# Do you only snore while sleeping?

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-only-snore-while-sleeping/80386>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [September 8, 2001, 1:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-only-snore-while-sleeping/80386 "2001-09-08T13:27:21Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 2\
**Page:** 1

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**Author:** ![poohpah\_chalupa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/91b2a8/32.png) [@poohpah\_chalupa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/poohpah_chalupa)\
**Post date:** [September 8, 2001, 1:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-only-snore-while-sleeping/80386/1 "2001-09-08T13:27:21Z")

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If snoring, like the hiccups or sneezing, is an involuntary act, why don’t you ever hear someone snoring while they’re awake?  
Also, does one snore after fainting or passing out? After getting knocked unconscious? Do you snore if you’re in a coma?

…just wondering…

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**Author:** ![Squink](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/b5e925/32.png) [@Squink](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Squink)\
**Post date:** [September 8, 2001, 4:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/do-you-only-snore-while-sleeping/80386/2 "2001-09-08T16:53:15Z")

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The throat muscles and tongue get more relaxed as you sleep. [If it doesn’t choke you to death](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showthread.php?threadid=84541), you can end up snoring. People can also snore when they are awake, but the snorting sound alerts them to move their tongue/throat muscles out of the air passage.