Dear Jaclyn and Heidi,
The finances are in place, the van is bought, and the open road beckons. It’s everything I have been dreaming of for the past decade or more … but there is one major fly in the ointment. My husband Jack is a serious snorer and I’m dreading sharing a bed with him again. We have been in separate rooms for the past 15 years and I have got used to my own space. The snoring was the catalyst for room move but, if I’m honest, I just enjoy not having him tossing and turning next to me, and fiddling with the light, and his watch, and the clock. Unhappy memories! I know I should have thought it all through when we ordered the van. Now, the grim – and imminent – reality is beginning to dawn. Earplugs just aren’t going to do the job. Help!
Janice
Oh dear, Janice. I’m afraid that however big your van is, there really is no place to hide when bed time comes. If you are used to having your own room, it is going to take some serious adjustment to get used sharing a van – let alone a bed – with Jack. But it is important that you recognise that this is not all one way traffic. Perhaps Jack isn’t thrilled about the prospect of being re-united with you when the lights go out! The important thing is that you both go into this new and exciting phase of your life with the right attitude. Talk about your concerns. Perhaps there are some new anti-snoring techniques you could try. You may have had separate bedrooms but you and Jack are still very much a team about to embark on the adventure of lifetime. The glass is a lot more than half full, Janice!
Jaclyn
I suppose it might be overkill to each tow your own caravans, but listening to – and feeling the vibrations from – a wheezing and snorting hubby night after night won’t qualify your Big Lap as a ‘dream trip’. If Jack’s snoring is as bad as you remember, you are facing countless trip-ruining sleepless nights. I’m sure you will have tried all the usual ‘remedies’ so you’re going to need to think outside the square. Is it feasible for Jack to sleep in the annexe on a self-inflating mattress? They make them quite comfortable these days. Or, if you haven’t got an annexe, maybe he could bring his own little tent. That way he could still spend his evenings in the van with you but, at bed-time, he could toddle off to his tent … hopefully well out of your hearing range.
Heidi
