Think you’ve tried all the easy ways to stop snoring? We guarantee you haven’t tried these yet.
There’s a multitude of different things you can do to try and prevent snoring becoming an issue, somewhere between Stop Breathing and Remove Your Nose, lies a simple list of the easiest, low maintenance methods of combating snoring.
Oh look, here it is, right in the middle: twelve of the easiest ways to stop snoring.
Easy Ways to Stop Snoring
These are simple little fixes anyone can make to ensure you – and whoever is in bed with you – gets a better night’s sleep.
Sleep on your side
This is one of the most popular DIY cures to the affliction that shakes the windows every night. The general thinking on the topic is that lying on your back whilst you sleep can heavily restrict airways, with the body working harder to catch each breath.
Turning onto your side is thought to relieve some of this pressure, free up the airways and ease some of the congestion!
Clear out your nose
Given that you’ll be breathing, but hopefully not snoring, through it all night, it makes sense to make sure your nasal passageways are clear, even before you resort to something like the nasal strip. Blowing your nose is one thing, but you might not quite clear it all… Try something like a vapour inhaler to give it a good pre-slumber clearing.
Have a cup or two of sleep tea
Being tense before bed can cause all kinds of sleep issues, but it can also mean you’ll grit your teeth and clench jaw muscles during the night – this can end up forcing the tongue back towards the throat and its airways, obstructing breathing and causing snoring.
Try a warm bath, maybe some relaxing sleep inducing tea, or anything else which tends to mellow you out before bed.
Don’t booze and snooze
There are a number of conflicting reasons given for this style of abstinence, ranging from the alcohol relaxing your throat muscles too much, to the point of ‘collapse’, to the alcohol contributing to the tightening of airways.
All we know is alcohol doesn’t help!
Rearrange your pillows
Similar to the thought process behind sleeping on your side, if you add an extra pillow to your pile, or raise them up a little bit so as to support the neck and throat, your snoring should rapidly decrease.
However, the more extreme the angle/neck support, the more likely you’ll have some pretty painful aches in the morning. It’s Sophie’s Choice, but less theatrical.
Keep a regular sleep schedule
One of the most popular lines of thought regarding why we sometimes snore, is that it’s symptomatic of having an uncomfortable or restless sleep – one of the best methods of assuring you have a solid, regular sleep is to stick to a routine or sleeping regime.
Try to be asleep for a certain time each night, and up for a certain time each morning.
An unusual kind of exercise
No, this doesn’t mean you have to start hitting the gym before bed. This actually concerns exercises of the tongue, throat and mouth, which can help to open up airways for the night, and lower the risk of snoring.
Simple exercise, really: just open your mouth as wide as you can, without stretching too much, then lightly place your teeth together and repeat for a few minutes before you turn in for the night.
Steam is your ally
The goal here is to give your airways the gift of moist, comfortable air. Enter steam – this lovely misty stuff is great for opening up your airways (and decent for cleaning your pores, too!).
Just ten or fifteen minutes before your head hits the pillow, try holding your face over a bowl of boiling, or otherwise steaming, water (key tip: drape a towel around you and the bowl to trap the steam).
The only drawback to this is that the effect can wear off quite quickly, and the snoring might soon make a return. If only there was a way to keep the air moist while you sleep… Something like a humidifier might do the job.
Go the herbal route
There are many different herbal based sprays and medicines that you can take to try and free up the breathing apparatus. Some claim to thin out the nasal lining, whilst others loosen the airways themselves.
Change your sheets
Most of us don’t change or wash our sheets anywhere near as much as we should – this means that our pillows and blankets are covered in small dust particles and other nasty stuff which can kick off allergic reactions (such as closing airways) or simply promote snoring by sniffing it all up each night.
Make sure everything is fresh and clean!
Nasal strips can ease the flow
If you’re reluctant to go down the routes of night time medication or apparatus lodged in your mouth, you may be more inclined to try nasal strips.
These small plaster-like aides sit across the bridge of your nose and help to keep the nasal passageways open during the night.
That being said, your snoring issue might originate from another location… In which case, it might be time to try one of the other eleven solutions!
Sing it with me, now: Silent niiiiight…