Surviving and thriving in today’s hectic world has already become increasingly complicated. Still, it’s even more of a burden for those living with tension headaches, cluster headaches, or migraines. After all, especially people with chronic migraines, these folks are not experiencing ”just a bad headache” but symptoms of a neurological disease with variable symptoms and treatment strategies.
Migraines can simply be overwhelming, especially if you experience them frequently. No doubt, they can become debilitating to your quality of life if not managed with intentional awareness of the condition. Proper rest and rejuvenation through well-rounded sleep cycles are crucial to our overall wellness and influence our mental and physical threshold to tolerate pain.
What happens while you sleep that affects your pain tolerance, you might ask? Your body releases neuropeptide chemical signals, more regularly called endorphins or ”feel-good chemicals,” that support cognitive health and immunity. They are scientifically proven to induce natural pain-alleviating effects for the body. So, it’s unsurprising that the word endorphin originates from the terms ”endogenous,” meaning produced inside an organism, like the body, and ”morphine,” meaning a substance to relieve pain. The bottom line is that the natural endorphins and hormones released during sleep or other activities like exercising or stretching can assist your holistic health and help you naturally relieve symptoms of chronic migraines and tension headaches.
Depending on the type, headaches can feel like a dull throbbing all over the head. Muscle contraction headaches, also called tension or ”stress” headaches, have slightly different symptoms of pain and extreme tension near the cervical spine or back of the neck and shoulders. Others experience a piercing pain behind the eyes, sometimes affecting the optic nerve. An intense pulsing sensation accompanied by nausea, lightheadedness, dizziness or other visual disturbances, sometimes called vertigo, are symptoms of vestibular migraines.
Today, The American Migraine Foundation suggests at least 39 million Americans have reported symptoms of migraines. But, medical experts also suggest that the actual number of people is actually much higher, as many go undiagnosed without any form of treatment.
Too many people today experience awful migraine symptoms more often than they should, but the intensity of discomfort and duration of these symptoms vary from mild to severe. Suppose you’re one of the many who suffer from chronic headaches anywhere from 3-5 times a week. In that case, seriously consider the materials and design quality of your current sleep setup, paying close attention to the composition of your mattress.
A mattress or pillow that triggers your medical sensitivities, including chronic pain like migraines, can affect much more than the serenity of your slumber, but also your day to day quality of life. All of us spend a bunch of time on our pillow and mattress, so now is the time to appreciate exceptional quality mattresses and sleep accessories made with clean, durable, high performance materials.
A sleeping surface without ideal support can affect your sleep cycles and spine health in many ways.
Most people associate sleeping on a lousy mattress with allergies from synthetic materials, dust, or dust mites, joint stiffness, and lower back pain. But more often than people realize, a poor mattress or unsupportive pillow can also help or hinder the symptoms of migraines and other unwanted tension headaches.
By now, most of us appreciate a cozy and comfortably supportive mattress – a unique sleep surface facilitative of a good night’s rest, specific to the curves and slopes of your individual body. The truth is, especially if you have back, neck or shoulder conditions or a neurological condition like migraines, using the right pillow and mattress provides the opportunity to significantly influence headache management and prevention. Reducing synthetic substances and enhancing support to your body by upgrading the quality of materials you sleep on can help you rejuvenate throughout the night and help give you a boost to thrive, not just survive, throughout your days.
Research has long shown that poor quality, disruptive sleep can worsen health conditions. The delicate balance of your cervical spine plays a prominent role in how well you sleep, influenced by healthy static posture and neutral spine alignment.
Sleeping on an old, flat pillow, or one that is too high and large, can be a recipe for disaster.
If you wake up with a crick in your neck and tension headaches, your pillow may be the culprit. Steer clear of a stiff neck from sleeping on a worn-down flat ”pillow pancake.” Accumulated nights with a lack of support to your neck and shoulders can be detrimental to your spine health and certainly affect your potential for waking up feeling relaxed, rested and ready to seize the day.
Balanced Spinal Discs
The Better Sleep Council advises getting a new pillow every three years. Whether the pillow is memory foam, polyester, or latex rubber, the material will eventually lose performance value, break down or compress due to wear and tear. Sometimes pillows wear out from unnoticeable accumulated oils, humidity, or moisture. A good pillow should be hygienic or free from dust, dust mites, or other allergens. For support and spinal balance to reduce pressure points, your pillow should balance pressure between the discs and create a neutral alignment between the head, neck, and shoulders.
