First, I should probably mention that this is my first memory foam mattress. When we shopped for our previous mattress nearly 9 years ago, I wasn’t crazy about the selection of memory foam mattresses at the time… mostly because they smelled so bad. Austin and I both have sensitive noses, so the moment we laid down on the sample beds in the store, we immediately had to get up. Yuck! Since that experience, I had completely written off the idea of ever owning a memory foam mattress, until this year when I heard of Essentia.
According to their website, Essentia has produced the world’s first and only non-toxic memory foam mattress, so my curiosity got the best of me. The company generously sent me a mattress to try out in my home a few months ago (I got the Classic 8 model). Here are 8 things I love about it so far:
Full Transparency. Like a food label, Essentia shares the ingredients used to make their foam along with a third-party VOC report so you can be sure it’s healthy.
All-Natural. All other memory foam mattresses are made from petroleum-based chemicals, but Essentia’s mattresses are made from non-toxic materials, including rubber tree sap.
Animal-Free. While many industry-leading mattresses use animal bi-products, no animals are harmed in the making of Essentia’s vegan mattresses.
Around a 20-Year Lifespan. Probably outlasting any other important purchase, like a car!
Maintenance-Free. There’s no need to flip your mattress every 6 months, like you’re supposed to with a traditional mattress. (Although we might have to, because I think my mattress might be upside down in the picture above– it’s SUPER heavy, so we’ve been too lazy to flip back over yet!)
Peaceful Co-Sleeping. Austin and I are on different sleep schedules due to our work schedules, so I almost always have to go to bed earlier than him to wake up by 6am for my work day. With our old mattress, I could always feel him get into bed late at night and it would disrupt my sleep. With this memory foam mattress, I can’t feel him move on the other side of the bed AT ALL. I haven’t slept more soundly in my life. It helps that our son now sleeps through the night, too.
No toxic smell, right out of the box. As far as delivery goes, our mattress arrived rolled up like a sushi-roll in a long narrow box. This made it super-easy to transport up our staircase. Well, it would have been easy if it weren’t so heavy! We needed three people to help us carry it up the stairs. But at least the width wasn’t an issue. It takes about 12 hours for the mattress to completely expand after you unroll it from the box, but as promised there was no “toxic smell” when we opened it up. It did have a very faint fiber-like scent, but it didn’t smell like chemicals at all. (It was mild enough that I could sleep on it just an hour after we unwrapped it. I was exhausted!)
Amazing back support. This mattress seems to support my back better than my previous spring mattress. I’ve suffered from sciatica off-and-on since I was in high school, and I’ve always had to sleep with a pillow under my knees to help keep my back properly aligned. With this new mattress, I realized that I don’t need the pillow under my knees anymore, because the mattress adjusts to support my body perfectly. It’s firm, and yet it feels like I’m sleeping on a cloud! Of course, no product is perfect so here are two downsides to my new mattress:
It’s heavy. Like, seriously heavy. I’m used to being able to move my furniture around my room on a whim, and I certainly can’t do that with this mattress. Hence, why it’s still upside down on my floor. (Since we co-slept with our son for the first year of his life, we’ve had our mattress on the floor to avoid any falls out of the bed for the past couple of years. Now that he sleeps in his own room, we are getting an “adult” bed frame again!) It’s not cheap. This mattress is definitely an investment, and I had a bit of sticker shock at first. However, it also lasts significantly longer than any other standard mattress and I personally think the benefits are worth it if it fits into your budget. (Of course, this is coming from someone who spent a small fortune on my son’s crib mattress after reading about New Zealand’s campaign to reduce SIDS by wrapping crib mattresses to reduce gas exposure. Getting our baby a non-toxic mattress was a priority for us, and now we’re making it a priority for our own mattress, too.)
Overall, I’m in love with our new memory foam mattress and haven’t slept this well in years. It’s SO comfortable! If you have any other questions, please feel free to ask them in the comments below. SPECIAL OFFER: If you happen to be in the market for a new mattress, Essentia is generously offering my readers access to their Black Friday sale early! Use promo code DetoxBF between November 17th and 30th to receive $200 off every $1000 you spend, along with two free Comfort pillows. (That’s an average savings of $956 total!) — Reader Feedback: Have you ever slept on a memory foam mattress? Disclosure: Essentia sent me a complimentary mattress to try out, but I’m under no obligation to post a positive review. As you all know, I will only work with companies whose products I am willing use in my own home!
