the importance of a good mattress

When I first moved into my current place in October 2010, I was bordering on broke. I got my apartment as soon as I was hired at the job I still hold, and had been living on sofas and guest beds for about two months prior. Having come from graduate school preceded by a notoriously low-paying profession (hello, undergraduate admissions counseling!) I'd never been in the position to live alone - and when I realized I'd be able to do it now (now = October 2010) I jumped RIGHT ON BOARD. Of course, living alone in a major city doesn't come cheaply. Nor does a job search. So when my lease got signed and I settled in, the process of financing my comfort was a tedious balance of cheap and durable.

I'd been very fortunate to have a few great friends who stored my furniture for me. My former roommate, who'd moved into her own place a few months earlier, had used my living room pieces (one loveseat and one upholstered chair) as hers until I needed to reclaim them; the rest was either sold or put in a very generous friend's basement. Among the sold items: all my bookshelves, my bed, and my mattress.

My first night in the new place, I slept on the air mattress. The next morning, I went to the local Mattress Discounters (or was it Mattress Warehouse? those places always confuse me) and bought THE VERY CHEAPEST MATTRESS IN THE STORE. Literally. The thing cost, I believe, $99. And you know, it served its purpose - it gave me a place I could sleep. And, as should have been expected, within 6 months it developed a major sagging issue.

Here I am, 16 months after purchasing that mattress, and experiencing sometimes-debilitating lower-back pain. I wasn't sure for a while whether it was circumstantial, stress-related, or something to be seriously worried about. But I got a pretty gigantic clue when I spent last weekend with my boyfriend in North Carolina on his reasonable-quality mattress and felt dramatically better. Let my lesson be yours, folks: mattresses are worth splurging on.

I'm currently waiting for the salesman at Mattress Discounters/Warehouse to call me back with what will hopefully be a reasonable price on a new sleeping set-up. I got him to commit to a price I can afford (although would very much prefer to spend on other things) and now need his help getting rid of the cost of delivery, which is right now prohibitive. Fingers crossed.