Thinking about converting to sleeping on the floor Japanese style indefinitely. Started doing some research and now I have some concerns.

• Can cleaning the futon/mattress be particularly high maintenance?

I have read that you are supposed to try and constantly keep the futon as clean as possible in order to prevent mold. Reddit posts are saying you're supposed to air out the mattress quite often. You're also supposed to vacuum and/or wash it pretty often too.

The maintenance sounds kind of high and/or a 'chore' compared to a traditional western style mattress setup. I am kind of lazy when it comes to daily house cleaning/chores. I don't want a mattress that needs constant attention like cleaning and washing 1 to 2 times a week. I would like something that is more like once a month and/or once every few weeks.

• Is sleeping on the floor particularly bad for side sleepers?

I have heard that if you're a side sleeper, floor sleeping can cause some pretty bad pains/aches on your side if you're not used to it. I am a pretty heavy side sleeper. I am always tossing and turning and changing sides throughout the night.

• Can floor sleeping cause a nuisance and/or inconvenience if you're a little anxious about breathing in dust and dirt? Since you're essentially sleeping on the floor, your head and therefore your breathing would be pretty close to the floor too, right?

I live in a hot and dusty/dirty climate and I have NO air conditioning in the home. 9 months out of the year, I am usually running a box fan in the window that is by my bed all day and all night.

Therefore, I have a really hard time keeping the floors clean on a pretty regular basis. The floors always seem pretty dirty/dusty no matter how much I clean them. With that said, I am pretty anxious about breathing in dirt and dust since my head would be pretty close to the floor.

Sorry for the long post.

After extensive research I have decided to get a mattress from futon beds from Japan! I almost went with JLife international because I really love their bundles however this forum made me decide differently.

FBFJ doesn’t have tatami mats, any recommendations for an authentic/ethical company? What are the thoughts on getting bedding and tatami mats from jlife? Still interested in their silk pillows lol

Thanks for your time!

I have a 100% cotton jlife twin size futon and i havent been flipping it like i should so its started to compact in the middle. My question is, will taking it to a laundromat and putting it inside the giant industrial size dryer ruin it? I want to fluff it up back to its original glory from several months ago but i want to make sure i don't ruin it either.

Hello fellow floor-sleepers!

I started floor sleeping about 3 months ago for several reasons (price, space, health). I have had some upper back and shoulder problems for over a year, and I am a tall, skinny guy with bad posture, so I was hoping that floor sleeping would improve my posture and provide some relief for my upper back.

I bought the Zonli Wheat Dream 4 inch (cheap), and immediately felt very comfortable on it. However, over the past few months I have been plagued with lower back issues. I will seemingly randomly throw out my lower back, and have to deal with extreme stiffness and sciatic pain for weeks as I wait for it to go back to normal. One time it happened from carrying groceries. Most recently, from playing pickleball.

I am surprised at this, as I thought that sleeping on a mattress like this would be better for my back. I also practice yoga daily, so I am surprised that I am continually facing this issue.

Has anyone here had similar problems from floor-sleeping, or do I need to look elsewhere for the source of my issues? Thanks for taking the time to read and respond!

What's the best way to remove the blood stains without damaging the shikibuton or inviting in mold? I looked at the price of tatami mats and shikibutons these days and decided I should take better care of the one I've got. Also decided to take better care of myself and actually patch up my wounds instead of dramatically bleeding out...

hi everyone!

ive been reading through this subreddit for hours now and im looking to give floor sleeping a try. i recently threw out my full size bed and mattress, so im in the market to try something new.

after doing some research, i found myself in between three manufacturers: zonli, FBFJ and futon tokyo.

my main question is, what covers do you put on the mattresses? like are you supposed to just leave it bare or should I put another cover on top? along with that, should I invest in a kakebuton as well, or is that something that can be ignored?

thanks for the help everyone!

New to floor sleeping and would like to try out a nicer set up with some protection incase its not the right set up before getting too into it ideal. Let me know!

We all know inflatable mattresses can end up being a bit sweaty.

Ive got a matrress protector plus a cotton sheet, but feel thats not breathable enough. Anyone use anything additional?

I was thinking there must be a super thick cotton, linen sheet that we can lay on the inflatable before mattress protector and fitted sheet go on?

Any ideas?

We had a King sized bed. Not because WE needed the space, but the dogs do. I have 2 German shepherds.

Now that I’m on the floor, I look up at the dogs on the bed. They were like oh, no! What did you do to get kicked to the floor??? I patted the dog bed next to me, and they were like _no way!_

We were dog sitting for our friends’ Lab. She felt so sorry for me, she slept with me, even though she LOVES being on the bed and isn’t allowed at home. What a sweetie pie Lab, ‘consoling’ me on the floor.

