Snoring is the noise created while breathing through the nose or the mouth, while we are sleeping. Most of us are unaware of the sounds we emit, while we snore. I have been told right from my childhood that at times,I snore when I am tired and sleep to rest.

It is interesting that people who snore are generally not aware of the sounds they emit and how it disturbs people around them. I was in denial till a family member recorded my snoring on video and showed it to me. I was quite surprised.

Today I was sleeping next to my daughter for an afternoon siesta. I could not sleep while she was snoring. Then, I realised how much I could be disturbing others while I do the same.

Snoring is generally involuntary and not in control of the person and the people who snore do not do it intentionally. But the impact snoring has on others ,is also not realised by the person since he/she is not aware of this phenomenon, when it actually happens.

Today I realised that there is a lot of similarity between snoring and ill behaviour. Just as people who snore are not aware of the noise they create as well as the impact on others around them, similarly the people who are ill behaved are not fully aware of the impact their bad behaviour has on others.

While snoring is involuntary, ill behaviour is not out of control, of the individual concerned. However just like individuals who snore are not aware , similarly sometimes people who behave badly are not aware of the impact they have on others.

Today I realised the impact of snoring on others when I experienced the noise and how it impacted my sleep. Similarly, if someone is able to show the mirror to the people, who are ill behaved through specific examples of their ill behaviour and the adverse impact it has on people around them, they may change their behaviour.

I can confess that I do snore even today occasionally ,especially when I am tired but I am fully aware of how I disturb others around me. Similarly I was quite short tempered during the early phase of my career and life. I learnt to gain patience from my father and also the feedback I got from my seniors at work and even my own family members. This made me realise that just like my snoring, my ill temper impacts people around me adversely.

While it may be difficult to control my snoring, it is possible to control my temper and improve my behaviour. Today I can say I am quite patient and lose my temper rarely. This has been possible mainly because of the mirror shown to me by own family members at home and colleagues at work.

It may be worthwhile to realise that what is involuntary like snoring, may be difficult to control but what is in our control , like our temper, is in our hands to regulate. We need to be aware of the impact our behaviour has on others and then be open to feedback. It is possible to change and control the same.

Let us begin today to control what we can like our temper and be aware of what we cannot like our snoring.

 

S Ramesh Shankar

13th Jan 2022