Hi artifaxiom.
Welcome to our Mattress Forum.

Thank you for the kind words about our resources and forum. We work really hard to make sure this is a positive, transparent, educational space and, like you said, little by little maybe we’ll make a ripple in the industry itself.
Thank you for sharing your sleep statistics with us. It also sounds like you’ve been busy doing a bit of research on the site, which is great!
I recently replaced a 10-year-old mattress (Sealy Posturepedic Camelot Pillowtop) because it was developing a sag in the middle and causing back pain. I opted for a Ghostbed, but was surprised to find that it had far too much sinking in for me: my back pain actually increased after the transition. In desperation, I flipped the Ghostbed over the "wrong" way, and found that this alleviated most of the back pain (I still wake up with some, but it's minor). Being the scientist that I am ( xkcd.com/242/ ), I tried flipping it the right direction up, and within 4 days the back pain returned in full force. I've been sleeping on the mattress upside down since then while searching for a replacement.
Sorry to hear that the GhostBed mattress hasn’t been working out for you. Your “scientific mind” came to the rescue ...it was smart to flip the mattress the “wrong way" to test and compare. You are correct that this mattress the "right way" is too soft for your prone sleeping position. If you sleep truly prone, as you may be aware, this is the worst posture for your lumbar region, regardless of core strength. Everyone needs good deep support to assist with alignment. Your muscles relax a bit when sleeping at night, so maintenance of alignment falls mostly to the mattress itself. Stomach sleeping is a common source of back issues especially if their comfort layer is more than an inch (or at most two) or if their support layer is too soft.so you may wish to review the guidelines in this
Sleeping Positions Article
[url] so that you avoid hyperextension in a swayback position that can cause back issues you’ve experienced.
Have you spoken to GhostBed about your current experience? If so, what have they suggested? They are one of our
Trusted Members
on the site and have excellent customer support.
I'm desperate enough to alleviate my back pain that I don't have a preference between natural and synthetic mattresses.
Based on the GhostBed lineup you’ve chosen, here are a few options that may interest you within your budget range.
Flexus’
Posture Sense flippable mattress
Luma Sleep’s
Natural Latex Hybrid
– you have the option between plush, medium, and firm and I would suggest reaching out to them to discuss your sleeping profile and statistics to get the best recommendation for whether or not medium/firm would be a better option.
The Sleep EZ flippable
Select Sleep Hybrid Latex
(3” on one side, 2” on the “firm” side)
Make sure to scan our
Trusted Member directory
and don’t forget to look for any active discount codes they may have, as well!
All of our Trusted Members are knowledgeable and transparent about what is in their mattress. If you share your experiences, sleeping profile, preferences, and needs with them they will certainly do their best to match you to the most appropriate and long-lasting mattress.
I hope I’ve given you adequate information to make a decision as you move forward in considering a new mattress.
Phoenix