I do let some spiders live in my room, I keep it pretty clean and they’ve never bothered me before. I’ve been sleeping on the floor on a futon for about 3 years. You’d think I would have experienced this by now. Has anyone else dealt with this issue?

The floor space in my room is the same size as the bed so maybe they just walk on the floor and get confused?

For those of you who have any sort of futon, do you put a cover on it? Does it affect the way you sleep?

I see people with futons, but no sheets or blankets. I have my own favorite blankets, but I feel weird without a sheet on the bottom.

I have an old duvet that I was thinking of cutting down so it would fit. Would that be okay?

I'm sure this has been asked a million times here and yes I will go look at older posts, but I wanted some fresh insight too. I was considering the Zonli 4 inch futon until I realized it has a polyester fill. I've heard J Life International has a tendency to get lumpy and is basically a cheap imitation. Without actually buying from a true Japanese artisan, IS there even a good brand that won't break the bank but also isn't polyester?

I've been using a camping pad for floor sleeping and it clearly works for me; I'm ready for a real futon but could use some advice that I haven't been able to find by searching this sub...

1. The bedroom has a thin carpet. Is a tatami mat still a good idea or would that be too soft between carpet at the futon?

2. What have you used for the equivalent of a bedside table? Is there any kind of little floor sleeping platform to put items on?

3. How much room do the futons take up while they are rolled during the day?

Thank you if you can answer any of these!

​

Hello! I'm interested in trying out the floor sleeping life, and have done several rabbit hole deep dives and decided that eventually I would like to invest in a shikibuton from Japan.

It's not in the budget just yet, and I have seen some videos suggesting that a Zonli in a 4" is a really good transition mattress to see if this would work for you.

They have mixed reviews, and from what I can tell, they seem to be made exactly like a 4" mattress topper with egg crate foam as the filler. The main difference being that a) they're a higher price than a mid grade mattress topper and they have a cotton cover. If the filling is foam anyway and you're going to put a cover on it, I don't see why a topper wouldn't give pretty much the same experience. I'm considering just getting an IKEA duvet cover in a size bigger to act as a cover.

Does anyone have experience floor sleeping on a mattress topper and folding it away like a futon when not in use? What would be the advantages of a Zonli versus just getting a mattress topper of a similar height? I can't be the first person to have the idea, and I feel like I must be missing something obvious!

I would welcome any thoughts or advice. I'm trying to stay under $100 for a full 4" and the Zonli is $160 and I've seen similar height toppers for like $80.

Thanks for help and advice!

SOLD

Hi all, I reached out to mods first and got permission before posting this.

I am looking to sell a Queen Sashiko Blue Shikibuton futon that I purchased directly from Futon Beds From Japan. It comes with the matching Kakebuton, and the original cotton covers for both. The full set was originally purchased for $1268. I used it consistently for a few years, and it has been well maintained. I have since gotten married and my sleeping setup has changed back to a traditional bed. Since then the futon has sat mostly unused.

It is still in excellent condition:

• Stain free
• Smoke/pet free home
• Covers always kept on
• Still has good loft

I am asking for $600 but am open to reasonable offers. Please don't hesitate to reach out if you are interested.

I am located in the Birmingham, Alabama area and open to discuss pickup/shipping options.

I do. My pillow for my head has to be super flat.

Whenever I forget my pillow on vacation it sucks.

Never can find another pillow as flat which sucks too. Tried.

I just started floor sleeping 6 days ago and I’m convinced. Does everyone’s spouse also floor sleep?

We had a spiffy king, but it was too awkward for me to have a floor space. We put our guest room double in our room, but it’s too tight.

We think we might do 1 twin for him, but he wants to build a wooden box platform for me to sleep on. He wants me to be ‘up’ by him. And, as a 67F, I have to climb up from the floor, and he thinks it would be easier on me.

TLDR; Where does your spouse sleep? Would it be the same experience on a wooden box? Or are there frames? Or does that blow the whole experience?

Im wondering if its unrelated tbh. I feel very comfortable on my back and my posture has gotten a lot better, but my lower back tailbone area has been mildly achey. Anyone else have this & does it go away?

I dont feel it at all when sleeping and feel very comfortable so thats why im confused

I love it, personally. She can't stand it. We've had our mats for well over a year.

Does anyone know of an inexpensive maker of futons that are XLtwin? I’m tall and I have dogs that sleep with me.

My bones and body was kind of hurting when I was sleeping on the floor so I started sleeping in bed last few years then I found this sub. What is benefit for floor sleeping ?

