It’s hard enough to sleep well even without a disorder that constantly disrupts your nighttime peace. Suffering night after night with sleep apnea can be a miserable experience for you and others as well.
When you don’t wake up well rested in the morning, it can affect every other area of your life. How can you live your best quality of life with this condition?
In this extensive and in-depth article, you’ll learn everything you need to know about sleep apnea. You’ll discover what it is, what causes it, what happens if you don’t treat it, many cures and treatments, and how you can live with this condition. Read on to discover more!
What Is Sleep Apnea?
According to the National Heart, Lung, and Blood Institute, sleep apnea is a condition in which you have one or more pauses in breathing or shallow breaths while you sleep.
As you can imagine, any breaks in breathing move your deeper sleep to a lighter state. These pauses in breath can last anywhere from a few seconds to a few minutes and can occur up to 30 times an hour. Normal breathing is interrupted and then starts again after you experience mild choking.
Apnea means that breathing stops, or is in cessation, for at least ten seconds. What this does is cause low levels of oxygen in your bloodstream. While you’re sleeping at night, your body is not receiving the amount of oxygen it needs.
Sleep apnea results in you not getting anywhere near the quality of sleep you should be getting each night. Having a poor quality of sleep then affects the rest of your day, making you tired, listless, unproductive, and changing your disposition and temperament.
Unfortunately, sleep apnea can be hard to detect. Unlike other medical conditions, it doesn’t have a lot of symptoms. You might be unaware you have sleep apnea until a partner points it out to you. Even then, there are no short, in-office tests a doctor can perform to determine if you have sleep apnea.
You usually find out you have sleep apnea after an overnight sleep study. This is when you are monitored at night by sleep apnea professionals, who then determine that you have this condition.
The most common type of sleep apnea is called obstructive sleep apnea. This means that your airways in the back of your throat become obstructed or blocked while you’re sleeping. It causes your breathing to become shallow and pause throughout the night.
Air that manages to get past your airways also causes loud snoring, which is another symptom of sleep apnea. Obstructive sleep apnea patients breathe normally when they stand up or sit down, so there are no noticeable symptoms during the day. It’s only at night that you might notice you keep waking up.
Another type of sleep apnea, which is less common, is called central sleep apnea; this has more to do with your brain.
When the area of your brain which controls breathing isn’t sending the right signals to your nose, mouth, and throat muscles, that causes sleep apnea at night when you’re in a prone position; it’s more of a medical condition. One interesting fact is that those with central sleep apnea don’t snore like those with obstructive sleep apnea do.
Sleep apnea is most common in adults, and of that group, most common in men. Currently, scientists and researchers aren’t sure why this is so, but the evidence proves that it is.
What Causes Sleep Apnea?
Why do some people have sleep apnea and others don’t? Well, with the central sleep apnea type, that is a neurological condition and not something that can be prevented.
However, with obstructive sleep apnea, the causes are a little more defined. One of the most common and easily recognised is excessive weight, which can be just a few pounds up to obesity.
Excess Weight
How does excess weight cause sleep apnea? When the fats and sugars are eaten and aren’t used as energy, they are stored in your cells around your body.
These cells are present in your cheeks, jaw, and throat areas. As you gain more weight, the soft tissue in these areas of your face increases. That soft tissue also interferes with breathing, which you may have already experienced when you are awake.
When you lie down, gravity pulls that soft tissue from your face and neck down towards your pillow. It compresses the back of your throat and eventually ends up blocking your airways.
That produces obstructive sleep apnea. You wouldn’t experience the sleep apnea during the day, because the gravity pulls your soft tissues down towards the floor, not back against your throat. You may still suffer from breathing problems, since excess weight can compress your lungs, too.
Age
Age can also be a factor in causing sleep apnea. Your muscles lose their firm tone and begin to break down and sag as time goes on. This includes the muscles present in your cheeks, jaw, neck, and throat.
When you’re younger, those muscles are able to keep your airways open effectively and free of blockage to cause sleep apnea. But as you age, those ageing muscles become weaker and aren’t as likely to keep your airways open and clear all night long.
Genetics
Do your family members have sleep apnea as well? Since obstructive sleep apnea is caused by airway blockage, some people are genetically predisposed to have a smaller trachea opening in the back of the throat.
The back of your tongue can also be enlarged compared to a standard tongue size, thus resulting in airway blockage and sleep apnea.
Alcohol and cigarettes
If it’s true that you are what you eat, then it’s also true that sleep apnea can be caused by harmful substances taken in through the mouth.
Those who drink frequently and copious amounts of alcohol are at a higher risk to experience sleep apnea because alcohol is a natural muscle relaxer. It relaxes the muscles in the neck and throat too much, causing your airways to block and sleep apnea to occur.
Cigarette smoking can cause this condition as well. Cigarettes are full of chemicals that destroy the soft tissue of your entire biological breathing system. It is an irritant to the inside of your mouth, your throat, your trachea, and your lungs.
Those chemicals can cause inflammation, irritation, and tissue breakdown, which is why many smokers lose their voice entirely. The larynx is located in the throat. Having cigarette chemicals deteriorate your airways is a cause of sleep apnea as well.
