Pointers To Help You Sleep With Central Sleep Apnea

Do you have trouble figuring out why you cannot achieve a good night’s sleep, no matter how many hours you spend in bed? If you’ve ruled everything else out, maybe you have Central Sleep Apnea. If you think that this is the case, do not fret. Just read through the rest of this article for helpful advice.

If you have inherently narrow airway that are causing sleep apnea, a mouth guard can help. A mouth guard opens your airway and facilitate nighttime breathing. If you think a mouth guard might help you out, consult a physician and ask her to fit you with one.

Quit drinking alcohol and smoking cigarettes. Alcohol relaxes the muscles in the back of the throat, which will cause an interference with breathing. Some people resort to invasive surgeries to correct their Central Sleep Apnea without realizing that discontinuing these bad habits could have been a more simple and much cheaper route!

If you’re having a problem with sleep apnea and are a smoker or a drinker, you may find that quitting can help you immensely. These habits can affect your airway, which makes sleep apnea and snoring more likely. Instead of costly surgery or some other medical procedure, losing these bad habits is the best way to save yourself money and address this condition.

Central Sleep Apnea

Get a custom mouth guard. Specially made mouth guards are particularly focused for individuals suffering from sleep apnea. It provides a more comfortable option to using a CPAP machine. The guard assists in opening up your airways and stabilizing the soft tissues.

If you are carrying a few extra pounds, it may be time to lose them. It is widely known that being overweight is the cause of Central Sleep Apnea for some people. If you are obese, even just losing twenty pounds can significantly improve Central Sleep Apnea symptoms.

Moderate your alcohol intake. Your muscles get relaxed too much. If the throat muscles are too relaxed, they can collapse and block your airway. When your throat muscles relax, your airway narrows and causes sleep apnea. If you absolutely must drink, then do it in moderation and certainly not right when you’re about to go to sleep.

Avoid drinking alcohol to excess. Your muscles will over-relax when you use alcohol, especially before bed. You might like the feeling, but it can contribute to or cause Central Sleep Apnea. Alcohol causes the throat and tongue muscles to relax, which can make it easier for them to block your airway. Try your best to limit your drinking if you do decide to have alcohol, and try to not have any right before bed.

If you are not sleeping with a partner, then it’s almost impossible to determine if you’re suffering from sleep apnea on your own. Using a simple camcorder while you sleep can give you the information you need. Whatever video system you set up also need an audio component, since your physicians are going to need to hear the sounds you make.

Even kids can suffer from Central Sleep Apnea. Children who are frequently tired or who have a poor attention span may have sleep issues. The symptoms often resemble those of ADHD, but you must consult with your doctor to know for sure.

Keep a diary of your sleep habits to show your  doctor at your appointment for sleep apnea. Here, you will track your hours of successful sleep, when you awaken through the night and other problems you may encounter. Your partner can let you know if you snore too loudly, jerk your limbs, or stop breathing. This diary will help a medical professional see patterns in your sleep habits.

Sleep on your side in order to get some better sleep. Sleeping on your back can block your airway. Be sure you try sleeping on your side to get rid of a few of your problems caused by Central Sleep Apnea at night. If your sleep apnea requires the use of a CPAP machine, make certain that a medical ID is always with you. This is particularly important if you have an accident and require overnight hospitalization. The ID should mention that you have sleep apnea, you use a CPAP, and your CPAP should be set to a particular pressure level.

Without a partner in your bed to tell you how you sleep, you may not know that you experience Central Sleep Apnea. A video recorder can help you discover whether you are sleeping well or struggling. The video should also contain audio in order to hear the noises that occur while you’re sleeping.

If you are using a CPAP to treat sleep apnea, be sure to take it when you’re going to the hospital. Your CPAP machine should be with you whether you’re admitted to the hospital or visiting the emergency room. It is already set to your pressure, and you will have the exact mask you are used to using every night. Your whole hospitalization process will go much smoother because of this.

If you suffer from Central Sleep Apnea and must go to the hospital, make sure your CPAP is with you. Your CPAP is set to your specifications so it will be easier for medical staff to help you out because you already have your own device. It already has your pressure settings dialed in, and your mask is something your used to wearing at night. All of this will mean much better sleep for you with your CPAP, if you need hospitalization for any length of time.

If what you are doing at home isn’t working well enough to help your sleep apnea, then you should consult with a doctor to explore some additional treatment options. Conventional treatments may not work for you, and other options do exist, including surgery that results in enlargement of the air passage.

Be sure to use just one, normal-sized pillow when you sleep. Using multiple or oversized pillows makes it more likely that you will end up in a position that encourages Central Sleep Apnea. Pillows that lift your head can cramp the airways that you need to be open to be able to breathe properly as you sleep. This is why one pillow is best to manage your symptoms.

Weight loss can be a big help for those that suffer from sleep apnea. Those who are overweight usually suffer from sleep apnea due to the circumference of their neck. If you lose weight, it will improve air flow by reducing pressure on your airways.

Central Sleep Apnea

A CPAP machine can assist you in sleeping if you do have sleep apnea. You are more likely to enjoy some good sleep, and also stick with therapy, if the air is moist and warm. Your physician can help you select a full-featured CPAP machine that includes an on-board humidifier.

