What Sleeping in Separate Beds Can Mean for Your Relationship

More couples are sleeping in separate beds than before, an increase to nearly 25 percent, double the percentage 15 years ago. From playing bed sheet tug-of-war with your partner to trying to drown out his or her loud snoring, resorting to sleeping on the couch doesn’t seem like a bad idea. But before you consider sleeping apart from your bed partner, you should try some of these sleep solutions:

Is your partner a loud snorer?

If your bed partner’s loud snoring is keeping you up late at night, try rolling him or her over onto his or her side. Snoring is caused by a disruption in airflow due to narrowed pathways, so rolling your bed partner over or reducing the amount of alcohol or snacks before bed can sometimes help. Snoring can also be a sign of sleep apnea, a serious and common sleeping condition that causes breathing to stop at night. However, if your partner’s snoring isn’t a serious health condition but is persistent, try using a pair of foam earplugs to block out the sound.

Do you and your partner prefer different sleeping temperatures?

The ideal temperature for sleep ranges from 60 to 65 degrees Fahrenheit, but some individuals might like it warmer or cooler. To help prevent your partner from hogging or kicking away the covers at night, try having your own set of covers. If each of you have your own blanket, you’ll be less likely to steal them from each other. Sometimes, your partner’s body heat might be to blame. You could invest in a larger bed so that you’ll be farther away from your partner when it’s time for bed make his or her body heat less of a problem.

Is his or her tossing and turning waking you up?

Investing in a memory foam mattress can reduce movement during bedtime. When there are no coil springs involved, the bounciness of the bed is greatly diminished, so when your partner moves in his or her sleep, you’ll be less likely to notice. A larger bed is a quick solution too. If you and your bed partner are sleeping on a full-sized bed, that gives each of you the same amount of space as a baby’s crib! Get a queen-sized mattress or larger, and you will no longer have to sleep in what seems like a moon bounce. Tossing and turning can also be a sign of restless leg syndrome, a sleeping disorder that causes uncontrollable twitching and kicking. If that could be the case, contact a sleep specialist for treatment.

If you decide that sleeping in separate beds is the only solution to you and your bed partner’s sleeping conflicts, be sure to communicate with him or her before sleeping in a separate room or on the couch. Leaving your bed partner without telling him or her how you feel might lead to resentment and feelings of abandonment. If you do decide to sleep separately, be sure to make time for intimacy and make your relationship a priority.