By Tom on Sunday, September 29, 2002 - 09:58 pm:

I have Marfans and I am having trouble finding a mattress. I have a lot of back pain due to this, congenital abnormalities, and injuries. Sacrum is painful too. Sometimes I even get numbness inot my arms.
I tried a "pillow top" and it was too soft and gave me pain in my lower back. I went in the other direction and got a very firm one and it's like sleeping on concrete-ouch! Painful. I am trying to decide if I should send it back and try one more time or get one of these foam toppers Im reading about. Or maybe one of these matresses with "visco-elastic" foam would be best? I don't know. Has anyone been through this process before? Anyone have a mattress that's really helped them?
Tom

By Sharon on Monday, September 30, 2002 - 03:37 am:

TOm
I find a futon mattress on a slat bed base (normal slat bed not futon base (futons are way toooooo low and to expensive )) the best for me it is firm and soft hard to explain. You get the support of the slat bed with the softness of the foam and cotton of the futon mattress.
Hope maybe this helps a little or at least gives you another option. PS> I don't have Marfan's but seem to have EDS 3 or something so similar as not to be funny (even though geneticist says it's not EDS as no skin stuff)

By Rosemary Small on Tuesday, July 15, 2003 - 09:25 am:

I built a platform bed (mattress lies on plywood base with no boxspring). The top of the firm mattress sitting on top of the bed without pads is 25 inches. On top of the mattress is two inches of viscose memory foam and a 3 inch thick CuddleEwe wool pad. Total height is about 30 inches, so to get into you just barely sit and then roll(carefully) onto the surface. Getting up is so easy, if you build the correct bed height for you(mattress+pads+bed frame platform height=your pant/trouser inseam length is a good guide) you just slip off the edge of the mattress and you are standing up! The pads really reduce the need to move or turn in the night. I have substantially fewer sleep related joint dislocations since I built this bed five year ago.

By Zoe Life on Friday, August 15, 2003 - 12:11 pm:

Do I have Hypermobile Joints and where can I get help?

I was diagnosed at the age of 27 with Multiple Sclerosis having had problems since a teenager.

I have also had joint problems starting with my ankles keeling over after an accident that left me with a badly twisted ankle aged 8ish.

At 15 after being forced to do athletics which I hated my knee came out of joint to one side and i collapsed. the teacher tried to move my leg to straighten it i screamed with pain so she tried to move it back!!!!

Aged 16 i saw a specialist my Drs notes said i had something like bi polar syndrome??? They said they could do an op but it wasnt likely to work so i said no thanks.

Over the years i have suffered with my ankles knees hips and shoulder moving out of joint trapping nerves and generally being vey painful usually in a cyclical manner - ie not constant but returning again and again.


When I was diagnosed with MS the Dr at Accident and Emergency said it looked like I had hypermobile joints. As a baby I was diagnosed with clicky hip and then another Dr examined me and said I hadnt. Could it be I was born with hypermobile joints? And where can I get help?

Any answers most gratefully received.