How to Deal When Your Partner Snores

For someone who needs at least 8 hours of sleep a night, the last few months have been an extra struggle. I’ve always been a light sleeper and so when a few nights of snoring turned into a nightly ordeal, I didn’t know how to cope. If you have a partner who snores, you’ll have to give the following a go:

1. Time Your Bedtime

Set your bedtime an hour earlier than your partner’s. That way you have some time to fall into a deep sleep before your partner gets into bed. This works out really well for my partner who uses the spare time to play games on his Playstation – win-win!

2. Plan Ahead

Alcohol and allergies might make the snoring a little louder. If your partner will be drinking and you have a big day ahead, it might be best to sleep in separate beds just for the night. Now that I have my new ear plugs, I can typically sleep through loud snoring but if I know I have a big meeting on the next day, it’s better to be safe than sleepy the next day.

3. Get a Tennis Ball

If your partner snores, try turning them over to the side. It may take some getting used to especially if he’s used to sleeping on his back. For this purpose, I’d try leaving a tennis ball on the bed to prevent them from rolling back.

4. Industrial Strength Ear Plugs

The regular headphones didn’t cut it for me. They’d often fall out of their ears, waking me in the middle of the night. It wasn’t till someone (a sleeping angel!) introduced me to industrial strength ear plugs. They are more narrow than the regular ones which is way more sufficient in blocking out noise. To use them properly, pinch and roll them into a thin tube and then insert it deep into the ear canal and let it expand. Though they stay put pretty well, you might want to grab the ear plugs that have a string to connect the two ear plugs. That way, if you lose one in the middle of the night, you won’t need to go fumbling in the dark.

5. Sleep Hypnosis

There was a short period of time when I couldn’t fall asleep and resorted to guided meditation or sleep hypnosis. It was the best discovery I’d come across in awhile. Not only does it put me to sleep, it puts me into good quality sleep. I go to bed 30min earlier so I can fall asleep to my sleep hypnosis recording.

We’ve tried nasal sprays and strips but none of them were effective but I think it depends on the person. If all of the above fails, your partner might need to see a specialist to do a sleep test. It can be incredibly frustrating to go night after night with little sleep but try not to take your frustrations out on your partner – it’s something they have very little control over.

What have you tried to cope with a partner who snores? I’d love to know.

Image via Unsplash by Krista Manguslone