Two years ago, we were sleeping in separate rooms three nights a week. He didn't snore on purpose. I didn't get angry on purpose. But by 3am, every night, one of us was on the couch — and by 7am, neither of us liked the other much.
The order of operations
We tried earplugs (gave me headaches). White-noise machines (drowned out the alarm, not the snore). A $300 mouthguard from his dentist (worked for six nights, then started cutting his cheek). An app that recorded snoring. A pillow that vibrated. A nasal strip. Another nasal strip. A bigger fan.
None of it stuck.
The version we wished we had
The mouth tape category existed already. But every brand we tried was designed for the lone biohacker — black packaging, X-shaped strips, branding that looked like a pre-workout supplement. None of it made it onto Sara's nightstand. None of it felt like something a couple would use together.
That was the wedge. TRUCE is mouth tape designed for two faces, one bed. Two skin tones in every Couple Box, color-coded so we don't grab each other's. A central air slit so we can still kiss each other goodnight without peeling off first.
What it changed
It took three nights to find our rhythm. By the second week, Sara stopped wearing her noise-cancelling earplugs. By the third week, we both started waking up before the alarm. By month two, our 4-year-old asked why she'd never seen daddy sleep on the couch.
The brand exists because the product existed inside our relationship before it existed in a box. That's why we ship it.
— Alex & Sara