Click to play videoLondon: If your spouse snores you know how tough it can be to get a good night's sleep.
Peter and Britt Poole have been happily married for little over a year.
And Peter’s snoring was so bad that he couldn't sleep at night.
Peter, like maybe four per cent of all middle-aged men, suffers from obstructive sleep apnea, according to sleep experts.
Those who suffer from sleep apnea have a narrow airway and as they snore they eventually stop breathing.
"I just thought I was supposed to be constantly tired all the time. I guess that was just natural or that was just a part of being an adult,” says Peter.
Three months ago, Peter’s doctor gave him a hi-tech mask.
The mask forces pressurised air through the mouth and nose.
And Peter says that it has greatly reduced his apnea. "It is a bit Hannibal Lector looking, but it’s actually quite comfortable,” he says.
The mask maybe comfortable but it is not cheap. It costs about $800 and Britain’s state-run health care system paid for Peter’s mask.
Now the country's health watchdog says it may recommend the National Health Service (NHS) to foot the bill for the masks for thousands of British snorers who need them.
And that may also generate flack from those who say the health service - constantly criticised for inefficiency - could better spend public money.
However, one of the country's top sleep experts disagrees.
"You can have a hip replacement that's paid for by the NHS. This is a disease like any other - it can transform people's lives."
Peter and Britt also joke that the mask has transformed his life - and saved their marriage.
When Britt wants to make an apple pie now, he is not too tired to help in the kitchen instead of snoring on the couch.
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