Feathered goose down and down alternative pillows, while super fluffy and luxurious, typically offer little buoyant support and almost immediately go flat or lose their once supportive and satisfying shape. Not one size fits all for pillows, as everybody is a different shape and size. It’s notable to consider your sleeping position, the general length of your neck, and the width of your shoulders when selecting a pillow that you will love to use. A pillow that fits you properly will eliminate neck strain or tension and provide you with satisfying sleep to help you heal or prevent headaches.
Many pillows out there offer very little support directly behind the neck, filling in the natural ”C-shaped” cervical curve, also known as the lordosis or ‘’swayback’’ found in the upper spine area. A second ‘’swayback’’ curve can be found in the lower spine, commonly referred to as the lumbar curve.
Have you been shopping for a new pillow? If you’re looking to notice a significant improvement over your last one, you should certainly try them on like you would a new pair of shoes. Try pillows in various positions, similar to how you would sleep on your pillow at home. Look and feel for one that keeps the neck’s cervical spine slightly elevated to open the airways for better breathing or and reduced snoring sounds. Or, choose a pillow that keeps your neck evenly aligned with the mid and lower lumbar portions to encourage a neutral spine alignment.
We spend more than a third of our lives sleeping, but few of us pay adequate attention to the quality of our mattresses. Our health as a nation suffers from unfocused healthcare surrounded by prescription drugs intended to ”solve health issues” while inducing a whole new round of unhealthy side effects. Society encourages “work hard, play harder” without enough dedicated time to experience well-rounded sleep cycles that heal us through the power of deep, restorative sleep. Combined with a “Sleep when we’re dead” mentality, it is common for people to pay little attention, particularly to the quality and comfort of our mattresses. Still, the quality and quantity of sleep and wind-down routines for kids as well as adults are essential, too. Migraines and poor slumber have a complex connection that is still not fully understood. Research has shown that consistently disrupted sleep can trigger migraine headaches. Still, sometimes the root of the cause often remains a mystery.
Experts can agree on the importance of deep, restful sleep as it is a significant pillar of health, alongside diet and exercise. For instance, if you start noticing yourself not sleeping well, you might also crave sweets or other foods you don’t usually find yourself wanting to eat. But dedicating enough time to sleep each night will help you optimize all three together, resulting in the optimal fulfillment of life’s daily functions, including ideal physical and mental health. Sleeping well certainly encourages a bounty of benefits, and a mattress is the best natural influence on how well we sleep. Suppose you commit to focus on your health and wellness, paying close attention to all three: diet, exercise, and sleep in particular. In that case, you’ll likely notice a considerable difference in how getting a good night’s sleep on a quality mattress helps balance everything out.
Long-term effects of poor quality sleep are proven to have more severe health-related consequences later down the line.
From memory problems and weakened immune systems, there are severe side effects of inadequate sleep with many disruptions like getting hot or tossing and turning from discomfort. Sleeping on an old, uncomfortable mattress is often the prime suspect of sleep debt, and headaches are one of many side effects.
A bed that’s too soft and ”marshmallowy,” or too rigid like the floor, can seriously hinder the quality of your sleep. A lack of support from a mattress that is too soft for your body type or a lack of pressure relief or coziness from a mattress that is too firm leads to added tension. Cognitive and musculoskeletal stress from not sleeping well will often increase the duration and frequency of your headaches. Sleepless nights affect our mood and mental functioning, such as memory formation, and prohibit our ability to process emotions.
Sleep studies at UC Berkeley have also shown that with just one sleepless night, anxiety and emotional stress levels can increase by 30% instantly without enough time dedicated to healing the body and strengthening the brain through slow-wave sleep. According to The American Psychology Association article, ‘Strengthen Your Brain By Resting It,’ denying the brain of sleep “makes you clumsy, stupid, and unhealthy.”
James B. Maas, PhD, a psychology professor at Cornell and the author of the best-selling book “Power Sleep” emphasizes that getting good sleep
“Isn’t a luxury, but a necessity. Your alertness, energy, performance, thinking, productivity, creativity, safety, and health will be affected by how much you sleep.”
Mattresses have a limited lifespan with a sometimes not-so-obvious expiration date. Often, a person’s body type and intensity of activity performed on the mattress will also define how long it has the potential to last. Daily wear and tear and usage of the mattress determine how comfortable and supportive it will feel during its lifetime. If it’s uncomfortable or causing you discomfort, like headaches or allergies, it’s time to get a new one.
