Adelaide couple Brianna Hammond and Scott Budden say ‘sleep divorce’ has been awesome

It might sound like the beginning of the end to many but this married couple says the “awesome” move has made them stronger than ever.

Brianna Hammond and her partner have agreed to a sleep divorce – and their seven-year relationship is happier than ever.

Ms Hammond and Scott Budden sleep in separate bedrooms with their own beds.

“He gets to have his Collingwood quilt cover and I get my pretty flowers,” says the 42-year-old from Christie Downs.

“It’s working really well for us. We both get sleep and we’re better people in the morning.”

Brianna Hammond and Scott Budden at home. Picture: Dean Martin

The bedroom arrangement – known as a sleep divorce – is being embraced by couples, who say it’s saving their relationships from the stress that comes from disrupted sleep.

A US study found more than a third of Americans were opting for a sleep divorce – either permanently or temporarily – and Millennials were the biggest uptakers at 43 per cent.

“It seems like there’s a shift to do this more so in younger folk,” said Professor Danny Eckert, head of Flinders University’s world-leading sleep clinic.

“It’s really quite common … I get asked about it a fair bit. What we know is sleep-deprived couples are more likely to split up and have relationship problems.”

Professor Danny Eckert. Picture: neura.edu.au

A sleep divorce suits Ms Hammond, a support leader at a disability residential facility who works odd shifts, and Mr Budden, 44, who works in electrical wholesales and wakes to four separate alarms at 5am.

“I’m not waking him up, he’s not waking me. We are well rested … and that’s better for our relationship,” she said.

Ms Hammond first started sleeping alone while she was suffering from pregnancy insomnia while carrying the couple’s son, Maverick, who is now three.

She found her partner’s restless sleep patterns and snoring severely disruptive.

“Then when Maverick came along, it meant that Scott could sleep in peace,” she said. “We just haven’t looked back, we were like ‘this is actually awesome’.”

The couple’s sleeping arrangement draws curious comments from people who “think it’s weird”.

“The biggest question I get asked is ‘do you guys have sex?’ Of course we do,” Ms Hammond said.

“Then people are like ‘do you actually like each other, did you have a fight?’ … but we get along so well, we’re just so happy.

“We had our bathroom renovated recently and the guys couldn’t wrap their head around it. Scott was like ‘mate, don’t knock it until you’ve tried it’.”

Edwina Bartholomew and her husband, Neil Varcoe.

Benji and Zoe Marshall, who have slept in separate bedrooms for more than 10 years. Picture: Tim Hunter

Mr Hammond, who has now been diagnosed with sleep apnoea and wears a CPAP machine, said he knew sleeping separately “worked” after reading about the separate bedrooms of NRL legend Benji Marshall and his wife, Zoe.

Sunrise star Edwina Bartholomew has also described sleeping separately from her husband, Neil Varcoe, as the “secret to our happy marriage”.

Professor Eckert said snoring – a major factor for couples choosing to adopt a sleep divorce – was not only disruptive, it was a serious health concern that needed medical attention. A recent global study showed that snoring was associated with a doubling of the risk of high blood pressure.

“Kicking people out for snoring and not getting health advice is probably not overall the best for your health,” he said.