Credit: GettyCOUPLES have been urged to avoid letting their love nod off – as snoring is one of the biggest reasons Scots are splitting up.
Shock research revealed a lack of shuteye is a huge contributor to divorce – with 52 per cent admitting it put a strain on their relationship.
Snoring is a huge issue in relationships.Credit: Getty
Dr Sonia Szamocki and Professor Ama Johal want to help couples.
Meanwhile, three quarters affected by snoring were forced into separate rooms – with 85 per cent of those believing their relocations led to the breakdown of their marriage and half of all divorcees saying snoring is a deal breaker for future dating.
Expert Dr Sonia Szamocki, who runs healthcare company 32Co, is desperate for people to take the issue seriously.
She said: “Snoring is a really big factor in deciding whether someone wants to date. So I think people are becoming more and more aware of it as a problem, but not necessarily that there is a solution.
“It’s sort of something that we joke about and always have done. And it’s almost cartoonish how we think about the big chubby guy that’s 50 and that’s snoring.
“But actually, this is not something that just affects that demographic. It’s also not usually a laughing matter for that person.
“This is part of the problem. With the recognition of the condition, people get dismissed. Sadly females get this quite a lot and there’s a stigma around the association of snoring and being female in the first place.
“The other frightening thought is that the prevalence of snoring is ever increasing, and therefore its societal impact is even more prolific than any of us even begin to recognise.”
With eight million UK adults living with sleep apnoea – and millions more affected by disruptive snoring – the impact on intimacy is often shrouded in secrecy.
But the experts at 32Co believe it’s a much bigger issue that many realise due to the effect it has on partners.
Younger generations appear most impacted by snoring-related tensions.
More than half of 18 to 24-year-olds (58 per cent) and 25–34-year-olds (54 per cent) said snoring contributed to their break-up – compared to just 14 per cent of over-65s.
Professor Ama Johal, Clinical Lead at 32Co, said: “The focus tends to be on the patients themselves because we worry about their quality of sleep.
“But I suppose more recently, there’s been an alarmist kind of outlook that this disrupted sleep can very adversely affect the partner themselves.
“It’s a question we frequently ask the patient, do you share the same bedroom? And some people might think that’s a very personal question to ask someone you’ve just met in a consultation.
“However, you often see the patients look at you as though to say, well, you actually get this, you actually understand that it’s that bad. That they can’t even travel together.
SLEEP TIPS
Here's some great ways to reduce snoring.
1. Try to lose weight if you’re overweight
2. Sleep on your side – try taping or stitching a tennis ball to the back of your sleepwear, or buy a special pillow or bed wedge to help keep you on your side.
3. Consider asking your partner to use earplugs if your snoring affects their sleep.
4. Do not smoke or drink too much alcohol.
5. Do not take sleeping pills – these can sometimes cause snoring.
6. Reducing nasal obstruction if you require hayfever treatment.
7. Dental appliances, such as the ones provided by 32Co, can help open airways.
8. Practice good sleep hygiene by creating a relaxing bedtime routine and being consistent.
“There is evidence also that you see snoring gets almost pushed under the carpet as this loud disruptive noise that everyone sort of learns to cope with.
“It’s almost like an automatic nervous response. It’s survival really. So they opt to move out of the room because fundamentally they can’t function the next day. They almost become like a sleep apnoea patient themselves because they’re sleep deprived.”
He added: “I think the stereotypical approach has always been, ‘well, they’ve always snored, just put up with it’. But I think the younger generation most definitely don’t agree with that.
“If there’s an underlying condition that’s associated, they often describe themselves to me as the walking dead. They can’t concentrate.
“In that family environment, you’re going to get no sympathy because everyone else is being disrupted by your symptoms as well.
“So they go to the GP feeling really down in the dumps. Sadly, the GP often gives them antidepressants. The antidepressants actually suppress their sleep airway even more, exacerbating their symptoms.
“And it’s just like a car crash waiting to happen sometimes.”
The team at 32Co recently launched specialised Aerox Health Centres to help couples and individuals tackle snoring and obstructive sleep apnoea without invasive treatment.
Although it’s not a silver bullet, Sonia would like people to know they don’t have to suffer in silence.
She said: “I think there’s also an increasing amount of awareness around the quality of sleep. So back in the day, we used to celebrate being sleep deprived as being associated with being successful.
“It was about burning the midnight oil and staying up late and I think we’ve done a complete 180 on that these days.
“Most people that are walking down the street have some sort of wearable that could measure their sleep, whether it’s a watch or a phone.
“They’re starting to recognise how much good quality sleep is just linked with a good quality of life.
“It feels like an easy fix. If this is the one thing to eliminate, why wouldn’t you? We’re not pretending we can solve everything.”
She added: “This is not something to be embarrassed about. It’s something to actually have a discussion with your partner about. It’s something to seek help for and because there are solutions for it.
“It’s a real conversation starter. You will struggle to find someone who doesn’t have first-hand experience to some extent with snoring being problematic in their life.”
