Sleep apnea is disruptive, inconvenient, frustrating and life threatening. If you are one of the many people who suffer from this condition, it is crucial to educate yourself on not only treatments, but also the root causes. This article can provide a great start to helping sufferers find relief.
Some people believe that you can strengthen you upper airway muscles by playing a musical instrument belonging to the woodwind family. Researchers from Germany found that practicing with the didgeridoo on a regular basis strengthens throat muscles. You’ll have better control over your airway’s dilation and the stiffness of the surrounding tissues if you exercise these muscles. This is why playing this instrument regularly will help strengthen these muscles, and reduce snoring and sleep apnea symptoms.
If your narrow airways are causing sleep apnea, get a mouth guard designed for sleeping. This will help you breathe better at night. Get fitted for a mouth guard by your doctor if need be.
Avoid using sleeping pills if you have sleep apnea. In the same way that alcohol does, sleeping pills over-relax throat muscles. There are also a myriad of other problems that can arise with the use of sleeping pills. Consult your physician to find out about possible ways to get to sleep to faster that won’t react poorly with your sleep apnea.
Your doctor or a sleep specialist can help you find the CPAP machine that is best suited for your needs and comfort. These machines might be loud, but they can help you get through the night. Certain machines are actually smaller than your average bread box, and they whisper quietly. The doctor will know which manufacturers offer the best machines.
Try and get someone you know to tell you how you sleep through the night. Setting up a camera to record your sleeping habits might be the answer. Remember to make a video with sound so your doctor can hear you snore!
Mouth Guards
In an effort to better diagnose your apnea problem, your physician might want you to maintain a sleep log. Keep track of how long you are able to sleep at night, as well as anything else related to your sleeping process. If you have a partner, you can find out about snoring issues, breathing issues or flailing limb issues. This can help the doctor determine if you actually have sleep apnea.
Have a mouth guard made for you. Sleep apnea patients can have mouth guards that are custom made specifically to treat their condition. They make a good substitute for CPAP machine use, and provide better nighttime comfort. These mouth guards help you by making sure your airways remain open by giving your soft tissues a stabilizing hand.
If you are using a CPAP and experience an issue with your mouth opening during sleep, a chin strap can help. This little piece of fabric holds your chin upright when sleeping so that your mouth remains closed. CPAP can’t work with an open mouth, so try using this device to fix the issue.
In order to make a proper diagnosis, your doctor may have you maintain a sleep journal. You will need to make note of how many hours of sleep you get each night, and anything else notable. Your spouse can inform you of any excessive snoring, jerking, or momentary lapses in your breathing. This type of data can help your doctor diagnose the issue.
If you suffer from sleep apnea and intend to travel at all, make sure you bring you CPAP in the luggage. When sleep apnea affects you, do not attempt even a single night without your CPAP machine. Your machine probably came with a convenient carrying bag. This will help ease transporting your CPAP machine if you must be away.
Take your CPAP device with you when you are going to the hospital. Be it an intended or emergency room stay, you must always have access to your CPAP and the mask when you suffer from sleep apnea. It already has your pressure settings dialed in, and your mask is something your used to wearing at night. Your whole hospitalization process will go much smoother because of this.
Remember to bring the CPAP machine with you if you should happen to require a stay at the hospital. If the hospitalization was planned or for an emergency, you should still be sure that your CPAP and your mask are brought with you to be used while you’re there. It already has your pressure settings dialed in, and your mask is something your used to wearing at night. You’ll be able to resume your CPAP therapy much easier by having these things in the hospital with you.
Lessen your chances of getting sleep apnea. Some factors are unable to be altered. However, many other risk factors can be cut out, like being overweight, a smoker or a heavy drinker.
If you have tried many treatment options and nothing works, then it is time to contact your doctor for more serious treatment alternatives. A small percentage of patients don’t react to the common treatments, and as a result, surgery may be their only option, which includes enlarging the airway or removing the tonsils.
Losing Weight
One sure-fire way to combat the problems posed by sleep apnea is proper weight management. Many people find that they can completely correct sleep apnea by losing excess weight. Even a nominal amount of weight loss will go a long way in improving your breathing at night.
Losing weight can definitely help reduce sleep apnea’s effects. Sleep apnea is correlated with being fat and having a large neck. Losing weight can significantly reduce the pressure on your airway and improve the flow of air as you breathe at night.
Stick with a single ordinary pillow when you go to sleep. Using more than one pillow, or one that is too large, can make you sleep in an odd position. You’ll be resting in such a way that makes breathing difficult. With this in mind, use only a single pillow to minimize sleep apnea symptoms.
Sleep apnea patients should not sleep on their backs. Most apnea sufferers are chronic back sleepers and this position leads to a collapse of the soft tissue in the throat and blocks the air passage. Try your best to avoid sleeping on your back, and use pillows or something else to keep you on your side.
Although you should speak with your doctor about sleep apnea, you can try certain things yourself. A couple of good examples are controlling your weight and quitting smoking. You should also refrain from consuming alcohol, heavy meals, and caffeine for a few hours before bed.
You should never smoke if you are dealing with sleep apnea. Your sleep apnea will worsen because smoking causes swelling in the upper respiratory system. There are many effective ways to stop smoking. The first month is hard, but after that it becomes easier. Once you are past that point, your nicotine cravings lessen drastically.
