Quality rest is a very significant component of healthy living and if you suffer from sleep apnea, your health and life are compromised. Fortunately, there are steps you can take to minimize symptoms of sleep apnea and improve the quality of your rest. Start by checking out the tips in the following article.
Speak with a doctor about using corrective mouth pieces to control your symptoms of sleep apnea. It may just be that your breathing passage is naturally narrow or your jaw is small. By aligning the position of your jaw and throat, you will find that you can sleep with fewer symptoms of sleep apnea.
You should know that using a CPAP machine can cause certain side effects, including snoring, congestion, irritation or dryness in your mouth and airways. If this occurs, you should go to your doctor and make sure you are using your machine properly. Consider using a different mask or a different machine.
If you have sleep apnea and cannot break the habit of sleeping on your back, try sleeping in a t-shirt with two tennis balls sewn into the back. Making this sleep shirt is a simple project to do at home, and it can help to break you of sleeping on your back. Every time you try to roll over on your back in your sleep, the tennis balls will remind you to roll back onto your side.
Cut back on your alcohol consumption. Consuming alcohol causes your muscles to relax too much. If the throat muscles are too relaxed, they can collapse and block your airway. Alcohol relaxes throat muscles and can make it difficult to keep the air passage open. If you do drink alcohol, avoid drinking it 3 hours before bedtime.
A good way to help your sleep apnea might be to shed some extra weight. Many people find that they can completely correct sleep apnea by losing excess 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.
For people who smoke, the best way to correct a sleep apnea condition is to quit smoking. Smoking is one of the biggest causes of sleep apnea. When people stop smoking their risk of sleep apnea is reduced and they can get a full night sleep within days of quitting.
If you are one of the millions of people who suffer from sleep apnea, you need to avoid caffeine and large meals before you go to bed. Stop eating and drinking any caffeinated beverages at least two hours before you go to bed. Both of these are linked to sleep apnea and should be avoided before bedtime.
Stop snoring devices are often helpful in treating sleep apnea. Snoring is caused by mostly-closed airways, and apnea is fully-closed airways. It is understandable that something can help this. These devices might be just what you need for a better night’s rest.
Do not let your condition, treatment or even your CPAP machine embarrass you. People will feel better about knowing why you are using it, and they will be supportive. If the people around you give you trouble regarding the use of your machine, you may need a better group of friends.
If you have tried all the self-help ideas and treatments and made changes in your lifestyle, and you still have not had success in helping your sleep apnea, you should consult with a sleep doctor. These doctors can evaluate your condition and work with you to find a treatment that is effective.
If you are going to be on a plane a long time, then get in touch with the airline company to inform them that you need your CPAP machine for sleeping. As long as you let them know ahead of time, many airlines will make an effort to seat you in an area where you can use your machine. If flying on a foreign plane, remember to bring along a power adapter.
Don’t drink alcohol, especially at night. The reason most people drink alcohol is to relax, but it also causes the muscles that control your airways to relax as well. When you go to sleep with ultra-relaxed airway muscles, it can make your sleep apnea symptoms worse. Do your body and your wallet a favor and cut out the booze.
If you suffer from sleep apnea, it’s important that you stay away from sleeping pills, cough syrup, or any other medication that may make you drowsy before going to sleep. These medications over-relax the throat muscles during sleep, even causing them to “collapse”, making it hard for enough air to come through.
When you wake up gasping for breath, your body is not getting a steady supply of oxygen. This means you should not sleep at high elevations. Oxygen levels fall as elevation increases, and that can harm anyone with sleep apnea. Therefore, aim to sleep at a lower elevation if possible.
If you suffer from sleep apnea, try chewing on both sides of your mouth! It may sound odd, but if you think about it, chewing works all of your jaw muscles, so balanced strength and functionality may lessen the airway problems associated with sleep apnea. You might also try specific exercises that work all muscles in the jaw and throat.
Get a fitted mouth guard to help you sleep at night. You can get plastic mouth guards for cheap these days, and they are worth the investment. The way your jaw is set can sometimes also contribute to the negative sleep apnea symptoms you experience.
Hopefully you have found solutions to your sleep apnea problems within this article, and can put them to work for you right away. Lack of sleep snowballs into many other problems and before long, nothing is under control. Start getting the sleep you need by getting control over sleep apnea!
