Our Mattress Evolution
Growing older is something we cannot avoid. With age priorities changes, possibilities and opportunities are endless, and the ability to get informed is now at our fingertips. However, the challenge to find reputable source of information and the ability to trust claims from producers has forced us to refine and sharpen our research. We deeply feel the responsibility to investigate and discover products on the market that meet our standards. Being informed consumers is the only protection we have to ensure our needs are met. So “Our Mattress Evolution” story begins.
At the age of twenty, I left my parents’ home and with nothing more than a suitcase in my hands. I was fearless. The joy to have a room, a floor for my first very own mattress was indescribable. It was a little adventure that I will never forget. I paid $20 for it at the thrift store around the corner and transported with a pickup truck borrowed from a friend. Once I took it home, I sprayed two entire cans of Lysol all over it. If I knew then what I know now… At least I had the intuition to let it air out for 24 hours before laying on it. I had big dreams on it… and with hard work and determination I made them come to life. With young bones and a dynamic schedule, I was getting enough good rest on those old metal spring, so I had no complaints… and I was super proud of the rough start.
Getting a Bachelor’s Degree while working two jobs wasn’t easy, yet I felt strong and ready to jump into a better lifestyle. I was very lucky to receive a great job offer right after graduation that didn’t pay much, but gave me the opportunity to travel all over the US and internationally. Sleeping on the mattresses of some hotels was definitely a different experience, sometimes like being hugged by a cloud. I could not deny it to myself that my mattress at home didn’t stack up. So I was ready to buy a brand new one. I had no knowledge and didn’t do any research. I just picked a full size from the Internet for $250 with free delivery.
After sleeping on it for a couple of nights, I was very disappointed. This investment, my new mattress, was not nearly as good as the ones in the business hotels I was getting used to love. It wasn’t soft at all, it was not making me feel like I was sleeping on clouds. Nevertheless, I had the brilliant idea to race to Wal-Mart to buy a 4-inches memory foam topper. Now the feeling was somehow comparable in softness and I would say good enough to make me happy. I didn’t enquire about the source of the material. I just didn’t think or wonder about what I was inhaling every night; I was only concerned about feeling snuggled.
This arrangement worked for about ten years; until I got married and together we bought a $1,200 firm box spring queen mattress from a local mattress store. I definitely felt the jump in quality and of course the cuddling husband made the sleeping experience overall more pleasant. It has been two years now and life as gifted us with the wonderful experience of being pregnant… and parents in a few months. With the big belly came the need to add a few more pillows here and there to address the new body conformation. Yet every morning, we are both waking up and not feeling rested. Perhaps the queen size was becoming too small for us? For sure, we are not getting any younger and our bones and muscles need more support? Maybe we bought into the idea that a hard mattress was supposed to be the best for our backs?
At this stage of our life with a major turning point on the horizon (hello baby!) all is up for discussion and discovery. The idea to be responsible for the life and health of this creature growing inside me made us question everything around us. Sleeping is the most important thing we do in order to recharge and revitalize our bodies and minds. What we eat, breath and wear affects us and our baby. How can we be gentle and patient parents if we get out of bed all cranky after a restless night? We need to be focused, alert, healthy… and happy!
The research on finding the most comfortable mattress and most suitable for our Organic Lifestyle has began a few weeks ago. We have learned so much about all type of latex, memory foam, coconut layers, wool, fire retardants and the numerous certifications mattresses can have. Our major guidelines are very simple: we want to make sure there are no toxic materials; we want it to be soft and mold around my growing body and help my husband wake up full of energy to go to work.
It is simple to define our needs… but fulfilling them will be a different story.
Next: Does an all-natural, non-toxic, organic mattress really exist?