British Snoring & Sleep Apnoea Association

HI everyone

I posted on here a few years back (actually, having looked it up, it was 2010- how time flies!). In the meantime I've done lots of things like moving house and so on so have been a bit distracted.

I was reminded of here after just having a hypnotherapy appointment for anxiety/depression where I suddenly realised I was snoring. I'm now going to not go back there because I'm too humiliated.

I saw my GP in 2010 who referred me to the hospital, where I felt humiliated again by it all. The doctor I saw first said it wasn't apnoea, and that I snore from my soft palate and tongue, and referred me for a jaw thingy.

I went to see the person about the mouth thing and I don't think I ever updated on that. It turned out he couldn't help me - I had to lie there while he moved my jaw around and make snoring noises, whcih I'm sure gave everyone there a good laugh, but it turns out that whatever position my jaw was in, nothing stopped it. No follow ups were given, I was just told 'there's nothing we can do'.

I'm really at a loss, are there any suggestions for anything else I can try? I have accepted that I can't ever have a relationship (it's oK, nobody wants me anyway, but I wouldn't even try) but I'm concerned that my children will find me embarrassing when they're older if they have friends/boyfriends/girlfriends to stay over.

It sounds so silly but I'm so permanently upset about this. I came out of the hypnotherapist today bright red and tearful with shame about it.

I hope you don't mind me coming back after 3 years, but I'm really lost.
Thank you

Don't mind you coming back at all
There is no need to be all red faced about snoring, the best of us snore, even if we don't know it.
I think you need to go back to your GP and ask what can be done to help now!
There is no reason why you can't have a relationship, others do.
Is your GP one of those that will listen or are they one of those that dismiss you because they can't be bothered with what appears trivial to them?
May be trivial to them, but to some snoring can be a BIG issue.

If they think you do not have Sleep Apnoea, what do they suggest to help with the snoring? I think you need to go back to your GP and ask the question. I also think a home sleep study might not be out of the question just to rule out OSA.
Go back to your GP and suggest this, just to rule it out if nothing else, then ask where you go from here.

Other thread = HERE

Hi Esiotrot and WELCOME BACK.

There is no reason why you should be made to put up with something that is upsetting you so much. Snoring is not a joke, and can wreak havoc with your self-esteem.

That said, I'm absolutely 100% certain that your hypnotherapist is really used to hearing his or her patients snore. It certainly proves that they are very relaxed, exactly as a hypnotherapist would wish to be able to do his or her work.

I think it's a matter of going back to the GP and explaining how much this has concerned you. Sleep2snore is spot on in suggesting what to do. However, I would add (and here I expect plenty of other folk to tell me off), be wary if surgery on your soft palate is proposed. Yes, it's true that it's the relaxation of muscles in the tissue of the soft palate and the vibration of this area by the incoming air that makes the snoring sound, but this op is usually unsuccessful a few years down the line, because the tissue grows back, and the problem recurs. (And yes, I'll probably get shouted at for saying that too!!).

Please pluck up the courage to go back to your GP, and do keep in touch.

No Alsa, I won't be shouting at you. I agree with you on that one.
The first thing my Sleep Consultant said was "Don't go for an operation if it is offered to you as the chances are it will not work, it will have limited sucess. If you do have an operation I may not be able to help you as CPAP might not work if the operation fails. Please do not go for an operation if it is offered.“
Appart from it being very painful (I am led to believe) I have read (even here I think) that it either didn't work or it only worked for a short while.
I spoke to someone at the Sleep Clinic that had it done and he would not recomend it. He went through a lot off pain, only to find he was back to where he started after a couple off years. However it must work for a limited few.

Back to the GP to see what options are open to you.

S2S

Hi Esiotrot,

I completely feel your pain, I went to see the ENT consultant who has said that he thinks my snoring is down to my tongue. However, even with my tongue out as far as it will go, I still make the snoring sound! I think it may be my soft pallette. I am having a sleep apnoea test later this week.

I cried the whole way home from my appointment as the ENT consultant suggested a mouth guard, which if it isn't my tongue/jaw, then it wouldn't work anyway! I just want it to stop. I am a 25 yr old female, not overweight at all, 6ft 1in and feel like a man most of the time, and the snoring makes it 100 times worse. I just want to feel feminine. I have never had a relationship which I put down to the snoring, following comments received. It is an absolute nightmare!

I would like to have my tonsils out to see if this will help a little, but the ENT said that they are not enlarged. But surely the less I have in my throat, the less noise I will make?!

Emma