According to some research, simple throat exercises can have a significant positive impact on your sleep apnea issues. Doing this can help to make the muscles which surround the airways much stronger, which in turn prevents them from collapsing into your airways. One good exercise involves pressing your tongue against the bony palate of the mouth and holding it for three minutes before releasing. Do this at least once a day.
If you use a CPAP device for your sleep apnea, you should look into getting a heated humidifier also. This will make sleeping with CPAP much more comfortable and less frustrating. Many of these machines now include humidifiers, and your doctor can probably prescribe one for you.
Sleep apnea, as defined, is when your body does not have the required amount of oxygen it needs when you are asleep. As such, higher elevations can be a disaster for a sleep apnea sufferer. Since oxygen levels are lower at heightened elevations, this can negatively affect people afflicted with sleep apnea. If you can avoid sleeping in higher elevations then that is best for you.
Don’t be ashamed that you have to use a CPAP machine. Make people aware that your life would be much worse with the machine. Also, don’t be afraid to use the machine in front of others, including friends and your spouse. Your health is the most important thing you should be focusing on, not wasting time on what others think of your machine. It’s quite possible they may find themselves with sleep apnea at some point in their own lives.
You should be fitted with a mouth guard that works for you. The efficacy of plastic mouth guards in relieving snoring and keeping the airways clear (two significant sleep apnea factors) is well established. Your sleep apnea can be caused by a misalignment in your jaw.
Sleep Apnea
Become a part of a support group. Sleep apnea is a condition that doesn’t affect many people. Although your loved ones and friends may try to help, they often can’t understand what you are feeling. Finding a support group can be very helpful because you will find others who can relate to your problem. There are a lot of online forums and places where you can get support.
It’s imperative that you take responsibility to get treatment if you have sleep apnea. If you don’t seek medical help, your condition is likely to worsen over time. Speak with your doctor sooner rather than later if you suspect you’ve got a sleep apnea problem; don’t wait for the disruptions in your sleep patterns to become intolerable.
Think about a mouth guard. Your dentist can fashion a custom mouth guard to use if you have an abnormality with your jaw or an overbite. These mouth guards help to re-position the tongue, teeth or jaw better so that you can breathe easier at night.
Because sleep apnea is caused by weak throat muscles, strengthening these muscles makes good sense. If making your throat stronger is something that you want to do, plenty of exercise choices exist that are quick to do.
Toning your throat muscles can be helpful if you’re suffering from sleep apnea. Exercises help tone your muscles all over your body, and the same thing is true for your tongue and throat. This is great for keeping your muscles from being too lax while you sleep and blocking your airway. Make faces, hum, stick the tounge out, or play a instrument. Any of these give your throat muscles exercise.
Start playing a woodwind. The clarinet and flute are great instruments for treating sleep apnea. Using these types of instruments helps with air control while also giving your throat muscles a lot of exercise which helps them get strong. The muscle training that you undergo while you learn these kinds of instruments will provide a beneficial effect to your apnea symptoms.
Take a diagnosis of sleep apnea seriously, and follow your doctor’s treatment instructions, including using a CPAP machine if prescribed. Two of the common symptoms of sleep apnea are drowsiness and lack of rest. However, the chronic form of insomnia that can come about, boosts your chances of a number of unwanted health afflictions ranging from stroke to depression.
A mouth guard can really improve your sleep apnea! These types of oral remedies have shown to make the airways free from obstruction and also help with snoring, which has shown in some instances to be the cause of sleep apnea. Your sleep apnea can be caused by a misalignment in your jaw.
If you suspect that you have a problem with sleep apnea, discussing it with your physician is the first step to take. Sleep apnea is an extreme condition that is not only a pesky hindrance in your life, but could also be life threatening. If your sleeping has interfered with your partner’s sleep or your own, then you should immediately contact your doctor because it is likely that you have sleep apnea.
One way to curb sleep apnea is with a mouth guard. Mouth guards are only effective if they are properly fitted. A jaw that is correctly aligned makes it easier for your body to breathe properly at night.
You have a number of options if you have dry mouth in the morning, thanks to your CPAP. Try increasing the humidity output from the machine. This will help your nose and mouth keep from getting too dry. In addition, adding a chin strap to your mask may help hold your mouth closed and prevent air leakage.
Exercising your tongue and throat muscle is a smart move. This strengthening may prevent future collapsing of your airways. Try humming, making faces, sticking your tongue out, or playing a wind instrument. The point of these exercises is to firm and tone your throat muscles.
Even though you’re likely suffering from a surfeit of energy due to your sleep apnea, you have to do everything you can to improve your sleep situation and deal with your condition. If you are too tired to drive yourself to the doctor, have a friend or relative drive you there.
Clearly, sleep apnea is a disruptive and frustrating condition. The intrusions on your sleep, being physically uncomfortable and various risks are all associated with this affliction, and they make life a nightmare for those afflicted and those around them. Start now and plan your defense against sleep apnea by applying the information you learned in this article.
Poor quality sleep can aggravate the symptoms of sleep apnea. In some incidences, sufferers of sleep apnea have been able to reduce their symptoms by changing their lifestyles. Leading a life that is unhealthy or indifferent is something that may lead to problems with sleep apnea.
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