Bests & Worsts Reviews from Amazon

The mat came yesterday. I took it out of the box and was alarmed at how sharp the spikes are. Holy cow... am I supposed to lay my bare back on this? What the heck. I unfolded it on my bed, put on a very thin nightgown, and stretched out on the mat. Much to my surprise, I could barely feel the spikes. So I took off the gown and stretched out with nothing between me and the pokey purple points. The sensation was surprising and overwhelming, but not unpleasant. If any women reading this were teens in the late 60's, you may remember going to bed wearing brush rollers--the feeling is quite similar: prickly and irritating, but not painful. (I guess we were unknowingly stimulating our brains with those rollers back then, eh?) But here's the fun part. I lay there completely focused on the sensations in my back, feeling warmth creep through my body, and a throbbing start in my muscles. It was really weird... but nice. It was relaxing and energizing at the same time. Honestly, it felt a little like having one stiff drink or 1/4 mg of xanax. <shrug> After about three minutes or so, I spontaneously started to laugh. I'm not making this up. I don't know if it was because I was expecting the mat to hurt more and it didn't, or if I was laughing AT myself, or if there was no "reason" at all, but just a visceral response to the many tiny pinpoints of sensation. But I lay there laughing off and on for about 10 minutes, probably looking like an absolute lunatic. Finally I got up and went into the living room. I felt a little chilled and wrapped myself in a big soft throw and sat quietly, not knowing exactly what to make of the experience. The flyer that comes with the mat suggests you cover yourself while lying on it, as you may get cool, and I think I'll do that next time. Conclusion: My first experience was a good one. I'm glad I bought the mat. I'll report more as I experience it more. UPDATE. August 25, 2012 I'm practically addicted to this mat. I use it at bedtime when I'm ready to go to sleep. I put it on my bed (not on the floor... for one thing, there are scorpions where I live). When I roll my bare back down on it, I won't deny it IS painful. And for the first 3-5 minutes, it's uncomfortable. But then this relaxation sets in that is so inexplicable and lovely. I sometimes lie on it for 40 minutes or more. I have even dozed off on it. After a while, I peel myself off (and that is a little painful), put on a soft shirt or nightgown, crawl under the covers, and fall asleep almost immediately. I don't use it every night, as the skin on my back needs a day to recover. On nights when I'm restless and can't sleep, I pull it out and it invariably relaxes me. I can't logically say what it is that is so compelling, but I"m hooked. Usage notes: I do put my head on a pillow and slide the mat under the pillow so that the bottom of the mat reaches no lower than the top of my (excuse the expression) butt crack. Any lower and it's just too painful on the skin for me to tolerate. Sometimes I will bend my knees with my feet flat to increase the pressure of the mat on my lower back... while hitting myself in the head with a hammer-- no, just kidding about the hammer. There you have it: a strange item. I'd never have come across it if not for amazon. UPDATE: September 3, 2012 I've started using it every day before bed. There, I've confessed. As I turn down the covers, I tell myself, "Not tonight. You just did it last night," but then I can't help myself. I put the mat on my bed, put a small travel pillow at the top, position myself at the bottom of the mat (bare back), and roll myself down. The pain is not exactly excruciating... but it's a LOT. I lie there, my mind instantly and happily BLANK because the pain is quite distracting and not conducive to thought. Then after a while, I just feel warmth on my back and all over my body. I don't care! I'm not ashamed! <hehe> It's not illegal and it has no calories--why shouldn't I lie on the mat every single night if I want to? After about half an hour, I am completely relaxed... a veritable puddle poured onto a bed of nails. I peel myself up (that hurts a bit), put on a soft nightgown and fall fast asleep. I'll see about checking into some kind of rehab program...someday... UPDATE 8/31/2014 I'm still using this mat almost every night before I go to sleep. The discomfort when I first lie down isn't remotely close to the first few times I used it, so not quite as distracting as in the beginning. I lie on it until I feel drowsy, which is usually about 15-20 minutes. In some paradoxical way, it's very relaxing. I'm thoroughly hooked. UPDATE 8/6/2018 I still lie on my "bed of nails" most nights while listening to a relaxation/meditation recording on my kindle. Yesterday I spent too many hours at the computer and my mid-back was killing me. I tried a massager, heating pad, foam roller--nothing helped. Then I lay down (bare back) on my beloved bed of nails and within about half an hour, my back felt much better. When you lie on this thing, your back thinks you're being tortured, so all the blood rushes to your back and you can feel the muscles throbbing. That is ultimately relaxing, but it also helped to relax my back. Today I still felt twinges and spend about 40 minutes lying on the mat in the middle of the afternoon--dozed a little. When I got up, my back felt much better than before. Signing off for now. UPDATE 5/6/2019 I still lie on my bed of nails just about every night. Unfortunately, I'm pretty used to it now, so I don't get that overwhelming rush of endorphins that I did back at the beginning when the pain brought tears to my eyes. Still, it is stimulating and helps me fall asleep. At first, my mind is buzzing and distracted, but the sensations in my back override my thoughts and I can feel my mind letting go and yielding to the physical stimulation. I guess I'm kinda hooked on it.