If you or someone close to you has recently been diagnosed with sleep apnea, this is the perfect article for you. By carefully studying the information contained in this article you can learn how to treat the disorder and ensure that you are doing everything that you can to protect your health. Read on to learn more.
Some people’s sleep apnea can be traced to morbid obesity. In these cases, simply losing the extra weight can alleviate the symptoms. Try changing your diet and ramp up your activity level. Reducing carbs in the diet may also help.
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.
You really need to do your best to lose weight if you have sleep apnea. Those who have sleep apnea typically have a neck circumference of 17 inches or more. This excess weight around the throat causes the airway to collapse more easily during sleep. Reducing your weight by even ten pounds can have a beneficial impact on your sleep apnea.
If you are taking a great deal of medicines on a regular basis, sit with your doctor and discuss how they can be reduced. Side effects from prescription medication can be making your sleep apnea worse. Keep a dialog open with your doctor and make sure he is up to date on all your symptoms.
If you have tried a number of less drastic sleep apnea treatment options, you might want to consider discussing surgical treatment options for the condition with your primary care physician. Sleep apnea treatment surgery often involves increasing the diameter of your airway in an effort to reduce the number of apnea episodes that you experience.
If you suffer from sleep apnea, make sure your significant other or your family is aware of your condition. In emergency situations, it is vital that whoever is with you can tell the physician treating you about your condition during any emergency medical care. You should make them aware of both the apnea diagnosis and your treatment.
There are known risk factors for sleep apnea. Some of obstructive sleep apnea risk factors are being overweight, a smoker, male, related to someone with sleep apnea or being Hispanic, Black, or a Pacific Islander. If you have one or more of these risk factors, you are more prone to being diagnosed with sleep apnea.
Sleep apnea will not magically disappear; patients will need to get it treated. Various treatment regimens and choices are effective for certain individuals, but not necessarily all. Treatment options vary depending on the cause. One person will find relief by stopping the habit of smoking and drinking. Another person may find that losing weight is their solution. Many patients get great results with non-surgical treatments like CPAP therapy. Others prefer surgery to relieve their sleep apnea. Working with your doctor to identify the best approach for your apnea issues will increase your opportunity to live a healthy and well-rested life.
If you have sleep apnea, and you have to have a sleep study, considering taking your pillow from home with you. It can be very difficult to sleep in the sleep lab. You are in an unfamiliar place in a strange bed. You have lots of wires, and electrodes attached to you. Having your own pillow can help to relax you and make it easier to fall asleep.
How you sleep can affect your condition. That’s why you need to sleep in an optimal position. You can keep yourself propped up with a large foam wedge. Or, if your bed is adjustable, raise it about four inches at one end.
Remember that you may not consciously realize you are having a sleep apnea episode. If you have unexplained exhaustion, sleepiness, or you’re falling asleep when you drive, try talking to a doctor about it. Even if you do not realize it while sleeping, you could have sleep apnea.
Drink alcohol as infrequently as possible if you suffer from sleep apnea. Consuming alcoholic beverages will only increase your symptoms because it will cause your throat muscles to descend closer to your esophagus. This does not mean you have to quit drinking altogether; just try not to have any before bed.
In some more extreme cases of sleep apnea, your doctor may recommend a CPAP machine. This machines function to continually force your airway to remain open while you are asleep. While they can be a hassle, they often times are life savers. If you think this may be necessary, speak with your physician.
As was discussed earlier, if you or someone you know has received a sleep apnea diagnosis, it is crucial that you educate yourself and learn everything there is to know about the disorder. The health care tips that you have read about in this article can help you successfully treat sleep apnea.
Getting The Rest You Need Despite Having Sleep Apnea was originally published on Spring