Stop Someone from Snoring

Getting a good night’s sleep is important to your mental and physical health. Sharing a bed, room or, in some cases a home, with someone who snores can deprive you of sleep and put a strain on relationships. Snoring occurs when air cannot move freely through the nasal cavities, causing the surrounding tissue to vibrate, and make that all too familiar snoring sound.[1] To prevent someone from snoring you can adjust their sleep environment, help them adjust their sleep habits, and suggest lifestyle changes so everyone can get a good night’s sleep.

Steps

Adjusting the Sleep Environment

  1. Use pillows to elevate the sleeper's head. Raising the head four inches with one to two pillows can make it easier to breath and encourage the tongue and jaw to move forward. You can buy specially designed pillows to keep the neck muscles relaxed and open, leading to a reduction or elimination of snoring when sleeping.[2]
    • Keep in mind it can be difficult for someone who snores to not move or shift throughout the night, which could lead to moving off the pillows or falling back into a position that could lead to snoring. You can counter this by having the snorer put tennis balls in the back of their night clothes. This will cause mild discomfort when rolling over or moving around at night and can prevent the snorer from shifting in their sleep.
  2. Keep the bedroom moist with a humidifier. Dry air can irritate your nose and throat and lead to congestion and snoring at night. If the person who snores has issues with swollen nasal tissues, it can help to sleep with a humidifier on. Keeping the air moist throughout the night can help ensure better, snore free sleep.[2]
  3. Consider a separate bedrooms if the snoring is too loud. Some couple, families, roommates etc, decide it might be best to have separate bedrooms for sleeping, especially if the snorers snoring is a chronic issue. It can be difficult, especially for couples to sleep in separate rooms, especially if one person feels guilty or resentful due to interrupted sleep, so take the time to talk to the snorer about this possibility.[2]
    • Explain that your sleep is lacking sleep due to the person's snoring and you feel it would be best for your sleep routine and your relationship if you slept in separate rooms. Snoring is a physical issue that is the result of other physical issues or ailments. It is in the hands of any adult who snores to find a solution, medical or otherwise, for their snoring. However, if none of the solutions seem to work, separate bedrooms may be your only option if the issue is with an adult. If you're a parent with a child who snores, they will need your help to stop snoring.

Adjusting Their Sleep Habits

  1. Suggest a nasal rinse before bed. If the person who snores struggles with stuffed up nasal passages, they may want to try a saline rinse before they go to bed to help them breathe easily while sleeping. To Clean-Your-Nostrils, a Neti pot or nasal decongestant can be used.[2]
    • Nasal strips can help to reduce the volume of snoring, as they can adjust the nasal passages. They do not always help to eliminate snoring and are not as effective as a nasal rinse in the opinion of some.[3]
  2. Recommend your the snorer try sleeping on their side, not their back. Shifting sleep position to laying on one side, rather than laying flat on one's back or stomach, will reduce the amount of pressure on the throat and help to prevent snoring. If there's difficulty maintaining a side sleeping position, you can sew a sock or a tennis ball into the back of their night wear. This will cause mild discomfort when rolling over on the back during the night and help to keep the snorer on one side.[1]
    • After a few weeks of sleeping on one side, it should become a habit and you can remove the tennis balls or socks in the pajamas.
  3. Suggest they speak to their dentist about anti-snoring mouth appliances. People with a snoring problem can see their dentist and get a custom mouthguard to help open the airway and bring the lower jaw and tongue forward during sleep.[2]
    • However, dentist-made appliances can be expensive, especially if healthcare does not cover it. Suggest they have a consultation with their dentist and discuss cheaper options, if necessary.
  4. Recommend the snorer have a consultation with their doctor about surgical options for snoring. If the snorer continues to snore despite adjustments to the sleeping environment and sleep habits, they may want to consider scheduling a consultation with a doctor to discuss a medical device or a surgical procedure to help with the snoring. A doctor may recommend the following options, including:[2]
    • Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP): This is a machine that blows pressurized air into a mask worn over the nose, or nose and mouth or whole face. A CPAP machine can help to keep airways open while sleeping
    • Traditional surgery for snoring: These surgical procedures will help to increase the size of your person's airways by removing tissues or correcting any abnormalities in the nose.
    • Laser-assisted uvulopalatoplasty (LAUP): This procedure uses lasers to shorten the uvula, which is the hanging soft tissue at the back of the throat, and makes small cuts in the soft palate. As the cuts heal, the surrounding tissue will stiffen and prevent the vibrations in the throat that cause snoring.

Making Lifestyle Changes

  1. Suggest losing weight through diet and exercise. If the person who snores is overweight or has weight issues, they may want to consider losing weight with a healthy, balanced diet and daily exercise. Excess weight can add more tissue around the neck area and lead to restricted airways, causing louder and more persistent snoring.
  2. Suggest no eating or drinking of alcohol several hours before bed. Drinking alcohol a few hours before bed can cause airways to relax and vibrate when sleeping, leading to snoring. As well, a heavy meal before bedtime can cause a restless sleep, full of snoring and shifting or moving around in bed.
  3. Recommend daily throat exercises to reduce snoring. Throat exercises can strengthen the muscles of their upper respiratory tract and help to reduce or eliminate snoring. Suggest they try to do throat exercises on a daily basis, starting with one to two sets and then increasing the number of sets over time. Advise them to combine the exercises with other activities like driving to work, while doing housework, or while walking the dog. To do throat exercises:[2]
    • Repeat each vowel (a-e-i-o-u) out loud for three minutes several times a day.
    • Put the tip of the tongue behind the top front teeth. Then, slide the tongue backwards three minutes a day.
    • Close the mouth and purse the lips. Hold this for 30 seconds.
    • Open the mouth and move the jaw to the right. Hold this for 30 seconds. Do the same on the left side.
    • Open the mouth and contract the muscles at the back of the throat several times for 30 seconds. Look in the mirror to confirm the uvula (the hanging ball in the back of the throat) moves up and down.

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Sources and Citations

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 https://www.nlm.nih.gov/medlineplus/ency/article/003207.htm
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 2.5 2.6 http://www.helpguide.org/articles/sleep/how-to-stop-snoring.htm
  3. ↑ http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2014/04/27/stop-snoring-remedies_n_5133791.html

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