Does your sleep partner complain that you’re a loud snorer? Snoring is just one of the disruptive symptoms of sleep apnea, a serious sleep disorder that interrupts a person’s breathing pattern and causes them to choke or gasp for air continuously throughout the night.
If your partner has been noticing these pauses in your breath they may begin to worry about your health or they might start to resent you because they can’t sleep due to your raucous snoring.
Snoring and sleep apnea have both been found to be a leading cause of divorce between couples. The best way to cope with problems in your relationship triggered by a sleep disorder is to seek professional care that will help you and your partner achieve a better night’s sleep.
Tension Between You and Your Loved One
When a person lacks quality sleep, it’s common that they wake up every day feeling groggy and often have a bad mood throughout the day. Poor sleep quality can stem from a number of things, but for those who suffer from a sleep disorder, this is an extremely common occurrence.
However, many snorers or sufferers of sleep apnea aren’t aware of what their nighttime nuisances are doing to their significant other. Their partner is also likely to experience poor quality sleep because they’re often being woken up by loud noises or can’t even initially fall asleep because of them.
This can cause a major strain between you and your sleep partner, especially if you don’t seek the necessary care you need. Your snoring can influence your loved one to sleep in a separate room which can cause distance in your relationship. They also may begin to blame you for their excessive fatigue during the day due to sleep deprivation.
A Lack of Intimacy
As sleep apnea encourages your partner to sleep in a different room, this will easily undermine your sex life and harm your intimate relationship with each other. You may lose your physical connection with each other which can quickly diminish your feelings towards one another.
Women between the ages of 28 and 64 who suffer from sleep apnea have actually been found to suffer from a decrease in libido and sexual dysfunction compared to women with good sleep quality. Men with sleep apnea are also known to suffer from a decline in sexual desire and sensation, as well as a drop in testosterone levels and erectile dysfunction.
Dr. Rice doesn’t want to see her patients separate from their loved one or lose their intimate bond with each other due to one person’s sleep disorder. She offers numerous treatments for snoring and sleep apnea to help you rebuild your love for one another.
Make a Change with a Sleep Study
When you’re seeking professional care for your snoring or potential sleep disorder, you’re not only benefiting your health, but you’re showing your sleep partner you care about them and their sleep too. Receiving a sleep study is the first step to discovering if you suffer from sleep apnea.
If you’re officially diagnosed with sleep apnea, your sleep doctor may initially prescribe you with a CPAP mask. However, after using CPAP, many patients complain that it’s too loud, uncomfortable, and inconvenient.
Luckily, there are plenty of alternatives to CPAP, such as an oral appliance or NightLase treatment that Dr. Rice offers here at our Brentwood dental office. These options offer a less invasive, more convenient method of treatment for sleep apnea and deliver immediate results.
If you’ve been diagnosed with sleep apnea and can’t deal with your CPAP any longer, you can schedule a consultation with Dr. Rice to discuss your options.
7 Tips for Couples With Sleep Disorders
- Don’t hesitate to seek a sleep study. Once you know what your nighttime issues are, your partner will appreciate the time you took to make the change to receive professional care.
- Listen to your doctor if you’re diagnosed with sleep apnea. They can provide you with effective solutions that will help you and your loved one sleep through the night again and rekindle any lost connection between one another.
- Always communicate with your partner. If you guys are noticing problems with each other, talk it out. Don’t try to push things away because this can lead to a bigger issue in the future.
- Take care of your health. Sleep apnea is more common in overweight people, smokers, or habitual alcohol consumers. Eating healthy, working out, and eliminating these substances from your daily life can improve your sleep and life in the long run.
- Change up your bedroom environment. Sometimes, couples sleep better together if there’s white noise in the room or if there’s more or less light at night. Try different things to see how you both can best fall asleep.
- Tell stories to each other before bed. As you and your loved one lay in bed, talk about your day and tell jokes or stories to one another. This can help you and your partner reconnect with each other and make falling asleep more fun.
- Support each other and be patient. Sleep apnea and snoring are not easy to deal with for you or your significant other. Be patient with the process and always support one another to help you work through it together.