National Stop Snoring Week 2005 launched at the Royal Society of Medicine on April 18th along with the results of the survey, "Less Sex For Snorers... True or False?"
This year's National Stop Snoring Week 2005 was once again an overwhelming success. The theme for this year's event aimed to highlight how snoring can have a disruptive and detrimental effect on relationships and in particular our love lives. In the audience we saw doctors from a range of disciplines including ENT, Physicians & GPs, nurses, dentists, sleep researchers and a range of other health professionals, together with the press and members of the public. The launch attracted attention from as far afield as Australia, Russia, USA, India, Scandinavia and Holland with several news teams wanting to beam their stories across the world. Such is the impact that snoring has on our lives that it interests us all!
The Chairman, Dr Neil Stanley, Director of Sleep Research HPRU, University of Surrey, in his unique and pleasing manner, introduced the event and the speakers, and led the questions and answers session following the presentations. Neil is a fine raconteur and a leading authority in the world of sleep.
Key note speaker Professor Raj Persaud, Consultant Psychiatrist, delivered an informative and amusing presentation on how fragile our relationships can be and in particular the power struggles that are present within them. Raj highlighted that a particularly dominant partner may find it difficult to recognise that snoring is having a disruptive and negative effect on the relationship and to this end, he advises that we should all pay our partner at least 5 compliments per day in order to reassure our love for one another.
The second speaker, Robert Royston, Chief Clinical Scientist from the Royal National Throat, Nose, and Ear Hospital in London entertained the audience with his 'real-life' snoring sounds. If we didn't already know, Robert's demonstrations certainly gave us an insight into what some couples endure on a nightly basis. He explained that the sound pressure level of snoring at its worst can cause hearing loss to the snorer and the bed partner.
The last speaker, Marianne Davey, MSc, Director of the British Snoring & Sleep Apnoea Association presented the results of its recent research that confirmed couples regularly argue about snoring and that their relationships and especially their sexual relationships, would be better if snoring stopped. Additionally, snoring was the reason why couples said they 'hardly ever make love' and 80% of them sleep in separate rooms. Overwhelmingly, snoring couples said they wanted help to stop snoring.
The British Snoring & Sleep Apnoea Association provides information and advice on causes and treatments for these troublesome complaints. To obtain further information please contact 0800 085 1097.