Okay, it’s like 4:30am and even by college standards I should be sleeping. But I can’t. My roommate’s snoring; he’s been doing it for weeks; and he’s the sort of thick-headed self-centered jackass who, should I point this out to him, would rather try and find and point out any noisy habits I may have rather than cooperate to stop his snoring.
Since I’m not going to get a new roommate within the next week, how do I stop his snoring? I can’t do anything to try and wake him up or even anything that could be remotely misinterpreted that way, b/c if he thinks I’m trying to wake him up he’ll make every deliberate effort to see that I can’t sleep either. He’s done it before without provocation so I’d hate to give him anything resembling an actual reason.
Right now he’s singing. In his sleep. I tried turning on the radio to drown him out (just white noise static) and he actaully yelled at me to shut it off WITHOUT HIMSELF WAKING UP!!! Then he just kept on singing!
My thoughts are to just throw up my arms in resignation and buy myself some heavy-duty earplugs that I can wear in my sleep (i.e. ones I could put my head sideways against the pillow w/o any discomfort). Do such things exist? I think I’ll head to Walmart today to look for 'em; any reccomendations?
“I’m just too much for human existence – I should be animated.”
–Wayne Knight
Poor guy! I feel for ya. Yes, there are earplugs that will give you a little relief. They’re soft, foam rubber plugs that go inside your ears and do a reasonably good job of shutting out a lot of noise. They’re shaped like extended pencil erasers…don’t know the name.
On the other hand, if it is ever possible to reason with your roommate, you could suggest to him that snoring is indicative of a problem that could lead to sleep apneia and congestive heart failure…he could DIE from it (or from you going postal and stuffing a pillow over his face). Suggest he seek some medical help…possibly go to a sleep disorder specialist.
After ALL, he’s your roommate and we wouldn’t want anything bad happening to him, now, would we?
Good Luck!!
What if the hokey pokey is really what it’s all about?
Use a casette player that has a tape that doesn’t have quiet sections in it. I’ve used it when camping and can sleep through those 3:00 am parties, people snoring, or the interstate truck traffic. Get headsets that cover your ears completely. not those little things that come with the player.
Any drugstore will have ear plugs, they come in both wax and foam, and they will have different levels of effectiveness (how much sound is blocked out) on the box. I prefer the foam – the wax ones tends to be used by swimmers to keep water out of the ears, but I find them less comfortable.
The idea of headphones and music is possible too, but probably doesn’t block out the outside sounds as well as the earpluts. Depends on how sensitive you are.
BTW, it’s not as though talking to him about it would have any effect, even if he listened. It’s not a conscious or deliberate or controllable thing.
As Mazey said, snoring is one of the symptoms of sleep apnea. I wouldn’t get carried away with this (Mazey’s comment about life-threatening is true but low probability); other symptoms would include tiredness and fatigue during the day, and an on-off snoring that is like gasping for breath. Regular, rhythmic snoring is probably not apnea, I am told. If he has the other symptoms, he should see a doctor.
doubtful. When he woke me up this AM I got up to go to the bathroom; that woke him up and the singing I mentioned was him, awake, deliberately trying to keep me from sleeping b/c I woke him up. For some reason he figured he needed to get back at me even though (a) he woke me up to begin with and (b) my getting out of bed was not a deliberate effort to wake him up. Then everything I tried to do to save my sanity (as I stupidly still thought he was singing in his sleep; anyway all I pretty much did was turn on my radio to static to drown him out, and come on here to ask about earplugs) he started yelling at me for a few hours later.
Think those earplugs come in a larger size to plug his mouth?
ah well. off to Walmart. . . thanks.
“I’m just too much for human existence – I should be animated.”
–Wayne Knight
Bah. Music and Earplugs. Amateurs! We’re talking about cutting out noise and to do that, you don’t pussyfoot around with that sort of behaviour. Here’s what you do:
Position a microphone in front of your roommate and send the picked-up signal through a phase-reversed wire to an amplifier. Then, turn the amplifier up to the exact volume at which your roommate is snoring and voila! The snoring is gone! The sound of your roommate’s snoring and the phase-reversed miked version cancelled each other out.
Of course, you could always just be nice and offer to buy him a breathe-rite strip. They work pretty well for me or so says the little woman.
Or just record the noises he makes while he’s sleeping and play it back for him. That way he can see how much of a pain in the ass he is. If that doesn’t work, then at least you’ve got ammo to try and move to a new dorm room. Just say that you’re a light sleeper and you can’t get any rest.
One thing I was wondering is how are you going to hear your alarm clock to wake up if you have ear plugs in your ears??
I’ve had to deal with a few snoring roommates in my time and I’ve found, that the most effective method is noise conditioning. What you need is something that can make a loud, sharp, ‘CRACK’ like snapping a ruler on a desktop (a starter’s pistol is appealing, but impractical). When the snoring begins, make the noise once, timed with part of a particularly loud snore. If the snoring continues, repeat until you hear him stir. You need to lie still and ensure that he doesn’t catch on that it was you. If the noise is short enough, he should come just far enough out of his sleep, to roll over, or adjust his breathing.
For a lot of people, snoring is brought on by mouth breathing while lying on their back. If they ‘learn’ that they aren’t getting a good nights sleep this way, they can sometimes be conditioned to find a new position. Hey, It’s worked for me.
Slamming shut a harcover book, or rapping on the wall, were my methods of choice. Be creative.
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It’s been a few years since I had to deal with a snoring roommate. OTOH, I had to deal with a snoring neighor not very long ago. I eventually started using a white noise generator (i.e.: an electric fan) to drown out the snoring neighbor.
“Age is mind over matter; if you don’t mind, it don’t matter.” -Leroy “Satchel” Paige
The poor schmuck is not doing it on purpose.
Disturbing the guy’s sleep in hopes of obtaining some for yourself will do no one any good, as legions of snorer-beset spouses (spice?) can tell you.
I snore, I’m told, like an angry walrus in mating season. I have taken to using those nose strips that prop open your nostrils a little wider. They seem to work, though I can’t swear to it because, of course, I’m sleeping at the time. But my honey says they help, and in fact I find that it is more difficult to consciously make a snorting noise when I have one in place. Try getting your roommate to wear one.
By the way, this guy sounds like a perfect test subject to examine the truth of that old tale about putting someone’s wrist in warm water while they’re sleeping…
Daniel: The easiest way to deal with it is with a pillow. Simply place the pillow upon the snorer’s head. This should muffle the snores quite effectively. If not, simply apply light pressure upon the pillow until the snoring stops.
Now, in fact, pressure upon the pillow may cause a sharp upswing in snoring and snorting noises, as well as possible involuntary muscle reactions upon the part of the snorer (legs flailing, his hands attempting to grab at you, etc.). If so, do not panic, but continue to apply firm pressure to the pillow. Eventually, the snoring will stop, and you will get the first night’s sleep in a long, long time. And it will be the sleep of the just.
JMCJ
Just confirming that my ass is, in fact, the wisest part of my body.
