Joanna and her husband Jack Mazewski were happily married. Then their children were born. Then their jobs started to take a toll. Then suddenly, the couple was arguing every day. Their marriage was at the beginning of the end until they realized what was at the core of their issues: they were exhausted — literally. Jack snores so loudly, and although it hadn't bothered Joanna before the kids, with all the stress she could no longer take it.
"I became a light sleeper because you have a little more stress — two children, a mortgage, bills," Joanna told NBC. "I would end up waking him up in the middle of the night and then two of us weren't sleeping. The arguing would happen when we're not sleeping well."
So the couple made the decision to get a "sleep divorce." Every night, the pair sleeps in separate beds. As for their marriage? It's better than ever. While sleeping in separate beds once held a negative connotation for couples, now one in four couples sleeps separately. However, experts do suggest a few things before filing for a sleep divorce. Always preplan the sleeping arrangements, schedule time together in the waking hours, and if snoring is the issue, make sure it's not the sign of a more serious health issue.
"We don't say anything because people think, 'Oh, there's probably trouble in their marriage,'" said Joanna Mazewski. "But the fact of the matter is, we try to sleep in different beds so we avoid that trouble!"
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