Malaysian husband who went from 78 kg to 65 kg says he lost weight so his ‘wife could sleep next to him’

Timothy Tiah from Malaysia lost weight to stop his snoring, which had driven his wife to sleep in a separate room. He managed to shed 13 kg.

For many, the motivation for losing weight comes from various places: it may be because they want to be fit, stay in the best shape, or reduce their risk of developing chronic diseases. For a Malaysian man, the reason was that he wanted his wife to sleep next to him.

Timothy Tiah, a married man from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, revealed how his wife became the motivation for him to lose weight as she stopped sleeping next to him in an Instagram post shared on September 20. “I didn’t lose weight for abs. I lost it because my wife couldn’t sleep next to me anymore,” he shared in the post.

‘My wife developed sleep anxiety…moved into another room’

Sharing his story, the Malaysian man, who went from 78 kg to 65 kg, revealed that at the peak of his weight, although he was still exercising, he always ended up eating like a ‘teenage boy whose parents went missing and he just discovered buffets.’ The result: “I unlocked a new skill: industrial-grade snoring.”

According to Timothy, his snoring was so bad that it wasn't ‘cute snoring’, rather it sounded more like: “Darth Vader without the mask. A Harley Davidson revving indoors. Basically... surround sound suffering.”

This ultimately led to a fallout between him and his wife. He confessed that his snoring led to his wife developing sleep anxiety. “Eventually, she moved into another room. That hit me. Marriage vows said: 'For better or worse. Not: ‘For better or in separate bedrooms’.”

The solution

At first, the man tried mouth taping and ENT nose sprays, which helped a bit, but he still sounded like a Harley at 2 AM. “Nothing fully worked.” Eventually, he ended up going to an ENT specialist, Dr James Kok. “He told me my snoring could be linked to sleep apnea, which may increase long-term risks. My options were: Lose some weight or sleep every night with a CPAP (aka the Darth Vader mask).”

So, he chose weight loss, and it worked. “Now, my snoring went from stadium speaker to sleeping cat. The unexpected benefit: My wife sleeps again, and for the first time in 10 years, she even complimented my thigh muscles. She hasn't touched my thigh in TEN YEARS,” he revealed.

Timothy credited weight loss for fixing marriages. “I didn't lose weight for a six-pack. I lost it so my wife could sleep next to me again. Love > abs. Not everyone wants to diet or exercise. If you snore, get yourself checked,” he recommended.

Are snoring and weight gain related?

In an interview with HT Lifestyle, Dr Aparna Govil Bhasker, a consultant bariatric and laparoscopic surgeon at Saifee Hospital, Mumbai, pointed out that obesity can lead to sleep apnea. It is a common condition that occurs when breathing stops and restarts multiple times during sleep, with symptoms including loud snoring, gasping, choking, or feeling tired even after a full night's rest. Discover whether weight loss can help alleviate these symptoms, learn about its treatment, and find more information here.

Note to readers: This article is for informational purposes only and not a substitute for professional medical advice. Always seek the advice of your doctor with any questions about a medical condition.

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