7 Tips to Handle a Snoring Spouse

Posted on May 8, 2019 by Frostie

Research has found that around 37 million adult Americans snore regularly, which means there are many partners and spouses out there that are struggling to get a good night’s sleep. While being a snorer can massively disrupt your quality of sleep, it can impact your partner’s sleep as well. If you have ever slept in the same room as someone who snores, then you will know how impossible it can be to get some shut eye when lying next to a snorer.

Having a partner who snores can cause you serious exhaustion and fatigue, which can be damaging to both your physical and mental health. Not getting enough sleep can cause you a huge range of issues, including anxiety, memory loss, weight gain, and a drop-in productivity. Therefore, if your partner snores in the night, it is important that you address the issue before it causes any additional health or relationship problems.

Snoring occurs when someone who is sleeping cannot freely move air between their nose and throat, which causes tissues to vibrate and creates the snoring noise we have all become familiar with. However, there are ways to help your partner if they do snore and by using these helpful tips you can handle a snoring spouse and once again enjoy a good night’s sleep!

Get a Bigger Bed

The more space between you and your partner when they are snoring the better. Therefore, by investing in a bigger bed you can have more room and be further away from your partner’s face when they start to snore. When sleeping in a bigger bed, you can also build a wall of pillows between you and your partner’s head to block some of the noise from coming your way while you are trying to sleep.

Getting a bigger bed and investing in a new mattress that you find more comfortable is a great way to help you fall asleep quicker and stay asleep for longer, even if you do have a snoring spouse next to you.

Try Anti-Snoring Strips

You should consider asking your spouse to try anti-snoring strips to combat their disruptive noises throughout the night. Get them to use anti snoring strips, provided by SomniFix, as these can reduce open-mouth snoring and improve nasal breathing abilities. They are an affordable and effective alternative to other mouth taping options that offer a breathing vent that allows for mouth breathing if needed.

Roll Them Over

You may find that your partner snores due to their position when they are sleeping. If this is the case, you should spend some time trying to discover which positions are more likely to make your partner snore. Some people are more likely to snore when they are lying on their back so you should try to encourage your partner to sleep on their side instead. You can also use pillows to help prop them up on their side and stop them from flipping onto their back while they sleep.

However, if you and your partner are determined to sort out their snoring problem, you may want to take things a step further and consider using the ping pong ball trick. This is where you sew a ping pong ball to the inside of the top that your partner wears to sleep. This will make lying on their back (and the ping pong ball) very uncomfortable, which will naturally make them roll onto their side.

Be Patient

You should try and remember to remain patient with your partner and bear in mind that they can’t help the snoring that keeps you up all night. People can get very embarrassed about their snoring habits, which can cause problems in the relationship. It is very natural to get frustrated and annoyed with your partner when their snoring keeps you awake at night, and the sleep deprivation kicks in, but try to be understanding about your partner’s snoring and empathize with their condition. Instead, focus on trying to work on the issue together as a couple instead of letting it drive a wedge between you.

Encourage Them to Exercise

Research has shown that exercising can help those who snore, as having extra weight around your neck can cause your throat to narrow, and make you snore louder. Therefore, you should try to encourage your spouse to exercise if they could do with losing some weight. Being overweight can make a snoring problem worse, so losing excess weight can help improve the situation.

Suggest exercises that you can do together, such as brisk walking or jogging, as this can be a great way for you both to bond, get in a shape, and be so tired in the evenings that your spouse snoring isn’t as much of an issue anymore. Anything that your spouse enjoys, and is willing to stick to, is worth trying though.

Drown Out the Noise

If you’ve tried all of the above and nothing has worked, or if you feel uncomfortable bringing up the issue with your spouse, investing in a pair of earplugs may be the best solution. You should shop around for a pair of earplugs that fit your ears well, as if they are uncomfortable, this will only make getting a good night’s sleep even more difficult.

While using earplugs may feel weird at first, you will soon become accustomed to them and they can be a great way to block out the noises coming from your snoring spouse.

Go to the Doctors

If you and your partner have tried everything to no avail, your last option is to book a doctor’s appointment. You may find that your spouse’s snoring is due to a medical condition and healthcare professionals may be able to shed some light on how to solve the problem.

