations will cause stress on your neck muscles. If you do have extra stress on the muscles in your neck it can cause neck and shoulder pain. Try different pillows in your home to find one that will allow you to maintain the most natural spinal alignment. We’re launching a new “Create Your Perfect Pillow” nationwide mid-September that allows you to create your ideal pillow in three simple steps. You can see what another blogger has to say about this program here: http://sheknows.com/blogs/alytude/2008/07/30/custom-comfort/
Please don't hesitate to contact us with any futher questions or concerns. Help is just a phone call away!
James Freund
Select Comfort Customer Service
I'm a 40!
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