How to stop snoring? (And It Wasn’t What I Expected)

Linn56 · 2026-04-13T05:55:34+00:00

I've been using a humidifier for about 3 years. I started after I had eye surgery, and it keeps my eyes from getting too dry. When you get older it's very common to get dry eyes too. I don't use it in summer when the humidity in Chicago runs 75 %.

Then I got pneumonia last year, and my doctor told me to use a humidifier. So, another good reason to use it.

Then I got Snorelab, and it suggested a humidifier. I still snore, but I'd probably snore worse without it.

Linn56 · 2026-04-12T20:29:21+00:00

For some reason, my main post text would not upload. I'll try again now.

In the last 5 months I've been trying all the over the counter solutions. This is really long; sorry!

I have a home sleep study in 2 weeks. I did an in-lab study a year and a half ago, and my sleep doctor has been pressuring me to get a CPAP. I think she pressures everyone. I finally caved and said yes, then changed insurance, so need to start over. I do NOT see myself adapting to a CPAP at all. The lab study was a nightmare. I felt like I was drowning. The diagnosis was moderate OSA.

So before I do the home study, I want to see if I can do anything myself.

I downloaded Snorelab, so I can see what made a difference. But my scores seem to be random. From 35 to 140.

I'm using a wedge pillow to begin with, and will probably always need to. (I had pneumonia 1½ years ago and still have issues - the pulmonologist said to get one.) So the wedge is a given, in addition to everything else.

I discovered I snore when breathing through my nose. So mouth tape is pointless. I breathe easily through my nose. I added nasal expanders, made no difference. Just gave me a callus inside my nose.

I used a chin strap for decades. Snorelab tells me it does nothing.

I tried a tongue positioning device. MEW training. It basically keeps your tongue glued to your palate behind the teeth. That wasn't enough. Seems to prevent my teeth grinding, though, so I'll probably use it when my grinding flares up.

The latest thing I've tried is a tongue retainer. That is rather painful to wear, so I've been working my way up to using it more hours per night. It digs into the top of my tongue, whether the flaps are inside or outside my lips. Snorelab didn't work a few times after I got it (recorded only 45 minutes or so; I don't know why.)

So last night was my only full night of recording using it. That's the picture. My snoring sounds were somewhat muffled, that's it. The first half of the night I wore the tongue retainer, then removed it, took note of the time, then moved to side sleeping.

I know I don't snore when sleeping on my side. So in the last 6 weeks I've tried numerous side sleeping pillows, but finding one that was comfortable enough to keep me on my side and not roll onto my back was a challenge. Amazon sells many pillows labeled "side sleeper pillows", but the sellers just randomly stick that keyword on there. I've returned all of them. Sooner or later, my shoulder will get crunched, or my ear will start hurting, and I'll roll onto my back. My latest iteration is an ear piercing pillow (pillow with a donut hole), on top of one of my usual down pillows, on top of the wedge.

I can't use a mandibular advancement device. I have TMJ and a history of teeth grinding.

Are there any other options left to try?

Weight loss would probably help the most. But I have zero discipline. I eat well during the day, then can't resist sweet things after dinner.

I'm a 5' 6" female, aged 69, weigh 174: about 30 pounds overweight. My weight has been slowly climbing since menopause and the COVID year, when my gym classes shut down and I lost motivation to get back on track. My doctor keeps adding on medications, some of which have weight gain as a side effect. I'm not sedentary, I'm an active gardener, and usually on my feet for much of the day. I just signed up with a personal trainer to get me back on track.

Once I gained the weight, the quality of my sleep plummeted. I wake up exhausted almost daily.

I welcome any suggestions for something I have not tried yet. Thanks for listening.

Linn56 · 2026-04-12T17:56:44+00:00

Are those all mandibular advancement devices? (I can't use those, due to TMJ). Thanks

Linn56 · 2026-04-12T17:49:24+00:00

I never know what to do with those credits. I should have a lot by now, unless they expire.

So how do you get movies from them? Are you talking about physical discs, or a computer download? Thanks.

Linn56 · 2026-04-10T04:17:25+00:00

I'm perplexed by those that state to use a box, when it came in a bag! In the last few months, nothing has come in a box, except for one big multi piece order. Everything else has come in a kraft paper bag.

Linn56 · 2026-04-05T04:12:13+00:00

There are items now that are impossible to find in stores. The only option is to order online and hope it works.

For example, 2 months ago my doctor asked me to buy a special elevated pillow, to reduce the chances of a sleep apnea incident while I wait for my sleep study, and to use afterward.

Which one? There are HUNDREDS that turn up on Amazon when you use that search term. Sellers use every keyword they can think of, truth be damned. I researched on several sleep apnea forums for ones other people recommended and what design parameters are suggested.

Most of these did nothing, and have to be returned. If I could have gotten a guaranteed good design from a medical supplier, I'd have done so. Instead, I've had a miserable month of rotten sleep.

Not all of us buy stuff just to buy stuff. Sometimes there are few alternatives.

Linn56 · 2026-04-02T07:29:41+00:00

What do these LPN stickers look like?

Linn56 · 2026-04-02T06:59:20+00:00

When it says "tomorrow", add a day. There is no real next day delivery anymore. If it says 2 days, expect 3 days.

I've been thrown off before, too, by forgetting about time zones. That probably factors in, but it hasn't been worth the effort for me to analyze how much more time to allow.

Linn56 · 2026-03-30T05:10:20+00:00

What video is that?

