Santa Cruz, Scotts Valley CA
Snoring can put you in a tough spot. Every night, your partner’s snoring disrupts your sleep — no matter what you try, the noise just won’t stop. So, what can you do to reduce or eliminate snoring and finally get a good night’s rest again?
This is known as secondhand snoring—where your partner’s snoring affects your sleep quality. At Ebrahimian Integrative Dentistry, we’ve helped many couples in this exact situation. Here are some tips and advice that can help you and your partner find relief.
Stay Calm
When discussing your partner’s snoring, it’s important to remain calm. This can be hard, but keeping a cool head will help the conversation stay productive rather than turning into an argument.
Remember, snoring not only affects your sleep but also your partner’s. Snoring is actually the sound of their airway struggling to stay open. This struggle disrupts their sleep, often hundreds of times a night, even if they don’t realize it. So although you’re frustrated, your partner is likely feeling tired and irritable too. Approaching the conversation calmly will help you both work toward a solution.
Bring Up the Snoring Gently
Once you’re calm, gently talk to your partner about how their snoring is affecting both of you. Their sleep and health are important, so it’s better to find a solution that treats snoring at its source rather than just masking the problem with earplugs or sleeping in separate rooms.
Suggest a Sleep Apnea Test
Encourage your partner to get tested for sleep apnea, a serious condition often linked to loud snoring. The louder the snoring, the higher the risk of sleep apnea. Treating sleep apnea not only improves sleep quality but also helps stop snoring for good.
Getting a sleep study is easy — many people can do it in the comfort of their own bed with a simple, affordable home test that’s very accurate.
Discuss Snoring Treatment Options
If your partner has sleep apnea, treatment is critical. Options include CPAP machines, oral appliances, and other therapies. If they don’t have sleep apnea but still snore, it’s important they know that snoring itself can be treated effectively.
How to Encourage a Partner to Get Treatment
If your partner is hesitant about treatment, try these approaches:
- Express Your Care: Let your partner know you want to address the snoring because you love and care about them—and want both of you to get better sleep and improved health.
- Show Evidence: Use phone apps that record snoring to document the issue together. Avoid sneaky recordings; involve your partner so they trust the results.
- Explain Treatment Effectiveness: Over-the-counter remedies often don’t work because they don’t target the root cause. Professional treatment designed for your partner’s needs is much more effective.
- Highlight Sleep Impact: Snoring disrupts both of your sleep cycles and can cause daytime fatigue.
- Discuss Health Risks: Even without sleep apnea, snoring can contribute to serious health issues like artery damage, increasing stroke risk.
- Talk About Quality of Life: Poor sleep affects work, hobbies, and overall energy. Treatment can restore vitality.
- Mention Relationship Effects: Lack of sleep can cause irritability, reduce intimacy, and even contribute to relationship strain.
Protect Your Sleep if Needed
If your partner refuses treatment, you may need to protect your sleep by trying:
- Earplugs
- White noise machines
- Sleeping in a different room
If nothing works, you might need to consider more significant changes to get the rest you need.
We’re Here to Help
At Ebrahimian Integrative Dentistry, we want to help you and your partner get the restful sleep you deserve. If you can encourage your partner to start with a sleep study, we’ll guide you both through the next steps toward treatment.
Call us today at (831) 438-4411 or visit our office in Scotts Valley, CA, to learn more and schedule an appointment. Better sleep is within reach!
