Share your snoring woes and cures

[ShadeMumsnet]

If you share a bed with a snorer, night times can be an exhausting experience. Or worse, if you're the one tooting like a foghorn, they can be horribly embarrassing. To mark National Stop Snoring Week (22 - 26 April) please would you share any sound tips - short of kipping elsewhere - you've discovered for getting some undisturbed shut-eye, or making sure your DP gets a little.

[Bluemary3000]

My dh isn't a snorer as such but can't breathe through his nose so breathes really heavily all night long with his mouth wide open. It's like sleeping in a room with the wind from a storm but without the thunder!
Years ago he had an operation to remove the cartilage from his nose as it was blocking the airwaves. That worked really well for a while.
Now he has to sleep on his side, he always falls asleep first (he gets up stupidly early and I don't), I can then make sure he stays on his side long enough for me to go to sleep by placing my hand on his back. Sounds a bit weird but it works. He snores when he's drunk but then so do I!!

[NotMostPeople]

DH's snoring is very very loud, we've tried a lot of things and he's been to the doctor, but the simple fact is that he is overweight. He didn't snore when I met him and he was a man with a six pack. I sleep with headphones in and listen to radio four to drown him out. It's quite an art to find the right sort of program, not too interesting or I'll stop myself going to sleep to listen to the peogram, no music - too lively, not depressing, or potentially upsetting. The archers is good, but a bit too short.

A lot of the time I'm woken by his snoring and if it gets bad he sleeps on the sofa. We're trying to move at the moment to a house with a spare bedroom, although I don't want to be permanently in separate rooms. I haven't had to get up in the night for children in years, but I still rarely get into bed and sleep all the way through to the morning - it's not fun.

DH is away at the moment, I'm supposed to be taking advantage and catching up on some sleep - do you see what time it is?

[msrisotto]

Poor you NotMostPeople!

I would like to add to my previous post that I have taken to sleeping with a pillow on my head to muffle his snoring.

[Whirliwig72]

I'm a snorer but bought a Tomned Somoguard which is a guard you mould yourself (which stops your jaw dropping down) and its very good. According to my partner I either don't snore or snore much more quietly when I wear it. I also feel like I've slept better after wearing it. The device costs about £100 which is dear but it does work and can be adjusted to get a really good fit. It feels a bit odd at first - my jaw was a bit stiff for about a week and I produced more saliva but both issues went after about a week. I bought a denture box and sterdent tablets to clean it with so it's always nice and minty when I put it in.
One thing I will say is there are different types of snorers and what works for one person will not always work for another. To find out the best snoring device for you or your partner I recommend the interactive test in the British Snoring Association website: //www.britishsnoring.co.uk/mobile/itests/

[Whirliwig72]

Just to add I bought the Tomed AP model - but there are cheaper / different models available .

[mindingalongtime]

I posted on the other thread, DH had a £350 mouthguard made, it made him sound like Darth Vader. He now has a Cpap machine......silence!

[CMOTDibbler]

My dh has been a snorer since he was a child. A really, really, really bad snorer - he'd had people banging on the hotel room wall, standing outside our tent shouting abuse about the level of his snoring.

6 years ago he finally went to a sleep clinic, got diagnosed with very severe OSA, and has been on CPAP ever since. There is silence at night now, and I'm very thankful that his GP took him seriously and did the referral as his consultant said his life would have been very significantly shorter without treatment.

[Marrow]

Oh my goodness! After reading this thread last night I bought a snoring app to see just how bad my snoring is and if DH is justified in his moaning.

The results are in and they are terrible! Apparently a score of 100 puts you in the top 10% of worst snorers. My score was 117 and I am very, very loud! Going back to reread thread for some ideas on how to reduce it. No wonder Dh always moans!!

[TheOneWithTheHair]

Dh is a snorer. He has sleep apnoea that he won't see anyone about as he's overweight. He has a mouth guard but he can't keep it in all night. Sleeping on his back makes it worse.

I read somewhere that sewing half tennis balls into the back of a t-shirt/ pj top stops them rolling on their back and reduces snoring. Dh won't try it though.

[Marrow]

Lunatic - it's called SnoreLab. It records your snoring all night and gives you all the stats for it. You can also listen to samples of the snoring.

