Nighttime coughing can be disruptive to sleep and affect how you feel during the day. Here are some tips and remedies to help stop coughing at night:
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Elevate your head: Raising your head at night can help manage many types of cough. It’s easier for irritants to make their way to your throat to trigger coughing when you’re lying down. Ways of doing this include using wedge pillows or investing in an adjustable mattress or bed.
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Use a humidifier: Dry air can make a cough worse. Try using a cool-mist humidifier in your bedroom at night to add moisture to the air where you sleep. Adding humidity by this method may help soothe the throat and prevent coughing.
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Drink warm liquids: Drinking hot herbal tea or warm water with honey can soothe your cough and loosen mucus. And just staying hydrated with water throughout the day can help thin out mucus.
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Try a nasal saline spray: You may be able to thin out any secretions by using a nasal saline spray, which is a mixture of salt and water. A salt-water gargle, made with a teaspoon of salt in a glass of warm water, may also help.
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Consider a cough suppressant at night: If you don’t have any other health conditions like high blood pressure, you can try taking an over-the-counter cough suppressant. It can lessen your urge to cough as you sleep and can stop.
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Avoid irritants: Avoiding irritants such as smoke, dust, and strong odors can help reduce coughing.
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Manage GERD: Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) is a digestive disorder that causes some of the contents of the stomach to flow back up to the esophagus. It can lead to throat irritation and coughing, especially at night. Sleeping with the head elevated can decrease postnasal drip and symptoms of GERD, which both cause coughing at night.
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Quit smoking: Smoking can irritate the throat and cause coughing. Quitting smoking can help reduce coughing.
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Get medical attention: A severe or persistent cough needs medical attention. You should also get medical help if you have a cough and a fever of 100.4°F (38°C) or above, shortness of breath, choking, swelling in your legs, ankles, or abdomen, wheezing, chest pain, or increasing amounts of phlegm.
