John Breese
www.happysleepyhead.com
So, you’ve met someone special, and you quickly fell into each other. Everything was going 
perfectly until the first night in the same bed, when you discovered that your loved one is as loud as a chainsaw.
Snoring is a common problem, indeed. But that surely doesn’t mean you need to end a relationship because of it.
If it really bothers you a lot, here are a few tips that may help you solve this issue completely.
Most Common Reasons for Snoring
First, let’s find out what causes and medical conditions turn people into snorers:
- Sleep apnea. Constant and loud snoring may be a sign of underlying sleep apnea. This is a chronic condition during which a person may experience sudden pauses in breathing. Sleep apnea is potentially life-threatening because it increases the risk of heart failure due to hypoxia by 140%.
- Nasal congestions. The narrowing of nasal pathways due to allergies or rhinitis makes a person breathe through their mouth. Mouth breathing, in turn, increases the possibility of loud snoring.
- Drinking alcohol. Alcohol can promote sleepiness and relax the muscles of the jaw and throat, causing them to collapse. As a result, when you breathe in, these relaxed muscles lie against the airflow and make you snore.
- Obesity. Obese people have larger amounts of visceral fat built around their throat. This fat is pretty heavy itself and can narrow the airways, making the throat muscles more prone to collapse during sleep.
As you can see, many things can make people snore. And if snoring is chronic and affects the productivity, mood, and health of your loved one, you should consider addressing this symptom to your healthcare provider. The specialist will determine if snoring has an underlying medical reason and will help you treat the issue so that you and your partner could sleep peacefully forever after.
Now, you may be wondering what you should do if your partner doesn’t want to visit a doctor, or what to do while they are undergoing the treatment if the effects are not noticeable yet.
#1 Try to Train Your Partner to Sleep on Their Side
Most chronic snorers usually are back sleepers. A 2009 study with a sample of 2,077 participants determined that 53.8% of snorers are sleeping on their back, while the remaining 46.2% could snore in any position they slept in.
Although the difference between these two groups doesn’t seem impressive, you can still ask your partner to switch to side sleeping and see whether it works. The following tricks may help make this transition smoother:
- Buy a mattress topper. If you aren’t ready to replace your mattress with the one that is more suited for side sleeping, adding a comfy layer can be a solution. Mattress toppers for side sleepers typically are thicker and offer more cradling for hips and shoulders.
- Sew a tennis ball to their pajamas. Old but incredibly useful trick. All you need to do is sew a tennis ball in the area between the shoulder blades. This way, if a snorer wants to switch the position, a ball will create an obstacle and prevent them from turning to their back.
- Use wedge pillows. Triangle-shaped pillows create a slightly inclined surface and make breathing easier, so your partner will be less likely to snore.
Remember that the first rule of any successful change is cooperation. If your partner denies that he or she is a snorer, you can kindly ask if you can record them overnight. Typically, people just don’t realize how loud they are and how this may affect the sleep of their loved ones.
So if you make your significant other aware of their issues, you will be able to work on solving them together.
#2 Work With Physical Aspects
If snoring is caused by allergy or common cold and rhinitis, you need to address these issues. Here are some tips that will help keep the nasal passages open throughout the night:
- Use saline sprays. Saline sprays can wash off pathogens from the mucous membranes and keep them moist, thereby making it easier for your partner to breathe.
- Treat allergies. In the case of allergies, it is always best to consult with a doctor. They will prescribe antihistamine drugs to ease your symptoms.
- Try nasal decongestants. These drugs shrink the blood vessels and reduce swelling for a couple of hours. However, it’s best to use them as a last resort, as they may have a severe rebound effect.
#3 Wear Earplugs
If you have to deal with a very loud snorer, sometimes it’s better to just get yourself a pair of earplugs to protect yourself from snoring. Here’s what you need to consider before choosing a reliable pair:
- Noise-canceling design. Your earplugs should prevent loud sounds from getting into your ears completely, and not just muffle them.
- Comfortable materials. A good pair of earplugs shouldn’t fall off your ear or be too rigid.
#4 Use White Noise
If you don’t feel like wearing earplugs, you can try masking the snoring sounds with other noises.
No, this is not a joke.
Actually, a white noise generator may help you sleep better even if your partner is really loud.
White noise consists of sound waves that have different frequencies, so it can overlap and absorb other sounds. You can buy a white noise machine or just download an app with white noise samples to your phone and listen to such a playlist.
#5 Go to Bed Before Your Partner
Getting into bed before your snoring spouse can kill two birds with one stone:
- You will calmly fall asleep. When you go to bed together, chances are that you will anxiously wait for your partner to start snoring. This will certainly keep you awake longer and reduce sleep quality.
- You will get a headstart. Falling asleep earlier means that you’ll get at least an hour or two of quiet shut-eye. And when your partner joins you, who knows, maybe he or she won’t wake you up because you will have entered the deep sleep phase by that moment.
Final Word
Snoring can be really annoying, that’s for sure.
And it’s not always easy to influence another person. After all, it’s up to your partner whether to do anything about their issue or not.
Still, if none of the methods above seemed to work, don’t be scared to sleep apart.
Sleeping in separate rooms allows both of you to create a perfect sleeping surrounding environment. Choose a comfy blanket, sleep in your favorite sleeping position, and forget about loud snoring. Because a good rest is what everyone needs.
Besides, a relationship flourishes only when both sides are happy. And well-rested.