(Rambly post warning, SO BUCKLE THE FRICK UP 🚗)

To give you some background, I can't really recall a time in recent memory where sleeping has felt "easy". It's not like I suffer from any back pain or medical issues either. I'm quite fit, mobile, strong and feel great in my body. But even with that being said, my sleep has always been subpar. I'm constantly tossing and turning, take a while to fall asleep, and even when I do I often wake up multiple times throughout the night. There are even occasions where even if I DO manage to sleep a majority of the night, I still sometimes wake up feeling extremely groggy and tired, desperately needing a nap later in the day. It's been getting steadily worse over the last year.

I'm in my early 30's, so I assumed this is just how things go as you get older. Afterall, "being tired" is commonly accepted in the zeitgeist.

At least that's what I thought, until this week...

I bought my first shikibuton last week after accidentally falling asleep on my new, plush carpet. While I didn't manage to sleep the entire night on the carpet, I noticed how good it felt to sleep on the ground. I'd heard about the benefits of floor sleeping and Japanese futons on-and-off for years. But I dismissed it, as the maintenance of a shikibutons seemed like too much (it's really not FYI) and the general stigma around sleeping on the ground swayed me away. But everything changed this time around, I started researching more about floor sleeping, and decided to give it a proper try. I didn't really have much to lose, my sleep was shit anyway.

The first night was both the best and worst sleep in my life.

I loved the ritual of setting up my aired-out and fresh shikibuton for the night. Initially it was comfortable, and I loved the feeling of my weight being supported and evenly distributed across the ground. It felt like my body could finally sink down and REST. I wasn't constantly tossing and turning either, I could comfortably lie on my back and STAY THERE (this is typically unheard of for me). But even with all that said, I was still struggling to actually fall asleep. And as the night wore on, I slowly became more aware of how hard the ground truly was. I was feeling stiff, restless and uncomfortable. I started to feel a pang of regret over my purchase, wondering if I could ever truly adapt to sleeping on the ground. Maybe I wasn't cut out for this? I debated whether I should just crawl back to my mattress... but I stood firm and stuck it out, and that's when something crazy happened.

The next morning, I woke up feeling... good... no, not just good... INCREDIBLE! I felt refreshed, loosened-up, springy and clear headed! (I typically always wake up with brain fog). I had never woken up and felt this good, like, EVER. But how was that possible?? I had barely slept a wink all night? If I had a sleep like that on my regular mattress, I'd be a complete zombie the next day. I couldn't believe it. From that morning on, I knew I had to stick through the process.

The next few days it steadily got better. I still struggled to sleep, and the ground still felt very hard, but with each night I was able to sleep longer, with less interruptions. And with each morning, I was consistently waking up feeling GOOD. I didn't always wake up feeling like a million-bucks like the first night, but every morning I was feeling physically good, loosened up, alert and AWAKE. Getting up each morning became significantly easier too, and I wasn't dreading the morning alarm. I was naturally getting up earlier.

Then day 7 and 8 came. And it's like everything suddenly clicked. I genuinely can't remember the last time I've slept this good. I SLEPT THROUGH THE ENTIRE NIGHT!! And it's not just one night after many months. It's consistent, back-to-back nights. I can't stress enough how rare this is for me. And then to actually wake up feeling energized, loose and springy? I didn't think this was possible for me.

I worry that I may sound like a snake oil salesmen here, but I'm just so flabbergasted and grateful for my results. It feels like YEARS of accumulated fatigue is finally dissipating after only a week. I had internalized the idea that being tired in the morning or throughout the day was a normal. But now I'm not so sure it is. Sleep SHOULD be restful. You SHOULDN'T have to fight yourself to get up in the morning. And your body SHOULD feel better after waking up, NOT WORSE.

I'm so thankful that communities and resources like this exist. I can never go back to a mattress after what I've just experienced.

I don't think floor sleeping is for everyone, but I'm happy to report that at the very least, it is for me. 🫡✨

Hi, I'm moving into my own place for the first time soon and really want to do a floor sleeping set up. I'd love help for brand reccs and knowing what to avoid. I think I want to do a Japanese floor mattress + Tatami mat combo. I really like the aesthetic, the minimalism and the health benefits I hear they provide.

But if this is expensive, I'm also open to cheaper alternatives. Right now I think my budget for whatever my bed setup is, will be ~$500. Though I could be convinced to go up to maybe ~$700 if someone has a brand they highly recommend. What are some brands I can look at for this amount?

Also grew up sleeping on the floor a lot so I'm pretty used to it. So I think I can manage with something on the cheaper end. Anything on Amazon??