While having a partner that snores can be frustrating and disruptive to your daily life, you should try to be as understanding as possible and focus on solving the issues as a couple, so it doesn’t cause any additional relationship problems.

Upcoming Books: The Switching Hour by Damaris Young

Posted on May 8, 2019 by Frostie

A bewitchingly beautiful, spine-chilling story of courage, friendship and fears that come alive after dark… Never stay out after the Switching Hour… never let the outside in… Amaya lives with her grandmother, her small brother Kaleb and her pet goat Tao in a land suffering a terrible drought. Every night, the doors must be locked after twilight, the Switching Hour, because the drought has awoken Badoko, a creature that snatches people away to eat their dreams. Three days later, the memory that they existed is gone from those that knew them, and those that are left are afflicted with The Sorrow Sickness – a grief which consumes a person without them knowing why. When Kaleb is taken by Badoko, Amaya must journey into the terrifying forest to find her brother before she forgets him.

Out on August 1st. Available here.

I am a Freelance Working Mother and This is What it is Like

Posted on May 7, 2019 by Catherine Balavage

Hello there from the trenches of working motherhood. I am a freelance writer and editor with two children under three. Today I feel faintly refreshed after having a few hours sleep last night. I get asked a lot what it is like being a freelance writing mother so I want to take you through my week. I will also update you as time goes on. Welcome to my world.

Last week my son was ill and not in nursery. He goes to nursery part-time. Three hours five days a week. Thankfully it is a nursery in a state school so is free. Unlike his previous nursery which cost over £1600 a term. Anyway, back to the point. So my son was ill, my daughter had a little cold and the freelance Gods thought this would be a good time for me to get a lot of work. I find as a freelancer that I get a lot of work all at once, or barely any. I make more money at the beginning of the year than I do the end. So my son was ill, I had no childcare and the baby was not sleeping at night. Even more than usual. Now, she doesn’t sleep anyway. She is sixteen months old and has slept though the night once. So I am one tired mama. And as usual, everything was happening at once.

I got a lot of work, hundreds of emails to go through, this mag to run and a million other things to do. It is full on and stressful. I would not want it any other way but I would quite like a spa day. To top it off my husband went off to Scotland for two days on a work trip. I swear, I do not know how single mothers do it. Both children were up all night and I ended up shaking from head to toe in my bed from the exhaustion. I get people telling me to just take it easy when it comes to my work, or to quit. It infuriates me. No one tells me to not be up all night with the baby, or to not do domestic crap, but doing something for myself and continuing to work on my career? Yeah, let’s give up the thing that keeps me sane.

In December I passed a writing course I was doing. It was intense and stressful doing it while looking after two children but I now have the certificate. The sense of pride and accomplishment always makes it worthwhile. I love working. There are many benefits to work other than money. There is the social aspect, the accomplishment, the contribution to society and the world as a whole. Work is important so I will carry on. Even when it means keeping one eye on the children while working on my computer.

I wrote my first novel by putting my son in the pram and walking until he fell asleep. I would then write two thousand words. Every day. No excuses. It worked and that is the thing about being a freelance working mother. You find what works and then you do it. It leaves you with valuable skills. I would not give it up for anything. I hope you find some of the upcoming posts helpful. Feel free to comment and you can email me at frostmagazine at gmail.com

Mother: An Unconventional History By Sarah Knott

Posted on May 7, 2019 by Catherine Balavage

Mother: An Unconventional History By Sarah Knott is a unique and fascinating book. An intoxicating blend of history, autobiography and anthropology. I loved it and read through it as quickly as possible. It brings women from every social class and time together. Essential reading for all mothers.

What was mothering like in the past?

When acclaimed historian Sarah Knott became pregnant, she asked herself this question. But accounts of motherhood are hard to find. For centuries, historians have concerned themselves with wars, politics and revolutions, not the everyday details of carrying and caring for a baby. Much to do with becoming a mother, past or present, is lost or forgotten.

Using the arc of her own experience, from miscarriage to the birth and early babyhood of her two children, Sarah Knott explores the ever-changing habits and experiences of motherhood across the ages. Drawing on a disparate collection of fascinating material – interrupted letters, hastily written diary entries, a line from a court record or a figure in a painting – Mother vividly brings to life the lost stories of ordinary women.