Are you now a bit more confident with the fact that you can get treat your Central Sleep Apnea? You should be prepared to deal with your next night’s sleep by following these tips. Keep in mind that this process is like most, and immediate results may not happen overnight. Work at it a bit every day and you’ll slowly start to see changes with your Central Sleep Apnea.

Your sleep position determines a lot in terms of your bouts of sleep apnea. You must figure out which position is best for you. Try taking a foam wedge and using it to raise the top half of your body. If you have an adjustable bed, raise the head by several inches for the best position.

Central sleep apnea causes difficulty within sleeping, day time fatigue, headaches each morning, irritability and trouble concentrating. Anyone that has experienced these signs, has been woken at night through shortness of breath or even had difficulty getting a complete night of rest ought to consult medical health advice.

Central sleep apnea is usually related to other conditions. One form of central sleep apnea, however, has no known cause and isn’t associated with any other central sleep apnea prognosis. In addition, many types of sleep apnea can happen with obstructive sleep apnea hypopnea syndrome, or it can happen alone.

Central sleep apnea is generally a after effects of particular pre-existing health disorders. It happens when the brain is not capable of sending out any signal. Thus, there is no breathing effort. This condition may co-exist along with osa, but might also be a stand-alone sickness.   

Central sleep apnea is not the same as osa, that is due to a obstruction in the airway. Dental appliances are not suggested for the central sleep apnea treatment.

Central sleep apnea can affect anyone, but it usually happens in individuals with certain neurological circumstances. It’s also more common in grown-ups and rarely impacts children.

Source: http://centralsleepapnea.info/central-sleep-apnea/pointers-to-help-you-sleep-with-central-sleep-apnea-2/

Sleepwalking Linked to Depression and Anxiety

Sleepwalking Linked to Depression, Anxiety

By Janice Wood Associate News Editor
Reviewed by John M. Grohol, Psy.D. on May 15, 2012

About 1.1 million adults in the U.S. — or 3.6 percent of the nation’s adult population — are prone to sleepwalking, according to new research from the Stanford University School of Medicine. The research also showed an association between sleepwalking and psychiatric disorders, such as depression and anxiety.
The study “underscores that fact that sleepwalking is much more prevalent in adults than previously appreciated,” noted Maurice Ohayon, M.D., D.Sc., Ph.D., professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences, who is the lead author of the paper. It will appear in the May 15 issue of Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology.
Sleepwalking, a disorder “of arousal from non-REM sleep,” can have serious consequences, resulting in injuries to the sleepwalker or others, as well as impaired psychosocial functioning, the researchers noted.
It is thought that the use of medication and certain psychological and psychiatric conditions can trigger sleepwalking, but the exact causes are unknown, the researchers added. Also unknown to experts in the field: its prevalence.
“Apart from a study we did 10 years ago in the European general population, where we reported a prevalence of 2 percent of sleepwalking, there are nearly no data regarding the prevalence of nocturnal wanderings in the adult general population,” the researchers said in their published paper. “In the United States, the only prevalence rate was published 30 years ago.”
The latest study was the first to use a large, representative sample of the U.S. population to demonstrate the number of sleepwalkers, according to the researchers, who also aimed to evaluate the importance of medication use and mental disorders associated with sleepwalking. Ohayon and his colleagues secured a sample of 19,136 individuals from 15 states and then used phone surveys to gather information on mental health, medical history, and medication use.
Participants were asked specific questions related to sleepwalking, including frequency of episodes during sleep, duration of the sleep disorder, and any inappropriate or potentially dangerous behaviors during sleep. Those who didn’t report any episodes in the last year were asked if they had sleepwalked during their childhood. Participants were also asked whether there was a family history of sleepwalking and whether they had other symptoms, such as sleep terrors and violent behaviors during sleep.
The researchers determined that as many as 3.6 percent of the sample reported at least one episode of sleepwalking in the previous year, with 1 percent saying they had two or more episodes in a month. Because of the number of respondents who reported having episodes during childhood or adolescence, lifetime prevalence of sleepwalking was found to be 29.2 percent.
The study also showed that people with depression were 3.5 times more likely to sleepwalk than those without, and people dependent on alcohol or who had obsessive-compulsive disorder were also significantly more likely to have sleepwalking episodes. Additionally, people taking SSRI antidepressants were three times more likely to sleepwalk twice a month or more than those who didn’t.
“There is no doubt an association between nocturnal wanderings and certain conditions, but we don’t know the direction of the causality,” said Ohayon. “Are the medical conditions provoking sleepwalking, or is it vice versa? Or perhaps it’s the treatment that is responsible.”
Although more research is needed, the work could help raise awareness of this association among primary care physicians, he added. “We’re not expecting them to diagnose sleepwalking, but they might detect symptoms that could be indices of sleepwalking,” said Ohayon.
Among the researchers’ other findings:

• The duration of sleepwalking was mostly chronic, with just over 80 percent of those who have sleepwalked reporting they’ve done so for more than five years.
• Sleepwalking was not associated with gender and seemed to decrease with age.
• Nearly one-third of individuals with nocturnal wandering had a family history of the disorder.
• People using over-the-counter sleeping pills had a higher likelihood of reporting sleepwalking episodes at least two times

 Reference: http://psychcentral.com/news/2012/05/16/sleepwalking-linked-to-depression-anxiety/38671.html