Lybrate Logo
Get the App
For Doctors
Login/Sign-up
Last Updated: Jan 10, 2023
BookMark
Report

Night Time Cough - 5 Tips to Manage it

Profile Image
Dr. Jatin SoniGeneral Physician • 22 Years Exp.MBBS
Topic Image

Coughing during the night can really wreak havoc for your sleep and cause inexplicable discomfort in the throat and chest region. Thankfully, you can manage it by soothing your tickling throat as well as sensitive airways before you go to bed at night. 

  1. Drink herbal tea: A mugful of non-caffeinated tea mixed with a teaspoon of honey before going to bed can help you to a considerable extent. This is because any warm liquid has the power to break down the formation of mucus in the throat region and with a bit of honey, the herbal tea becomes even more powerful.
  2. Try to sleep in an inclining position: Gravity is your greatest enemy while combating night-time cough. When you lie down flat on your back at night, all the mucus and dust particles, which you have swallowed all through the day, would accumulate in the throat area and aggravate it making more cough. But you can easily defy gravitational force by piling up some pillows and prop yourself on them while sleeping. You may also keep a wooden block of 4 inches height under your head, which would keep the acids in the stomach so that they don’t come up to irritate your throat.
  3. Make sure you use the steam cautiously: When your airways are dry, it can make you cough harder. Therefore, you may find relief if you take a warm shower or a bath before going to bed. But you have to be sure that you don’t have asthma as steam can prove harmful for you.
  4. Check the level of humidity: Humidifiers are known to soothe the problem of persistent coughing when the surrounding air is dry. But too much of moisture during the night can also make you cough. This is because dust mites, mold and other allergens thrive well in the damp air and they could conspire to make your cough even worse. So, pick up a cheap hygrometer from a hardware store and see that the humidity level stays within 40 to 50 percent.
  5. Equip yourself at night: Keep all the things from drops to water to cough syrup or anything that soothes coughing at your bedside so that you can help yourself in case you wake up in the middle of the night and start coughing.

By following these few tips every day, you can manage the night time cough and have a good night’s sleep without any interruptions. If you wish to discuss about any specific problem, you can consult a doctor and ask a free question.

chat_icon

Ask a free question

Get FREE multiple opinions from Doctors

posted anonymously
doctor

Book appointment with top doctors for Cough treatment

View fees, clinc timings and reviews
doctor

Treatment Enquiry

Get treatment cost, find best hospital/clinics and know other details