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How to Silence Snoring – Playing the Didgeridoo
By Suzanne Richardson
If you're being jolted out of dreamland most nights by your spouse's jackhammer snore, you're probably feeling pretty tired. And with that comes crankiness and less productivity.
But short of kicking your spouse out of the bedroom, what can you do to stop that earth-shattering noise?
Although snoring can be a result of anything from a common cold to sleep apnea (when you stop breathing during sleep), obesity is one of the biggest causes of this nighttime malady. So getting your partner to lose weight might be a good start.
Some other common remedies, according to the National Sleep Foundation:
- using a nasal strip
- asking your dentist/orthodontist to prescribe a dental appliance for the snorer
- making sure your spouse always sleeps on his/her side
- getting your spouse to give up alcohol and/or cigarettes
If you're up for a more cutting-edge solution, you may want to suggest that your spouse take up the didgeridoo (an Australian wind instrument). According to a small study published in the British Medical Journal, playing this instrument can strengthen the upper airways and make them less susceptible to collapse and vibration. After four months of practicing the didgeridoo, participants in the study had less daytime sleepiness and fewer episodes of sleep apnea. |
