snoring :(

SmrBrd2012

Hi all,

Not sure which board is the best to post this on but here goes.

H and I are having a serious issue with an upstairs neighbor. We live in an apartment building that was apparently not constructed very well as we can hear him snoring EVERY night. It wakes us up. Or if something else wakes us up, we can't get back to sleep. It is the most annoying sound. Sometimes you can even feel the vibration. His bedroom is directly above ours. Sometimes I have to sleep in the living room to get away from the sound and I can STILL hear him with a pillow over my head and the door shut! I've tried ear plugs but I can even hear him through those sometimes! And they fall out during the night so then I wake up anyway. I've also tried soothing (louder) sleep sounds apps on my phone but I can hear him through it. Ear buds don't stay in my ears. Before he moved in I almost never woke up during the night. Now it's almost every night. It's so frustrating and tiresome! Does anyone have any advice about this?

smbenevides1989

Talk to your neighbor about the issue. He may not know that this is a reoccurring issue. If you think there is something the landlord could do, talk to them. 

JemmaWRX

Get him Breathe Right strips for Christmas.

Seriously, it's a tough situation. I'm sure the guy is aware of the problem. You can't force him to seek medical care. I guess you can try talking to the landlord but I doubt if he/she will be able to do anything.

Sorry, that really sucks.

Janessadawn

Even if it is a medical problem, you have the right to be able to sleep in your own place. Most complexes have "quiet time" hours and I don't think snoring makes him exempt. Talk to your landlord--is there another unit in the complex in which you could move into? I realize it would be a pain to move, even within the same complex, but it's better than not being able to sleep. If it's bad enough to shake the room, he needs professional intervention. If your landlord refuses to do anything because it's snoring, go over their head. I once had to source the internet to find the contact information for my building's property management company, after 4 days w/o hot water and an unresponsive manager. I emailed the owner of the company and lo and behold, it got fixed.

radleyboo

Whoa.  If he is snoring this loudly, there is most likely some sort of medical issue going on.  Go up there WITH your husband (for safety's sake and for support) and have a conversation with him.

"Hi, Mr. Neighbor, I'm Susie Q and this is my husband, George Clooney.  We are your neighbors downstairs, nice to meet you.  We're coming to you because we're concerned about you and we're not sure you're aware of what's going on.  We've both been having difficulty sleeping because we've been hearing you snore quite loudly, even though we are downstairs.  Snoring can be normal and harmless, but because this is happening so loudly and so often, we thought we should bring it to your attention because it can indicate a serious medical issue."

Be kind, come from a place of caring, and see what his response is.  If he doesn't care or doesn't want to do anything, then contact the landlord and see about a potential move.  Good luck, these situations can be sticky.  

SmrBrd2012

Thanks for your advice everyone. We have thought about talking to him but just feel like not much will come of it. We also have a fair amount of crazy people living in our building so we try to minimize any interaction. It's not a bad idea to contact the property management team and see if they could move us to a new apartment but it's just so much work! We were hoping to buy a house and move in the next year so we aren't to keen on moving but it is so tempting! Thanks again, I guess we will see how desperate we get....I can't wait to own a single family home...At least when my husband snores I can roll him over on his side, lol.

Sillygirl45

 I don't know about speaking with him directly. That could be touchy. People can be really defensive. 

Before you try that, can you move your bedroom to make it more tolerable? H and I sleep with a really loud air purifier. When we were in our condo we didn't hear anything. Funny aside, when I bought it, I avoided all the ones that advertised they were "whisper quiet". It's certainly louder than white noise on the iPhone. You could also try a really loud fan. It took me a bit to get used to, but H was used to sleeping with the tv on and there was no way I could sleep like that.

I doubt the landlord can do much about it. This really sucks. Sorry! I do also second the Breethe Right strips for Christmas!

WendyGR

Two words: ear plugs.

SmrBrd2012

WendyGR said:

Two words: ear plugs.

I did mention ear plugs in my post...

SmrBrd2012

Our apartment is small and a 1 bedroom. So not so much! I've been thinking about a fan but that sound actually bugs me too. I guess I'll have to learnt o deal with some noise because anything is better than the sound of snoring. Well...almost anything

WendyGR

Get the industrial kind. There is definitely a difference.

SmrBrd2012

Any recs? The industrial ones I've seen are like the ones below which I can't imagine sleeping comfortable with.

http://www.earplugstore.com/inhearprot.html

Kimbus22

Honestly I don't think you can do anything about it.  If he's snoring THAT loud, he knows it.  You can't force him to get a CPAP for sleeping.  And yeah, apartments have noise rules but this sounds more like the equivalent of when you live in a poorly constructed building and ANY walking by your upstairs neighbors sounds like a heard of elephants.  Yes, you have a right to quiet but they have a right to perform normal life activities in their space as well.  Not their fault that building is poorly constructed.

I'd ask to switch apartments or move when my lease is up.

WendyGR

SmrBrd2012 said:

Any recs? The industrial ones I've seen are like the ones below which I can't imagine sleeping comfortable with.

http://www.earplugstore.com/inhearprot.html

DH and I use these http://www.earplugstore.com/foearplinlaq.html (the kind that you roll in your fingers, insert, and they expand) when traveling. They have kept out snoring, roosters, and even loud discotec parties just outside our hotel window.

Mrs.Rad888

Have you tried a sound machine? You said a fan bothers you, if it's the sound, I can commiserate, because I hate the sound of white noise as well. But I have one that I got from Brookstone that has many different sounds in addition to white noise. I need the sound machine due to ringing in my ears and also sometimes it's hard to stop your mind from running. I really have a hard time getting to sleep without my sound machine. We've lost power twice in the last month, and the silence really emphasizes the ringing in my ears.

hutchsl

I used to leave the a/c or heater fan on all the time as white noise so i could sleep.

Onceinalovetime

I will admit, I seriously giggled when I read that you can feel the vibration from it. That's nuts. I'm on board with speaking to him or maybe somebody else that lives in the apartment with him?

rayraex

Noise canceling headphones?