[Meow75isknittinglikemad]

I started using a CPAP machine on March 19th, after having a sleep study on Feb 5/6th. The CPAP mask can be an arse to wear but I'm surprised at how quickly I go to sleep. For years - like, since I was 5 - it's always taken me ages to get off to sleep. Now, 30 years later, I'm several st overweight as is my husband who also snores. Difference is, he won't go to the dr's about it!!
In the last 6-12 weeks, I've learned through research and info from my dr that he's a classic sleep apnoea case.

GO TO THE DOCTOR, DH!!!!!

[TigerFeet]

Both dh and I snore terribly and it's got worse over the years as we've got fatter

I really ought to see the doctor about it but I know that the first thing I will be told to do is lose the weight and I've been struggling with that anyway for various reasons.

I snore when I'm lying on my side. I snore even when my mouth is closed. DH is a back lying gob open snorer.

We rarely sleep in the same room, dh uses ear plugs. Normal sex life etc but just don't SLEEP in the same room.

[MrsFrederickWentworth]

Check for sleep apnoea.the masks have transformed my sleep.

I am now the snorer. Need to lose weight and also deal with a sinus or rhinitis infection that blocks my nose every 10 mins.

[tanukiton]

Separate rooms here save my sanity and a cuddle in the morning to save the marriage :)

[WhoKnowsWhereTheTimeGoes]

The GP refused to refer DH unless he lost weight, but he isn't trying very hard is finding it difficult. I have wondered about finding a private clinic for an assessment.

It doesn't seem like sleep apnoea to me (and I have spent plenty of time listening to it), very regular, no sudden snorts, breathing is smooth in and out, but just so noisy. The only position he doesn't snore in is face down.

[Kewcumber]

like others here I'm a sleep apnoea sufferer. developed it suddenly after being on steroids. my apnoea index was 106. ie I stopped breathing 106 times an hour!

I went to the doctor after I fell asleep driving the car.

The biggest cause of death to sleep apnoea sufferers is car crashes which also kills others.

If you are a snorer or live with a snorer make sure you familiarise yourself with the symptoms.

[5madthings]

Marking my place. I did a thread about dp's snoring recently. I think he has sleep apnea, he sleeps downstairs quite often and i can still hear him, drives me mental.

I am going to look at a snoring app and record him and send him to the drs.

[headlesslambrini]

Dh is the snorer here. He is only 11 stone so weight is not his issue. I can't use ear plugs as I don't like the idea of not hearing if the DC's get up in the middle of the night. He tends to go to sleep with his arms wrapped round his neck to hold the quilt in place. As soon as he drops off, I re-arrange his arms and move his head slightly and this tends to stop him but only until he naturally moves in his sleep a couple of hours later.

We have reverted to separate beds, it's the only way were we both get uninterrupted sleep. Not the ideal solution but we are a lot happier as we are not constantly sniping at each other through tiredness.

[Kewcumber]

hearing snoring in another room can be one of the signs of sleep apnoea. If you google Epworth sleep score you can grade yourself/DH and decide whether a trip to the GP is in order.

Sleep apnoea sufferers tend to have very high blood pressure and therefore higher risk of strokes.

You do not need to be overweight to have sleep apnoea, though it is more common.

[5madthings]

Shall look up the epworth sleep score. Dp def does the snoring and then pauses before jolting and taking a big breath etc, pretty sure he has a problem but trying to get him to the gp... He did look at some stuff on sleep apnea and agreed it sounds like him and said he would go but he is always too busy...

[Kewcumber]

5madthings. My life was transformed with a CPAP machine. I thought I was depressed - everything seems like too much effort, I dosed off all the time, never felt well, kept putting on weight (broken sleep encourages weight gain), couldn't concentrate, short term memory was shot to bits, I looked grey and unhealthy and my blood pressure was 175/115.

Losing your job because you are under-performing isn't uncommon with sleep apnoea - maybe your DH would have more time to go to his GP then!

I know I'm preaching to the converted but make him read my post. I'm a different person now - life is much better.

Having undiagnosed sleep apnoea is like living your life in the shadows.

[5madthings]

Dp has a tendency to.depression. Falls asleep anywhere etc shall hastle him to go to the gp, he has two.days.off work.this week so no.excuse!