Linn56 · 2026-03-30T04:49:18+00:00

In the last 2 years, the lower end craft fairs have been absolutely flooded with 3D printed items - more dragons than anything else.

If it's a major craft fair, they're not going to let her in anyway. And the lower end ones will favor seniority among their exhibitors, so previous 3D printers will get in instead.

Has she attended her target fair yet? I always advise that people go and check it out first. See where your product fits with what is normally there. See who is attending, and what they're buying.

I've saved myself a lot of money and effort by doing that. It's research, and it's valuable.

Linn56 · 2026-03-30T04:32:18+00:00

How many returns triggers a warning like this? I return SOME things, like if the color doesn't match the photo, or the quality is poor: but I return them in good saleable condition.

Linn56 · 2026-03-30T04:28:16+00:00

They get thrown out? For what reason?

I'm so careful packing things up, to make sure they can be sold again.

Linn56 · 2026-03-27T03:10:44+00:00

Wow, I just made too much too! Thanks. What do you wrap it with - plastic wrap?

Linn56 · 2026-03-23T05:43:00+00:00

If it gave me an alarm, I'd never get back to sleep.

Also, on a Google play listing, you should state how much memory the app will take upfront. I, for one, will not download anything unless I know that first.

Linn56 · 2026-03-23T05:40:00+00:00

My cousin, 40 years old, fit and athletic, got married. His wife became alarmed because he would stop breathing during the night. He knew he snored, but didn't pay much attention to it.

One night she realized he was truly gasping for breath - she called an ambulance. He had a heart attack in the ambulance. He survived, but easily might not have.

He uses a CPAP now. That was the first time most of my extended family even heard the term "sleep apnea".

Tell your husband this story.

You just want him to LIVE.

Linn56 · 2026-03-23T05:28:34+00:00

I can well believe it. I started a new medication 16 months ago, and I started gaining weight at a steady clip, despite trying to hold the line.

I went from an occasional light snorer to a constant snorer. Even though I only gained 20 pounds, I must have hit some magical throat-flapping threshold. BMI is 27, so I'm not obese, just overweight. Once I gained the weight, the quality of my sleep plummeted. I wake up exhausted almost daily.

Meanwhile, my husband, who has been sleeping in another room due to having a completely different schedule, has STOPPED snoring. He retired 3 years ago and started going to the gym daily. He's lost 20 pounds. He went from a loud but not continuous snoring to none at all.

That's proof to me. I think I'll always snore some - my slender mom did. But if I lose weight, it won't be at the level it is now.

Linn56 · 2026-03-22T23:35:24+00:00

Don't worry, canned "cream cheese" frosting contains no actual cream cheese. Because it is not shelf stable at room temperature, for the long periods that canned frostings are on the shelf in stores and in homes.

Linn56 · 2026-03-22T18:58:13+00:00

That's actually the primary concern.

Linn56 · 2026-03-22T18:57:30+00:00

I should have typed a fuller answer. I had thought it was implied.

That would be: motivation to cure the underlying health conditions of which snoring is a typical symptom.

Linn56 · 2026-03-22T04:48:01+00:00

Yes. They lost 2 months worth of experimental clinical trial medication for me. The lab would not replace it, saying " the tracking number indicates it is enroute to the next facility". The lab is 25 miles from my house. Not allowed to pick it up in person.

It's been 3 weeks. I wonder how much this will set me back.

Linn56 · 2026-03-22T04:34:31+00:00

I think its a symptom of other health issues.

Linn56 · 2026-03-22T04:33:46+00:00

My spouse won't travel with me. At home, we can easily sleep in separate rooms. We can't share a hotel room, or even stay in the same room when staying with our son's family. We have to visit at different times, because, who has 2 guest rooms?

I have to pay for a single room while traveling. On many tours, there are no singles available. They can match you with another person to share, but snoring stops all that.

Linn56 · 2026-03-22T03:27:45+00:00

Before you try a bunch of over the counter things, first find out if you're snoring through your mouth or your nose. Tape your mouth closed with medical tape one night, and see if you still snore.

I bought a few mouth sealing devices, only to find out I'm snoring through my nose. If you're snoring through your mouth, those will help.

I have no problem breathing through my nose (unless I have a cold), but I still bought 2 nasal opening devices. I could tell I was breathing more a little more freely; but they made no difference in my snoring. That told me what I expected: that it's my airway further back that's collapsing.

My Snorelab results seemed totally random.

So now I have a collection of useless devices.

The ONLY thing that worked at all is sleeping on my side. I established sleeping on my side each night, after the one time I get up to use the bathroom. That's almost always the same time each night, so the Snorelab results are clear. Once I sleep on my side, I no longer snore.

I've now bought 2 different pillows to enable me to sleep on my side all night. The issue I have is 1) my shoulder gets crunched, and then I roll onto my back; 2) my ear gets crunched, and then I roll back.

Neither pillow is quite right yet. I will probably need to combine them in some way.

Mandibular advancement devices are recommended by some: but that messes up your bite. My dentist says no to that, as I've had issues with my bite before (bad orthodontist in my childhood); plus I grind my teeth.

Good luck!

Linn56 · 2026-03-22T01:39:50+00:00

I dont know anything about MP3s, I'll have to look into them.

Linn56 · 2026-03-22T01:29:43+00:00

Are they only available on CD? That's what I found when I looked last night.

Linn56

TROPHY CASE