People, young and old, can suffer from sleep apnea which can be a life-threatening condition. Unfortunately, a lot of people suffer because they do not know the right approach to treatment. The article below will give you some tools for coping with sleep apnea.
Some people’s sleep apnea can be traced to morbid obesity. In these cases, simply losing the extra weight can alleviate the symptoms. The best way to lose weight is to become physically active with exercise at least four times per week and eat less food calories than are burned off each day by activity. Some studies suggest that limiting carbohydrate intake can lead to weight loss, as well.
A common reason that people have sleep apnea is due to the extra pounds on their bodies. In this case, a person suffering from sleep apnea needs to lose this excess weight. They should follow a sensible weight loss plan, usually involving a restricted calorie diet combined with exercise. Carbohydrate restriction has been shown to help people lose weight in recent studies as well.
You can both shed unwanted pounds and reduce the effects of sleep apnea with a nutritious and healthy diet. It may surprise you how much eating poorly can affect your sleep apnea symptoms. Studies have shown that people that eat poor quality food have worse apnea than those who are overweight but eat healthier.
Sleeping Pills
Try to sleep on your side instead of your back to breathe easier when you sleep. When people sleep on their back, their tongue and soft palate rest to the back of the throat, which blocks the airway. Give sleeping on your side a try, and see if your symptoms improve.
Try to avoid sleeping pills. Sleeping pills can make your throat muscles relax in an undesirable way. Taking sleeping pills can have a negative impact on other health conditions that those with sleep apnea may experience. Ask your physician about sleep aids that won’t also affect your breathing.
Sleep apnea is diagnosed through a medical exam and consideration of your and your family’s medical history. Your general practitioner may order a sleep study. Based upon this, he or she may give you a referral for a sleep specialist. Sleep specialists focus primarily on the diagnosis and treatment of people with sleep disorders.
To help alleviate this condition, you should sleep on your side. Many sufferers of sleep apnea sleep on their backs. If you sleep on your back, your airway may become blocked when mouth tissues slide back. Try to sleep on your side to avoid that. Put a pillow on your side if you always find yourself moving around during sleep.
If you suffer from sleep apnea, make sure to get sinus and allergy problems treated. It will help you breath better in general, especially during your sleep. You don’t need to deal with anything that will affect your breathing when you sleep. You’ll experience a better night of sleep and reduce the odds of running into serious breathing difficulties if you take care of nasal and sinus issues without delay.
If you sleep alone, you might have a hard time determining if you suffer from sleep apnea. Try taping yourself at night to see if you do. The video should also contain audio in order to hear the noises that occur while you’re sleeping.
If you are suffering from sleep apnea and have a cold or allergies, try using a nasal spray. It may offer a couple nights of relief. It’s important to follow the instructions for usage, as these sprays should be used temporarily, not permanently Your pharmacy can offer a variety of solutions or options to clear your air passages as you sleep.
Sleep Apnea
If you have sleep apnea, do not sleep laying on your back. 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. To prevent yourself from rolling over while you sleep, use pillows or cushions.
An excellent way to help lessen the effects of sleep apnea is by losing weight. Many people have corrected their apnea by losing weight. The symptoms of sleep apnea can be greatly reduced by even a relatively minor amount of weight loss as the breathing passages and the throat open up.
Some great tongue exercises can reduce the symptoms of sleep apnea. One exercise includes pressing your tongue on the roof of the mouth and keeping it for several minutes. You will have less chance of your throat muscles relaxing and blocking your airway if you strengthen the muscles of your tongue and throat.
Use a device that is aimed at helping you with snoring. While apnea involves complete blockage of the airways, snoring is similar in that partial airway obstruction is what causes it. So, anything that helps relieve the first issue will also help with the second. This device can reduce the symptoms of sleep apnea during the times you are in bed.
Please do not waste time believing that a CPAP maching is something to be ashamed of. Use it when you need to, and make others aware that it is necessary to your health and well-being. The use of your CPAP device is medically necessary, and if anybody mocks you over it, consider getting friends who take life more seriously.
Consulting a doctor is important, but there are several options you can try at home. A couple of good examples are controlling your weight and quitting smoking. Keep the last two hours before bed free of heavy meals, caffeinated beverages or alcoholic beverages.
How you sleep influences how many times sleep apnea will strike on a given night. Sleeping in the best positions possible are beneficial for you. You can keep yourself propped up with a large foam wedge. Talk to your doctor about other ways of sleeping that will be beneficial to you.
Sleep Apnea
Sleeping flat on your back may worsen sleep apnea, so try to sleep on your side. If you need to prevent yourself from turning to your back, try sewing a tennis ball into the back of your nightwear. That will make it uncomfortable to sleep on your back.
If sleep apnea afflicts you, don’t drink too much. When you drink alcohol, your throat becomes excessively relaxed. This can cause snoring, airway blockage and sleep apnea. Don’t drink close to bedtime. You’ll be less likely to suffer from alcohol-related sleep disturbances this way.
