The Best Mattress for Shoulder Pain

Can a Mattress Help Relieve Shoulder Pain?

Shoulder pain can interfere with sleep, but just as sleeping on the wrong mattress can cause sore muscles and joints, choosing the right mattress for your needs may help relieve or prevent shoulder pain. 

Most people prefer a supportive bed with excellent pressure relief, and these factors are even more important for people with shoulder pain. Poor alignment through your spine can stress your shoulder muscles, while a mattress with inadequate pressure relief can cause a significant amount of tension through the shoulders. 

Although shoulder pain is common, it’s always worth speaking to your doctor for insight into what may be causing it and whether it requires treatment. Depending on the cause of your shoulder pain, your doctor might also be able to provide advice on how you should sleep while you heal.

What Is the Best Mattress Firmness for Shoulder Pain?

While a softer mattress might seem more comfortable, the best firmness level depends on your weight and preferred sleeping position. The same mattress feels subjectively firmer to people who weigh less and softer to those who weigh more. Choosing a mattress firmness level in line with your needs can help ensure you have the necessary balance of support and pressure relief. 

Most people are likely to find that a medium or medium firm mattress with pressure-relieving comfort layers suits their needs. However, side sleepers who weigh less than 130 pounds may want to consider a medium soft option, while back and stomach sleepers above 230 pounds may prefer a firm mattress. 

Your Sleeping Position and Shoulder Pain

Since you stay in one position for a prolonged period of time while sleeping, it’s important to choose a position that doesn’t aggravate your symptoms. Research is unclear as to whether shoulder pain is associated with any one sleeping position. Since shoulder pain can be caused by a number of different conditions, the best sleeping position may depend on what exactly ails you.

During the day, it’s common to experience heightened pain when raising your arms above your head. However, contrary to expectations, some research has found that sleeping on your stomach or back with your arms above your head doesn’t increase shoulder pain during sleep. Other studies have found that back sleeping is the most favorable position, better than side sleeping or stomach sleeping.

Sleeping on your side can reduce blood flow to the tendons and may worsen shoulder pain, particularly if your mattress doesn’t offer enough pressure relief. If you experience pain in just one shoulder, you may find it more comfortable to sleep on the other side.

Video: How to Find the Best Sleeping Position for You

If you wake up with aches and pains in the morning, the position in which you sleep could be the issue. Watch as our sleep expert breaks down the best sleep position for you in order to optimize your sleep and improve your overall health.

How to Shop for a Mattress When You Have Shoulder Pain

Finding the right mattress is a similar process for everyone, but there are some factors that become more important for people with shoulder pain. 

Mattress Material

There are several main types of mattresses, classed according to the materials used in their support core. Each mattress type has pros and cons when it comes to relieving shoulder pain. 

With their high-density polyfoam support cores, foam mattresses help create a pressure-relieving cradle. By contrast, coil-based support cores, like those used in innerspring and hybrid mattresses, tend to be more responsive and supportive than foam but may be less pressure-relieving. Latex-core beds set a middle ground, conforming gently to the body while retaining a responsive bounce.

A mattress’s comfort system is also critical to how it feels. Polyfoam and particularly memory foam contour around your body to protect your shoulders from pressure and tension. Natural latex has a bouncier feel and contours less closely. Pillow-top mattresses featuring cotton batting or similar materials provide some cushioning for joints and help avoid pressure points, though they tend to have minimal contouring unless paired with foam. 

Pressure Relief

Pressure relief describes the ability of a mattress to evenly spread out your weight and avoid pressure buildup in any one spot. It is one of the most important factors when choosing a mattress to help relieve shoulder pain. 

Without pressure relief your weight mostly rests against your bed in specific areas, such as your shoulders and hips. Pressure-relieving comfort layers allow these regions to sink further into the mattress, creating a supportive cradle that minimizes pressure points.

Contouring

Contouring, a feature of many pressure-relieving materials, is when a mattress conforms closely to your body rather than flexing across a wider part of the bed’s surface. Mattresses with loose contouring keep sleepers “on” rather than “in” the bed, while those with closer contouring create a deeper cradle. This can be particularly useful for side sleepers with shoulder tension and pain. 

Durability

Some people enjoy the “hug” created by deep contouring, while others dislike the way it makes movement more difficult. Due to this aspect, people with mobility concerns may want to choose a bed with less contouring. 

While everyone wants their mattress to be durable, it is a particularly important factor for people with shoulder pain since worn-out mattresses are less supportive and relieve less pressure. 

Sleep Trial and Warranty

Most mattresses have a lifespan of 7 to 10 years, although this varies depending on the mattress’ construction and how it is used. Synthetic foam, for example, degrades more quickly than natural latex. 

Sleep Trial and Warranty

Many mattress manufacturers offer a sleep trial that allows you to sleep on your mattress before committing to keeping it. Sleep trial lengths and policies vary between manufacturers, so it’s worth double-checking those details if you want time to ensure your new mattress works well for you. 

You should also check your chosen mattress’ warranty before making a purchase. Most warranties cover manufacturing and material defects, but manufacturers may set additional conditions.

Tips for Sleeping With Shoulder Pain

A new mattress can help with shoulder pain, particularly if your current bed is at the end of its lifespan, but there are other steps you can take to help alleviate aching shoulders. Some of these steps, such as choosing the right pillow, are worth investigating even if you also buy a new bed. 

• Buy a mattress topper: Mattress toppers add another comfort layer to your existing mattress. Toppers are available in a wide range of materials and can be a budget-friendly way of improving your bed’s pressure-relieving qualities if your mattress is otherwise supportive and in good shape. 
• Sleep on a pillow with the right loft: A pillow’s height, called its loft, plays a major role in keeping your spine correctly aligned. You should choose a pillow loft that ensures your spine is kept straight in your preferred sleeping position, as sleeping with your neck tilted can increase pressure on the shoulder.
• Consider a cervical or bolster pillow: Cervical pillows come in a range of unique shapes and are designed to keep your head and neck in a healthy position during sleep, while the cylindrical bolster pillow can be used to support other parts of your body. 
• Try a different sleeping position: Some people find that their preferred sleep position is uncomfortable when they’re experiencing shoulder pain. Depending on what’s causing your shoulder pain, you may need to switch positions to take weight and pressure off your affected shoulder.
• Do light stretches before bed: Stretching relaxes the muscles and can help work out some of the tightness that’s built up in your shoulders throughout the day, potentially helping reduce pain that is caused by neck and shoulder tension. 

Discover More Mattress Solutions

Understanding the factors you should look for in a mattress can make the buying process easier. Our guides will walk you through what you need to know before purchasing, along with introducing you to some of our picks for the best mattresses on the market. 

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How We Test

Mattress suitability depends on a wide range of factors — including body type, preferred sleep position, and health concerns — so we’ve assembled a diverse testing team to ensure our readers see themselves and their needs reflected in our reviews. Our team members have years of experience in the sleep product industry and are passionate about the science that goes into mattress design. 

We choose our featured products after rigorous testing that follows a repeatable methodology, which allows us to compare extremely different mattresses according to their performance in important categories.

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