What to Do if Your Partner Snores

San Francisco and Marin CA

Snoring can seriously strain your sleep—and your relationship. Night after night, your partner’s snoring keeps you awake, no matter how many pillows you flip or how deep you try to breathe. So, what can you actually do to find relief and reclaim a peaceful night?

This situation is known as secondhand snoring—where your partner snores and you suffer the consequences. At Glen Park Dental, we’ve helped many couples navigate this challenge. Here are practical, compassionate steps you can take.

Stay Calm

First and foremost: stay calm when addressing snoring with your partner. It’s easy to let frustration take over, especially after countless sleepless nights, but approaching the conversation with anger rarely leads to results.

It helps to remember: snoring may also be harming their sleep. While it may sound like they’re deep in dreamland, snoring is actually the body’s way of struggling to breathe. Many people who snore wake up hundreds of times a night—even if they don’t realize it. So, while you’re suffering from secondhand snoring, they may be just as exhausted and irritable as you are.

Talk About It

Once you’re in a calm, level-headed state, talk to your partner about their snoring. Your sleep is essential—and so is theirs. Rather than just finding a workaround like earplugs or separate beds, it’s best to address the root cause.

Let them know that snoring isn’t just a nuisance. It’s a potential sign of a serious health condition—sleep apnea.

Encourage a Sleep Apnea Test

Loud snoring is one of the most common warning signs of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), a condition where breathing stops and starts repeatedly throughout the night. Untreated, sleep apnea can lead to heart disease, stroke, diabetes, and more.

The good news? Diagnosing sleep apnea is easier than ever. Many patients can now complete a home sleep test in their own bed. It’s affordable, comfortable, and highly accurate.

Encourage your partner to get tested—it could be life-changing for both of you.

Explore Snoring Treatment Options

If the sleep study confirms sleep apnea, your partner will be able to explore a range of treatment options—from CPAP therapy to oral appliances that gently reposition the jaw and open the airway. At Glen Park Dental, we specialize in oral appliance therapy—an effective, comfortable alternative to CPAP for many patients.

Even if your partner doesn’t have sleep apnea, that doesn’t mean their snoring isn’t a problem. Chronic snoring still disrupts sleep, affects health, and harms relationships. Treatment is still worth pursuing.

Ways to Motivate a Reluctant Partner

Convincing your partner to take their snoring seriously can be tough. Here are some effective ways to encourage them:

1. Lead with Love

Let them know you’re bringing this up because you care. Explain how their snoring impacts both of your health, energy, and connection. You can’t be your best self in the relationship if you’re constantly exhausted.

2. Provide Proof

If your partner doubts the severity of their snoring, try a snoring app that records and scores nighttime noises. But be sure to involve them—ask them to choose the app and agree to the recording. This builds trust and helps them accept the evidence.

3. Assure Them Treatment Works

If they’ve tried over-the-counter remedies with no success, they may feel hopeless. Let them know professional treatment targets the cause, not just the symptoms—and it really works.

We offer solutions customized to their anatomy, lifestyle, and needs. Plus, hearing success stories from real patients can inspire them to take that first step.

4. Explain the Health Risks

Even without a sleep apnea diagnosis, snoring increases the risk of serious issues like carotid artery damage, which can lead to strokes. Snoring also contributes to fatigue, high blood pressure, and poor cognitive function.

5. Describe the Daytime Impact

Snorers often feel drained, drowsy, and disconnected. They may doze off at work, lose interest in hobbies, or find it hard to focus. Restorative sleep could bring new energy to everything they do.

6. Talk About Your Relationship

Snoring affects more than health—it strains emotional intimacy. When one partner isn’t sleeping, frustration builds, empathy fades, and shared activities suffer. If it’s affecting your relationship, say so—with compassion, not blame.

Snoring is one of the leading contributors to couples sleeping apart—and even divorcing. Treating it is about more than silence; it’s about saving connection.

If All Else Fails: Protect Your Own Sleep

If your partner refuses treatment, you still have the right to protect your own sleep. Here are some options to consider:

High-quality earplugs
White noise machines
Soundproof curtains
Sleeping in a different room

While not ideal, these short-term solutions can help until they’re ready to take action.