A good idea of ​​what a poor distribution of pressure points can do to your sleep can be gained by imagining trying to fall asleep on a hard concrete floor. The pressure of the floor on protruding body parts (shoulders, hips, and feet) is much higher than on non-protruding areas (neck, waist, and knee hollows). Thus, the pressure distribution over the entire body is not equal.

If you are tired enough, you will eventually fall asleep on the concrete floor. In areas of your body where there are more pressure points, muscles and blood vessels are constricted. The body will react to this and signal you to turn over to relieve these pressure points. After you turn over, the process starts again. Your body will repeatedly signal you to turn over, causing you to toss and turn much more than normal during the night.

Is tossing and turning in bed bad then?

No, movement is an important part of good sleep. It stimulates blood circulation, keeps joints supple, and allows the skin to breathe. If you didn't move all night, you would wake up the next morning feeling completely unrested and stiff as a board. However, if you toss and turn much more than average in bed, it can disrupt the sleep cycle. In fact, during a night's sleep, we don't just go through one cycle, but a series of cycles. On average, we go through 4 to 5 sleep cycles in a night, each cycle lasting about 90 to 120 minutes. All cycles have more or less the same structure and follow each other. Each sleep cycle consists of 5 stages.

The first stage is the transition from being awake to sleeping. Brain activity decreases, and the number of eye movements (even if your eyes are closed) also decreases. This phase lasts only a few minutes. In total, in an average night with 5 cycles, this phase lasts about 2 to 5 percent of total sleep.

The second stage. This is when sleep really begins, but it's still a light sleep. Do you sometimes wake up feeling like you haven't really slept? You were in this phase. Duration: about 50 minutes –> 45 – 55 percent of total sleep.

In the third stage, there is a transition between light sleep and deep sleep. There is more regularity in your breathing, your heart rate slows down, and your muscles relax. Duration: 3 to 8 minutes –> 3 – 8 percent of total sleep.

The fourth stage is the last phase of true deep sleep. Your breathing and heart rate are at their lowest. This phase is responsible for physical recovery. Have you ever woken up feeling completely disoriented? If you wake up in this phase, you are disoriented and need some time to realize where you are and what's going on. Not the ideal moment to be awakened 😉. Duration: 15 to 18 minutes –> 15 – 20 percent of total sleep.

In the final phase, there is very high brain activity and a lot of eye movement. Now the brain is busy "dreaming," processing memories and information. Not only is your brain active now, but there is also physical activity. The muscles of your arms and legs are relaxed and almost paralyzed, but your breathing and heart rate are irregular, and your blood pressure rises. This phase costs you physical energy but is vital for mental recovery. Duration: 18 to 24 minutes –> 20 – 25 percent

After the last cycle, you, often unconsciously, wake up briefly before the next cycle starts again. Then the whole sequence starts all over again.

If you have poor pressure point distribution on your body, you will be repeatedly disturbed in the various sleep stages and will not enter the deeper sleep stages enough. As a result, your body and mind may not recover sufficiently during the night. You will therefore not feel fit and rested when morning comes.

The waterbed can provide an almost perfect pressure point distribution, allowing you to wake up feeling refreshed and rested every morning.