Sleep apnea is stressful. Baths can help. Your muscles relax and the tension leaves your body when you sit back in a soothing hot bath. This will help you sleep better and you will get more quality sleep instead of worrying about sleep apnea.
Please do not waste time believing that a CPAP maching is something to be ashamed of. You will need to quickly get used to using it front of those who are closest to you. Undergoing CPAP therapy is an important step in preserving your overall health; don’t let inappropriate social pressure prevent you from getting the treatment you need.
Sleep apnea sufferers may need to look for a simple solution in order to get a better night’s rest. Be sure to keep regular bedtime habits and get the same amount of sleep nightly. Make sure your environment is conducive to sleep as well, free of noise and distractions. If you are trying to rest in a loud setting, you can miss valuable sleep.
Sleep Apnea
Remember that you may not consciously realize you are having a sleep apnea episode. If you’re having difficulty in staying awake during the day, especially while you are behind the wheel, immediately talk to your doctor. Your unexplained sleepiness may be due to sleep apnea.
Most of the time sleep apnea causes anxiety, and if this is bothering you, then consider a nice warm bath before going to bed each night. Soaking in a warm or hot bath relaxes your muscle tension. By doing this, it will probably be easier to fall asleep, which will lead to a better night of sleep, rather than a night filled with constant interruptions from flare-ups of your sleep apnea.
Some situations of sleep apnea are solved with corrective mouth pieces. The reason for this is that some people have abnormally shaped jaws, which naturally narrows the airways. These devices realign the jaw much the same way that braces do the teeth.
Sometimes you might just need to do a few simple things to help with your sleep apnea. Set up a schedule for each day so that you can go to sleep at a regular time and wake up at the same time. Also ensure that where you sleep has optimal conditions to help you fall asleep. If you don’t set up your room correctly, you may not be able to sleep.
Try staying away from going to bed on your back when you have a sleep apnea condition. Sleeping on your back increases the chances that your airways will collapse as the night goes on. If you suffer from sleep apnea, the best sleeping position would be on your side.
Avoid back sleeping if you suffer from sleep apnea. Sleeping on your back may cause the airways to become restricted or collapse while you sleep, which makes sleep apnea worse. To counter the effects of gravity on your throat muscles, it’s best to sleep in a sideways position.
Even after you receive a diagnosis of sleep apnea, regularly consult your physician. This way you can talk to them about your progress. After about a month of using a new treatment method, meet with your doctor to analyze the results.
Don’t drink too close to bedtime if you are a sleep apnea sufferer. When you drink alcohol, your throat muscles become very relaxed. This can cause airway blockage. You don’t have to give up alcohol entirely; just shy away from drinking close to bed time.
Do not drink any alcoholic type beverages when living with sleep apnea. Alcohol causes respiratory depression, which decreases airflow, thus causing more sleep apnea episodes during the night. You do not have to stop drinking, just do not do it before you go to sleep.
Make sure you exercise your throat and jaw muscles. Sometimes sleep apnea is just dependent on weak internal muscles you have, so take the time to learn a few exercises that can help you deal with your apnea. Just a couple of exercises can greatly improve your symptoms.
Consider taking up a wind instrument. The clarinet and flute are great instruments for treating sleep apnea. When you play these instruments, you learn about air control and exercising the muscles in your airway, making them stronger. You can really train your muscles to be strong with a bit of training.
Surgery may be necessary for sleep apnea created through excess airway tissue. The UPPP procedure will reduce or eliminate the symptoms by increasing the space in the air passages. Know that when this happens, they may remove your tonsils as well.
Find a mouth piece that will work for you or get fitted for one. If your physician can treat any underlying condition, your sleep apnea will improve. Your sleep apnea can be caused by a misalignment in your jaw.
Support Group
Exercise your throat muscles to improve your sleep apnea symptoms. Strengthening your throat muscles is the key to reducing airway constriction while you sleep. Ways to strengthen your throat muscles include playing the flute, making funny faces, and sticking out your tongue. Each of these will help you keep your throat muscles firm.
Join a support group. Sleep apnea is common, but most people do not get it. Although you might get plenty of support from relatives and friends, it can be tough for them to really identify with your experience. Search for a sleep apnea group. Ask your doctor for info about a local group, or go online to find an Internet support group you can join.
A mouth guard sometimes helps people with sleep apnea get better sleep. You will breathe easier and sleep better with a well fitted mouth guard for sleeping that aligns your jaw properly. If you jaw is small or you suffer from an overbite, these factors can contribute to a narrower breathing passage, and it’s something you want to have get checked out.
As you read in the beginning of this article, many people today suffer with sleep apnea. Being uninformed makes this serious condition even more harmful. Once you have the knowledge, you’ll be able to manage your condition with ease.
Common sleep hygiene interventions, such as keeping a sleep schedule, can help with sleep apnea. Creating a rhythm for your sleep schedule will improve your body’s reaction to your apnea symptoms. Setting your bedtime to the same time every night can help your body recognize when it is time to sleep. This should help you get to sleep much easier each night and have you feeling refreshed in the morning.