Sleep apnea robs many people of a good night’s sleep. The good news is that there are many simple ways that help you get a restful night’s sleep. To get yourself on the road to healthier, more natural sleep, take a look at the handy advice presented here.
Strengthen your throat and jaw with some basic exercises. Developing these muscles should reduce the symptoms of sleep apnea. You can exercise your throat and jaw by simply pulling your tongue or practicing some very simple breathing exercises. The goal is to train you to breathe differently and hopefully make your sleep apnea disappear.
Learn how to play a wind instrument. Studies have found that playing a wind instrument like the flute or the didgeridoo can help with sleep apnea. Wind instruments exercise your breathing and help your body get accustomed to taking in sufficient amounts of air. Your throat will be able to better control airway dilation.
If you are unsure whether or not you have sleep apnea, consider setting up an audio or video recorder next to your bed. When you review the recording, watch or listen for choking, gasping or other signs that you are not getting enough air as you sleep. Present your findings to your doctor if you suspect that you do have apnea.
You must be careful not to use sedating medications if you have been diagnosed with sleep apnea. Anything that sedates you will slow down your breathing, especially when you go to sleep. When you are sedated by medication, your throat muscles will relax and collapse more quickly as you sleep.
Exercise your throat. Make faces. Stick out your tongue. Rotate your jaw. It might feel a bit silly, but it can actually help people who suffer from sleep apnea. Doing these things exercises the muscles your body needs to moderate its breathing. Studies have shown that doing these exercises a few times a day can make a huge difference.
Keep your bedroom in prime shape for sleeping. Insomnia and sleep apnea are often connected. This makes keeping an environment in which you sleep at the right temperature, lightness level and sound level important for helping you get a good night of rest. The right environment also means leaving your stresses outside the bedroom to ensure you are relaxed enough to fall asleep.
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.
Find ways to decrease the risk factors of our sleep apnea. Genetic and congenital risks cannot be altered, but lifestyle changes can be made. Some other risk factors should be changed, such as drinking too much, smoking or weighing too much.
One great tip for people who sleep with an apnea sufferer is to use a white-noise machine. While this won’t target the problem at all, it does at least help the partner to get a good night’s sleep. Remember to use the same sound every night in order to sync the noise with relaxation.
Maintaining a regular sleep schedule can help anyone dealing with sleep apnea. Once you can get on a schedule and stick to it, you will notice that your symptoms will decrease as your body gets more sleep. Make a routine that works for your lifestyle, and do your best to stick to it.
When you get your sleep apnea diagnosis and the doctor gives you a CPAP machine, be determined to stick with CPAP therapy. It can be a real adjustment getting used to sleeping with a mask on your face every night. However, your life and health depend on it. So tell yourself this is not optional, and set your mind on making it work.
If you have sleep apnea and use a CPAP machine at night, consider using saline nasal spray. The continuous airflow being pushed through your nose every time you sleep can cause your sinuses to dry out. Keep them hydrated by using two pumps of saline nasal spray in each nostril morning and night.
Make sure to do some throat exercises every day to reduce any symptoms of sleep apnea. Try making silly faces and sticking out your tongue. It might seem funny, though according to some new studies, exercising your tongue and jaw on a daily basis can reduce the symptoms that you are experiencing.
To lessen the severity of your sleep apnea at night, move around more during the day! Studies have shown that prolonged inactivity during the day will cause fluid-shifting and airway narrowing by the end of the day, when you lay back or down. To avoid this complication of sleep apnea, get up and stretch at least once every hour.
Alcohol has also been shown to negatively exacerbate the symptoms of sleep apnea. As a depressant it relaxes your throat muscles, making it easier for your airway to become blocked. By not drinking in the hours leading up to bedtime you give yourself a better chance of keeping your airways open.
Sleep apnea can be a problem for your throat and not your nose, so if you work on strengthening throat muscles then it is a good idea for fixing your apnea. If you are interested in learning more about how to strengthen your throat, there are dozens of quick exercises that can be done.
Quit smoking. Smoking any kind of tobacco inflames all of your airways, which can make it more difficult for you to breathe at night. If you cannot stop altogether, work on cutting down throughout the day, particularly in the evening before you go to sleep. This will help your nasal passages to open so sleep is easier.
Life is hard enough to deal with without the added stress of feeling tired and having no energy throughout the day. There is no reason to suffer needlessly with sleep apnea when there is a treatment option that will help you get control again.
