BBC Radio 2 star Sara Cox has shared candid details about her marital sleeping arrangements, revealing she and husband Ben Cyzer now sleep in separate rooms due to nighttime disturbances.
The nighttime struggle affecting their marriage
During an appearance on The Teen Commandments podcast, the 50-year-old presenter described the situation as "a bit depressing" while explaining how her husband's breathing and snoring have become significant issues. The couple, who married in 2013, have found themselves sleeping apart as Cox's sensitivity to nighttime noises has intensified.
"This is my issue that I've got with Ben in the night if I wake up, just him breathing is annoying," Cox confessed. "Not during the day, I just mean any slight noises."
Anxiety and changing sleep patterns
The radio host compared her heightened nighttime awareness to "an animal on high alert for a predator" in wildlife documentaries, noting how sounds become magnified during the night. She acknowledged there's likely "a bit of anxiety in there" contributing to her sleep difficulties.
Cox contrasted her current sleep struggles with her more relaxed attitude in her twenties, saying: "I remember in my twenties if I woke up at like half one, I probably wouldn't have been in bed at half one, but if I woke up in the middle of the night and it was like 3am, in my twenties I'd be like, 'Yeah, I've got loads of time to sleep, amazing'. Now I'm 50 I go, 'F***, it's three, I'm not going to sleep, I'm never going to get back to sleep again'."
Coping mechanisms and family life
When asked how she handles Ben waking her during the night, Cox revealed she nudges him and described her husband as "really patient" and "great about it." Despite their understanding approach to the situation, the separate sleeping arrangement continues.
The couple share two children together - daughter Renee and son Isaac, while Cox also has another daughter, Lola, from her previous marriage to DJ Jon Carter.
Recent achievements beyond marital struggles
Despite her personal sleep challenges, Cox recently completed an impressive physical accomplishment. She finished the Great Northern Marathon for BBC Children in Need, running an incredible 135 miles from Kielder Forest to Pudsey in Yorkshire.
Her extraordinary effort raised over £10 million for charity, with the journey documented in Sara Cox: Every Step of the Way for Children in Need, which aired on BBC One on November 19.
After completing what she called "the hardest thing I've ever done", Cox expressed gratitude for the public support she received during the challenge. "I've never known pain like it but then I've never had eye contact with so many amazing women as I've run along, who have just powered me on," she told the BBC.
The presenter particularly noted the encouragement from strangers during difficult conditions: "Just at the side of the road in the driving rain, it was bitterly cold and wet and filthy and so many people came out. The truck drivers honking their horns, the farmers stopping work to come and say hi, just the kids by the side of the road, everyone."