From the labour pains felt by a South Carolina field slave to the triumphant smile of a royal mistress pregnant with a king’s first son; from a 1950s suburban housewife to a working-class East Ender taking her baby to the factory; from a pioneer with eight children to a 1970s feminist debating whether to have any; these remarkable tales of mothering create a moving depiction of an endlessly various human experience.

Available here.

Parenting is Not a Spectator Sport

Posted on May 3, 2019 by Catherine Balavage

Dear readers: rant alert.

Sitting in a cafe I am trying to relax but I cannot. There is a group of older women staring and talking about me and my two young children. Occasionally they point or make a gesture. I am fuming. Who the hell do they think they are? A few weeks later the same thing happens. And then again, and again. You see, there are people who think that a women (or even a man, I am sure) taking care of her children, or, God Forbid, relaxing while they play with a toy or colour in, is a spectator sport. Some kind of zoo animals to watch and make comments about. If it has been an isolated incident it would have been fine. Just a table full of rude women who think they can loudly talk about us and stare. The entertainment of the afternoon. Do not get me wrong. People are not always being insulting. They are mentioning how cute the children are, talking about what they are doing. Asking questions or talking about their own experiences. But that does not make it okay. We are taught at a young age that staring is rude, because it is. We are taught at a young age that talking about people is rude. As is pointing at people. So why do people think they have carte blanch when it comes to little children and their parents?

I remember being on holiday once when the two women at the next table made nasty comments all through our meal that our baby son should be in bed. It was 7pm and the first day of our holiday. When they had finished their food they came over and cooed over my infant son. Making nice comments and saying he was gorgeous. This after bitching for hours and ruining our meal. Once in the Waitrose Cafe I had two women turn their chairs around to stare at us. I was enjoying myself and my children were behaving. A rare moment of peace. I gave them an evil look, downed my drink and left. Full of rage. Being a parent is hard. Any downtime that is taken from you feels like a theft.

We seem to live in a world where it is becoming harder for people to mind their own business. The truth is: I am sick of being nice to these people. I have been so British about it and just ignored it. Occasionally I have given a look at the very rude people. The ones who do not get the message. Being the bigger person is emotionally and physically draining. So I think that the next people who want to stare at my family and/or make comments will be told where to go. Only when people get called out on their behaviour do they think about what they are doing. Hell, they may even change and become more polite. It is worth a chance.

Has this ever happened to you?

How to Raise Successful People: Simple Lessons for Radical Results Esther Wojcicki

Posted on May 1, 2019 by Catherine Balavage

Being a parent is complicated – but the trick to succeed is simpler than you think.

It would be an understatement to say that parenting is hard. It is, by far, the hardest thing I have ever done. It is also the most wonderful and rewarding. But that is another story. I was interested when How to Raise Successful People: Simple Lessons for Radical Results by Esther Wojcicki arrived at Frost HQ. I do not tend to read parenting books. This one comes with some good credentials. Esther Wojcicki- known as Woj- has three wildly successful daughters: YouTube CEO Susan Wojcicki, 23andMe Co-Founder and CEO Anne Wojcicki and Fulbright Scholar and professor of Paediatrics at UCSF Janet Wojcicki. So far so impressive. Woj is a teacher and has taught many children to reach their full potential. She is certainly well-connected and a lot of what she says is spot on. Woj says that we tend to parent the way we were parented. Making the same mistakes as our parents is damaging to our children. We need to learn how to break the cycles of negativity and bad parenting. How To Raise Successful People is a brilliant book. It should be on the bookshelf of every parent. That does not mean I agree with it all. Woj thinks it is easy to put children to sleep. It is not, and if she disagrees she can come and take care of my daughter for a couple of nights. She also says people should stay married. Even forgiving infidelity. I think staying in a bad marriage is more harmful to children than getting divorced. We have come a long way from women having to stay in bad marriages because they have no rights and no freedom. That said, I did find so much excellent stuff in this book that I do not mind the occasional disagreement. Such is life, after all.

There are no Nobel Prizes for parenting or education, but if there were, Esther Wojcicki would be the bookies’ favourite. Known as the Godmother of Silicon Valley – or simply Woj – Esther’s three daughters have all gone on to huge success in their professional fields and, more importantly, their personal lives. What’s her secret?

As we face an epidemic of parental and childhood anxiety, Woj has the advice every parent wants to hear: climb out of that helicopter and relax.

