“Laugh and the world laughs with you. Snore and you sleep alone” – It’s true, those funny snoring sounds surely help people pass the time with a few rounds of jokes with their colleagues. But alas, it is quite a serious problem affecting both, the snorer and the person subjected to it. If one thinks about it thoroughly, snoring could actually be a red signal of a health issue. For instance, sleep apnea could very well manifest through excessive snoring.
Hence, snoring shouldn’t just be brushed aside as a joke and must be addressed with severity. Whether you are snoring yourself or have a person next to you snoring, the ultimate result is disturbed sleep, which leaves one feeling tired and frustrated.
Also Read: Ayurveda For Sleep Apnea: Natural Remedies To Cease Snoring And Ensure A Deep Slumber
So, What Exactly Is Snoring?
Snoring can be defined as the hoarse or harsh sound that occurs when air flows past, relaxed, narrowed tissues in the throat, causing the tissues to vibrate as you breathe. The narrower the airway, the more the tissue vibrates, and the louder the snoring.
Also Check-out: 5 Easy Fixes To Stop Snoring -Infographics
What Causes Snoring?
Right from stress, obesity, genetics, sinus problems, circulatory problems, poor dietary habits, smoking, alcohol consumption, large tongue or tonsils or age in general, snoring can occur due to multiple factors.
Regardless of the cause, snoring chiefly leads to lack of good quality sleep, sleep apnea or temporary cessation of breathing. It can even cause sore throat, gasping and choking due to irregular or obstructed breathing. There is also an increased susceptibility to chronic diseases like hypertension and stroke. Some people have even reported, anger, irritability, inability to focus and reduced libido as some of its side-effects.
Nowadays, snoring can very well be treated with different types of patches, devices, medications and even rectified through surgery. But in case you want a natural remedy sans any side-effects, let Yoga be your saviour. Certain yogic postures and pranayamas have very well proven to be effective since times immemorial. They not only improve lung capacity, help in weight management, but also keep the air passages open and manage stress and other anxiety issues
We bring you a set of five super-beneficial yoga postures that help treat snoring right at home
Yoga Poses To Control Snoring
Bhujangasana (Cobra Pose)
Lie flat on your stomach and place your head on the ground. Keep both your hands on either side of your shoulders. Slowly, put pressure on your palms and lift your body up from the torso while stretching your back and belly muscles. Straighten out your arms and keep your shoulder blades pressed against your back. Fix gaze at a point on the ceiling and hold this posture for about 15-30 seconds and exhale as you return to the starting position.
Benefits:
The Cobra pose is one such yogasana that helps in managing a lot of health anomalies in one go. Not only does it open the chest, throat and nose cavities but also widens lung airways and regulates oxygen flow in the body. With time, this pose reduces snoring and improves sleep.
Dhanurasana (Bow Pose)
Lie flat on your stomach and raise both the legs and torso backward. Extend your arms backward and grasp both the feet with your hands. Hold this position for as long as possible and keep inhaling normally. Return to the starting position and repeat the asana for 5-6 times.
Benefits:
The Bow pose is pivotal in opening up the neck and chest and allows deeper inhalation and exhalation. It can also have a calming, relaxing effect, which may help one mitigate stress, anxiety and fatigue and help in managing snoring.
Bhramari Pranayama
Sit in the comfortable, Sukhasana or Padmasana posture. Close the ears with your thumbs, while placing index fingers on either sides of eyebrows on the sinuses. Now place the rest of the three fingers on eyes with the tips pressing slightly on the nostrils. Take a deep inhalation and make a humming sound chanting the mantra ‘Om’ while exhaling Repeat it for 5 to 10 times.
Benefits:
The posture is named Brahmari Pranayama since it mimics the sound of a bee while practicing. It is one of the best poses for treating snoring as it not only helps relieve anger and tension but also reduces blood pressure and helps increase concentration. This posture is also beneficial for helping with panic attacks at night that prevent sleeping.
Ujjayi Pranayama
Sit in the Padmasana or legs crossed, i.e., Sukhasana posture. Breathe in and out of nose gently and make sure your lips are closed tightly. Ensure that you do not let any breath escape through the mouth and even as you do this, you can feel a little constriction in throat, as if you are breathing in and out of a thin straw. Try not to clench the teeth, jaw, throat regions. Repeat this for 5 to 10 minutes for 3 times with 1 minute break in between.
Benefits:
It is one of the most calming postures that effectively helps in strengthening the muscles of the throat and face. Additionally, it also helps regulate sleep patterns, calms the mind and controls snoring while asleep.
Anulom Vilom Pranayama
Sit down comfortably in the Padmasana posture. Hold your right nasal with the thumb and slowly inhale through the left nostril. Next, open the right nasal and close your left nasal with both middle and ring fingers, even as you breathe for 15 seconds. Next, close your right nasal and open left, breathe out and in from left nasal. Repeat it 5 to 6 times.
