Snoring Can Ruin Relationships

You see it all the time in movies, a husband snoring away while his wife stares at the ceiling in mild frustration -- that's how you know it's a film, and not real life. The truth is that snoring can utterly ruin a relationship from the inside out, and I'm about to tell you how, as I have experienced it firsthand.

Before I do that, however, I'll also say that, while a perfect marriage stands a chance of surviving what I'm about to describe, the simple truth is that few of us have a perfect relationship, and that makes everyone vulnerable to the following outcome, especially if they don't take their partner's complaints seriously. Severe snoring issues aren't a joke and there are many things which can cause snoring. Sort your snoring out now so you won't be sorry -- and single -- later.

Snoring prevents your partner from sleeping

Obvious enough, I would hope. Severe snoring would keep anyone awake, and even mild snoring can do the same for a light sleeper. This may not be that big of a deal when experienced only once in a while, but if your woman is experiencing this every single day for several years, she's going to be insane by the end of it.

Lack of sleep affects *everything*

The person suffering from lack of sleep will, at some point, develop all sorts of problems. That's what lack of sleep does, and that's why it's used as a torture device by governments and the like. If you can't sleep, you can't function. This will inevitably affect health, appearance and job performance. It will affect libido, it will affect your relationship, it will affect everything. It can be extremely traumatic and if you doubt that, I'd ask you to average an hour a sleep per day for even one week and see how sane you are by the end of it.

• If you're a serious snorer, consider getting tested for sleep apnea, and follow up with the appropriate medical treatment. CPAP machines work!

• Don't sleep on your back.

• Don't smoke.

• If you're obese, lose weight.

• If you don't already have one, you may want to try a pillow that's been specially designed to reduce snoring.

• Breathing strips for the nose sometimes help in moderate cases.

Rolling over isn't always good enough.

For starters, some people still snore while on their sides. But that's not why I've included this heading: If your woman (or man) has to ask you to roll over 10 times in one night, that means she didn't sleep for most of it, if at all. Moreover, it should not be your partner's responsibility to get you into a tolerable sleeping position.

Sleeping in another room isn't always good enough.

Some people have such severe snoring issues that they are intolerable even through another wall. Yes, I am speaking from experience. This can even prove to be worse, as, without you there to tell him to turn over, he's on his back the entire time, which leads to the loudest snoring you can imagine.

Earplugs and sound machines aren't always feasible.

Some people simply can't sleep with ear plugs in. I'm one of them. Have tried it numerous times, and it's just not something I can do. White noise machines are a possibility if the snoring person is in another room (although the snorer might actually be louder, which would make it pointless), but if you're right next to each other, it's pretty useless.

Show your partner that you take their sleep seriously.

Few things feel worse than having someone just not give a crap about whether or not you're able to sleep. Snoring can really damage a person's vitality, and if you want to keep your partner around, you really need to make them feel like you care, and that you're making an effort to sort the problem out. Anything less is really selfish and unacceptable. If you expect them to stick by you through what could easily be described as a nightmare, you need to show them that you're worth sticking by.