Her tried and tested TRICK system will help you:

· Let your child discover their own passions
· Move on from past parenting mistakes
· Build rock-solid foundations for a lifelong relationship
· Be brave enough to give your child freedom
· Work with your children, not against them
· Set healthy relationships with technology

Your children are the future. If you change your parenting, you can change the world.

How to Raise Successful People: Simple Lessons for Radical Results by Esther Wojcicki is available here.

You Got This by Bryony Gordon Book Review

Posted on April 25, 2019 by Catherine Balavage

You Got This is a truly fabulous book for teenage girls. Being a teenager is hard, and being a teenage girl even more so. It is a time I would not want to go back to. Especially with all of the toxic message girls get now. The rise of social media has also caused problems. This brilliant book from the amazing Bryony Gordon covers periods, comparisons and has a fantastic chapter letting teenage girls know they are not snowflakes, but are instead brave people who are standing up for equality on the basis of gender and race. I am so sick of the word ‘snowflake’. The generation who calls out racism and sexism anytime they see it are not ‘sensitive’. They are brave and making the world a better place. This book also covers mental health extensively which is to be commended. The mental health of our children is so important and educating them about mental health is essential. I also loved the bit on how girls are taught to compare themselves to others. This book is fun, smart, entertaining and full of everything I wish I had been told when I was a teenager. Absolutely brilliant.

I wanted to be a unicorn. I wanted to be a lawyer. I wanted to be an astronaut.

But the thing I really wanted to be more than anything else, was a little less like me.

It was only recently that I realised not wanting to be me was at the heart of every dumb decision I ever made. And so now I am writing this book containing all the life lessons I wish someone had taught me.

A book for the teenage girl in me. And for every teenage girl out there. Because the most powerful thing you can be when you grow up is yourself.

You Got This is available here.

The Moment of Lift By Melinda Gates Book Review

Posted on April 24, 2019 by Catherine Balavage

The Moment of Lift: How Empowering Women Changes the World

Melinda Gates is the perfect example of an extraordinary woman who does not get the credit she deserves because she just happens to be married to a rich, famous man. It would be easy to dismiss her on the basis of privilege, and many people do. But to judge a woman by her husband is sexist. Melinda Gates stands as a giant in her own right. She has done so much for women’s rights and to make the world a better place. Her new book, The Moment of Lift, should be read by every single person in the world. Then the world would be a better place for everyone. Full of blistering facts and, yes, some harrowing tales; The Moment of Lift is a call to action. The book is powerful and puts up the fights for women’s rights. I hear that women have never had it so good a lot, and yet there is still so much to be done. I challenge anyone to read this book and not be inspired. When you read it you want to do something. The book covers so many aspects of gender bias: from FGM, contraception and inequality at home. Even the fact that most women do most of the domestic work is in here, and so it should be. Only recently was childcare and domestic world including by economists when it came fo GDP. Women’s work has been largely invisible and, in many ways, still is. Melinda also writes about herself and her marriage in this book. She is honest and brave. Her voice is in this book and so is her strength. It is powerful stuff. This book is essential reading and gets Frost’s Gold Standard stamp of approval. Only the second thing so far to do so.

A debut from Melinda Gates, a timely and necessary call to action for women’s empowerment.

“How can we summon a moment of lift for human beings – and especially for women? Because when you lift up women, you lift up humanity.”

For the last twenty years, Melinda Gates has been on a mission to find solutions for people with the most urgent needs, wherever they live. Throughout this journey, one thing has become increasingly clear to her: If you want to lift a society up, you need to stop keeping women down.

In this moving and compelling book, Melinda shares lessons she’s learned from the inspiring people she’s met during her work and travels around the world. As she writes in the introduction, “That is why I had to write this book – to share the stories of people who have given focus and urgency to my life. I want all of us to see ways we can lift women up where we live.”

Melinda’s unforgettable narrative is backed by startling data as she presents the issues that most need our attention – from child marriage to lack of access to contraceptives to gender inequity in the workplace. And, for the first time, she writes about her personal life and the road to equality in her own marriage. Throughout, she shows how there has never been more opportunity to change the world – and ourselves.

Writing with emotion, candour, and grace, she introduces us to remarkable women and shows the power of connecting with one another.

When we lift others up, they lift us up, too.

The Moment of Lift is available here.

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