Ultimately, your formula for a great night’s sleep includes renewing the comfort and support of your mattress about every 5 to 10 years. You will save yourself many sleepless nights, pain and discomfort by replacing your mattress as soon as it isn’t comfortable for your body anymore.
If you notice that you wake up sore or stiff, you toss and turn, and it takes you much longer to fall asleep than usual, you should consider replacing your mattress. Specialists, including medical professionals from GoodRx, encourage replacing your sleeping surface every seven to 10 years. Experts from The Better Sleep Council also agree that every seven to 10 years, there is often but sometimes not-so-obvious inkling to replace your mattress, which is caused by a lack of comfort or other adversity. The Better Sleep Council advises you to listen to what your mattress and sleep tell you, figuratively, of course. How you feel throughout the day, especially when you wake up, directly reflects how well you sleep.
Another telltale sign you need to update your mattress is dipping or sagging underneath you, visible ”peaks and valleys,” protruded springs, or you may feel like you’re rolling into your partner because of a dip in the surface. If any of these traits ring a bell, then it’s definitely time for you to replace your mattress. As it pertains to headaches and other sensitivities, if you notice increased allergic reactions or symptoms of tension or migraine headaches, the first step is to take a deeper look into whether your mattress may be hindering or helping the sensitivities that inflict your headaches.
A sore or achy noggin may also link to chemical off-gassing from synthetic glues and other mattress materials.
Many of today’s memory foam mattresses contain poly foams with flame retardants and compounds that can produce a noticeable odor for the first few weeks. Strict safety regulations on mattresses manufactured in the US ensure no imminent health risks. Still, some individuals are susceptible to reactions from chemical odors and can still develop allergies and headaches, commonly from synthetic materials. A wiser choice in this case is a bed made with natural materials, such as an organic latex mattress or one made with organic wool, cotton, or Tencel-based fabric.
Reduce emissions inside your home to potentially lower the frequency of headaches or reactions from synthetics. Look for intelligent manufacturing labels, like Certi-Pur for poly foam-based mattresses. For the highest quality natural and organic mattress standards with low emissions and health-conscious criteria, look for these labels:
If you suffer from immobility or that ‘crick in your neck’ feeling, look no further than supportive sleep sidekicks. Your new-found, upgraded pillow and mattress can help you prevent and manage migraines and sleep better, too. Don’t be one of the many who wait three years too long to replace their mattress; if you’ve been dealing with tension or chronic headaches and think your pillow or mattress might be to blame, we invite you to stop by and consider options to replace your mattress at your neighborhood specialty sleep shop.
Mattress World Northwest locations are community-spirited, family-oriented and maintain a genuine customer-first focus. Your satisfaction is our main concern. Since many consumers today aren’t mattress nerds and sleep geeks like us at Mattress World Northwest, we wholeheartedly highlight the importance of your pillow and mattress concerning your potential for optimal sleep quality and headache management.
As a local family-owned company, we eagerly offer the best choices, low price and comfort guaranteed. Our main goal is to provide people within our community with a great night’s sleep for you and your loved ones. Mattress World Northwest offers a comfort satisfaction guarantee, allowing you to experiment with alternative materials, like natural latex rubber mattresses, to find a solution to reduce the intensity and frequency of your headaches.
Tackle sleep debt, reduce discomfort from migraine headaches and regain optimal sleep quality once and for all with a new mattress or pillow from Mattress World Northwest!
Updated: 10/28/2024
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While you can't go wrong with any of our mattresses, here are a few factors you'll want to consider before making a purchase: your sleep position (and if you have a partner, theirs as well), the size of the space, and a price point. If you have any questions, rest easy knowing that our team is happy to help you find that perfect fit.
| Size | Dimensions |
|---|---|
| Twin | 38″ wide x 75″ long x 9.25″ tall |
| Twin XL | 38″ wide x 80″ long x 9.25″ tall |
| Full | 54″ wide x 75″ long x 9.25″ tall |
| Queen | 60″ wide x 80″ long x 9.25″ tall |
| King | 76″ wide x 80″ long x 9.25″ tall |
| Cal King | 72″ wide x 84″ long x 9.25″ tall |
| Split King (2pk) | 38″ wide x 80″ long x 9.25″ tall |
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