People who snore may know that snoring indicates that the person has a medical time bomb with the fuse lit. We just do not know how long the fuse is!!

The bed partner of the one snoring will usually say, “It is irritating. I can’t fall asleep; I am lying next to my partner wondering, ‘when will I fall asleep with this racket?’” The noise level is usually like a chainsaw — 85 decibels. Some couples start sleeping in separate bedrooms — roughly 50 percent.

One study at Rush University Medical Center showed that a snoring partner can disturb their marital satisfaction. That study also found that there is a much higher rate of divorce for those couples. Snoring by itself is not dangerous; it is just terribly obnoxious. Could you sleep with a chain saw running in your bedroom? But is you stop breathing at night and snore, the snoring indicates a dangerous condition called obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) exists.

To find out whether the snoring is just annoying or is deadly, one needs to see a sleep specialist and get tested. So it may be time for a sleep study. The technicians in a sleep lab or the algorithm in a home sleep test unit look for disturbances in your sleep. If you stop breathing for a period of at least 10 seconds less than 5 times per hour of sleep, this is considered normal. But if this occurs more than 5 times per hour, it puts one at risk for cancer, stroke, sexual dysfunction, heart failure, sudden death, mood disorders, obesity, and malfunction in relationships as the above mentioned study suggests.

If it turns out that you stop breathing for that 10 seconds or longer (some stop breathing for over 100 seconds) over 5 times per hour of sleep, thank God you had the sleep test! Because snoring was actually an alarm for that time bomb in the heart.

Northwest Treatment Center for Snoring & Sleep Apnea in Coeur d’Alene offers you a free consultation to discuss your problem and possible treatment options. This may be just what you have been looking for so you can wake up refreshed and stay that way all day!

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Dr. Donald Johnson founded Northwest Treatment Center for Snoring & Sleep Apnea in Coeur d’Alene to help patients stop their snoring and live free with no limits! Obstructive sleep apnea is usually able to be treated with a small oral appliance. Dr. Johnson’s office is at 114 W. Neider Ave., near Costco. The website for more information is www.NWSleepDoc.com and the office phone is (208) 667-4551. Schedule a free consultation appointment today!