Struggling with transient nighttime chills? Maybe this heated mattress pad by Serta will work for you. It sure worked for me.

I’m not sure what physics are at play and maybe it’s all in my head, but somehow on those deep winter nights my mattress can feel outrageously cold when I first hit the sack.

Sometimes it’s so bad it seems like I’m in one of those social media ice-challenges that became popular a few years back. Kind of like: hold your breath, jump in, suck it up and shiver away until the memory foam warms up.

It probably doesn’t help that I keep my personal bedtime gear extremely light. When it comes to sleepwear, anything even slightly approaching bulky will rob me of restful slumber, so warm pj’s aren’t an option. 

Then there’s the whole biorhythm thing. My nighttime body temperature seems to change in waves. Sometimes the covers are just right, sometimes not so much.

Here’s the problem: if I kick them off too aggressively (easy enough to do), later on when needed, they’re often in too great a state of disarray for quick corrective action. And in the dark of night, groggily groping about to manage a major blanket-redo is sure to create a disturbance on my dear wife’s side of the mattress. Never a good idea.

Serta to the Rescue

Here’s my solution: a heated mattress pad.

The dual zone type works best; that way, with a quick press of a button I can adjust away with no fear of disturbing my significant other’s restful sleep. With a little advance planning, I can set it before I hit the sack. That takes care of the initial, bedtime ice-challenge.

And as the night progresses, it’s reasonably convenient to reach for the bed stand and make a quick adjustment to compensate for bio-rhythmic oscillations. I’ve gotten pretty good at it; even in a groggy state it’s no big deal.

Pro tip: Spring for a higher end pad. The Serta pad I prefer is ETL certified. (Safety first!) It’s also machine washable, has 10 heat settings, comes with an adjustable automatic shutoff function, and as mentioned earlier, it’s dual zone. What’s not to like?