the BEACON Newspaper, Indiana 20181001_beacon | Page 11

October 2018 M DEAR, ARIE By Marie Segale [email protected] Dear Marie, I have a dilemma with a neighbor in my apartment building. He sets his alarm to start going off at 3:55 A.M. so that he can leave his apartment by 7 A.M. Unfortunately, he doesn’t hear the alarm or turn it off. Evidently, he has a very hard time waking up probably because he has sleep apnea. His alarm goes off for a half hour then stops, then goes off again and stops, then goes off again and again. Very frustrat- ing. I have my own health THE BEACON issues and I need eight hours of sleep every night so I can fulfill my daily obligations. I am miserable when I don’t get enough sleep, just like every- body else. I have talked to my neighbor about the problem in the past, and he stopped using his vibrating alarm clock that made so much noise. That’s when he mentioned that he has sleep apnea. But his new alarm is just as bad, and I can’t sleep through it either. I guess noisy neighbors are a common problem in apartment build- ings. Help me, Marie! What should I do? Sleepless Vicki Dear Vicki, A noisy neighbor is a com- mon complaint in apartment buildings. Your situation is somewhat unique because your neighbor is not inten- tionally obnoxious; he has no control over his medical condition any more than you have over yours. First, I would talk to your neighbor to see if he would consider moving his alarm clock to the other side of the room away from your common wall to see if that would help. Second, I would ask if he would consider put- ting up an acoustical barrier on that common wall to see if that helps deaden the noise. Third, you can talk to your landlord about the situation to see if he has any legal authority over the situation or would agree to put an acoustical barrier or insulation in the wall. Fourth, you can invest in your own acoustical barrier for that wall. If all else fails, you can tell your landlord you will have to move out because of the no