If you live with someone who snores, you will be only too aware of the difficulties it can cause. The symptoms vary enormously; from mild occasional snoring to prolonged and loud. For the non snoring partner this can be very wearing with sleep often being severely disturbed. Equally, for the snorer it can mean interrupted or lighter sleep and a constant feeling of tiredness.
Often the person who is most motivated to try and deal with the situation is not the snorer, but their partner as it may be that it is they that are suffering the most. It can be extremely frustrating for one's sleep to be disturbed in this way, night after night, with apparently no means of bringing it to an end. Naturally, this can lead to the non snoring spouse to feel angry at their partner and ultimately the relationship will suffer.
The first step to take in addressing your spouse's snoring is to think about solutions. What you need to avoid is to express your frustration and start with expressing concerns for their health. Snoring can be an indicator of sleep apnea where sufferers actually stop breathing while they are asleep.
With your partner you could make a record of their snoring. Which position do they snore most? The majority of people will snore more when lying on their back. Are they worse when suffering with allergies or illnesses?
Investigate what is causing your partner's snoring. It could be the result of allergies, through sleeping on with their mouth open, or simply through sleeping on their back. The solution you and your spouse identify will affect which solution you pursue.
Identify a solution that focuses on the on the reason for the snoring. For example, if the snoring is caused by sleeping with the mouth open then you could look at a solution that holds the mouth shut while sleeping or trains the snorer to breathe through their nose when asleep.
Try a solution a reasonable of time. If your identified solution proves ineffective on the first night, do not dismiss it, but persist with it for a while. If after this has been tried for a reasonable period and it still does not work, then you may need to try a different solution.
It is quite straightforward to stop snoring. Simply identify the cause of the snoring and then tailor your solution accordingly.
If this is picture that you recognize and you value your relationship then you need to take action. Do you really want your relationship to be ruined by snoring? Contrary to the belief of many snorers there are solutions available to cure snoring and with a little effort your relationship can be restored to how it was before snoring became an issue.