Tonsil Problems
For younger sleep apnea sufferers and children, their condition is often caused by enlarged, inflamed, or infected tonsils. The child might complain about excess pain, or a doctor could diagnose a tonsil condition during their regular checkup.
A dental condition, such as a large overbite can also cause sleep apnea. Inflamed tonsils can occur in adulthood as well, so it’s not exclusively limited to childhood. Childhood obesity can contribute to sleep apnea just like in adults, but it’s not as common.
Various other causes
These are the most common causes of sleep apnea, although a sleep study specialist might be able to pinpoint another reason why you have it.
While you’re on a sleep apnea treatment program, you can work to help “cure” yourself by living a healthier life. There’s more on that in the section “Cures for sleep apnea” below.
What If Sleep Apnea is Left Untreated?
It’s essential that sleep apnea is diagnosed as early as possible in your life. If left untreated, long- term obstructive sleep apnea can cause further complications.
Many medical issues can arise that are harmful. These include high blood pressure, heart disease, frequent headaches that can become increasingly severe, car accidents due to sleepiness, and depression.
One of the most severe side effects of long term sleep apnea is possible brain damage. Your body was biologically designed to breathe deeply and frequently all night long, and night is the period when your brain needs to rest.
When your breathing continuously stops and starts throughout the night, that lack of oxygen does lead to brain malfunctioning.
Lack of oxygen
Speaking of oxygen, it’s one of the most essential substances you take into your body, along with food and water. Did you know that oxygen oxidises your food? Your cells go through respiration.
What that means is that foods, like carbohydrates and fatty acids, are broken down to simpler carbohydrates and then oxidised within each cell.
This produces energy, water, and carbon dioxide (which is then exhaled with each breath, since the body does not use it) — oxygen assists in “burning the fuel” and releasing the energy of each molecule of food.
No wonder you feel tired when your oxygen deprived! When your body can’t get that energy released from carbohydrates, fats, and proteins, then your cells can’t function properly.
Oxygen also is a part of the H2O water molecule, and your body is about 70% water. So, again, oxygen is one of the essential substances you take into your body.
Without it, you wouldn’t be able to function from the loss of cell energy, and you wouldn’t receive the oxygen molecules needed to create the water molecule. Sleep apnea stops the natural process of nighttime breathing and oxygen intake.
Long-term sleepiness
Your quality of life won’t be as high as it should due to having difficulty with your sleeping. Long-term sleepiness as a result of sleep apnea can cause its problems, most specifically in the amount of energy you have during the day for productivity.
Especially in the work environment, you just won’t have the amount of energy you need to do complex mental tasks, solve problems, or be as efficient as you want to be. This could lead to not meeting goals as quickly.
When you have sleep apnea, it goes much further than merely experiencing daytime sleepiness.
You could experience brain fog, which results in a reduced mental capacity. You won’t be able to remember things as clearly, so you’re struggling to recall facts.
That cloudy, stuffy feeling in your brain also affects your perception and judgment. You won’t be able to react to things as quickly. Due to this, you could also be higher at risk for car accidents.
The signals between your eyes, brain, and muscle reflexes aren’t as sharp as they should be if you were well rested.
There’s also the chance you’re at a higher risk for occupational injury accidents. For those of you who work with machinery, equipment, large vehicles, in the fishing or farming industry or dangerous occupations, this can lead to unnecessary accidents and disasters.
Safety should be practised at all times, and the best way to be safe and alert is to be well rested.
With sleep apnea-deprived sleepiness, you won’t have the energy you need for evening activities, either. Going out with coworkers after work, enjoying a movie, or just spending time with your family will all be affected by sleep apnea.
It also affects your mood, as those around you will quickly verify! You won’t have as much capacity to handle the day-to-day stresses of life, so your disposition can be negatively affected.
Moodiness can lead to relationship conflicts as well since nobody wants to be around you when you’re cranky and stressed. While a small child may be put down for a nap due to grouchiness, that’s not the case with adults.
You need to get the most restful sleep that you can at night. The highest quality of life for your waking hours depends on you getting rest.
Sleep Apnea Cures
How do you cure sleep apnea? Unlike other conditions, sleep apnea can’t be cured by a drug alone. In most cases, except those that are extreme, no surgery can help the situation, either. There are, however, many popular and effective treatments that can reduce sleep apnea or even make it disappear entirely.
The cure depends on the cause. If your sleep apnea is caused by age or genetics, then there’s little you can do to reverse the ageing process or change your genes. You can use one of the more common treatments discussed below.
However, if your sleep apnea has been directly linked to your physical body or negative lifestyle habits, then you can work to change those areas. You would need to discuss these therapeutic options with a doctor before beginning any program so that you proceed most healthily.
You’d also want to know for sure that these conditions specifically cause your sleep apnea. That’s why a doctor’s opinion is best before starting. If it is, though, there’s good news.
Change your diet and exercise more
You can cure your sleep apnea if it is linked to excess weight. It’s not an overnight fix, but it is the most long-lasting and the healthiest.
Losing weight on your own can be done. But, you’ll have an increased chance of success if you work with a dietary specialist or nutritionist to lose the extra pounds.
There are plenty of websites to help you find one or to join an online community for support. Many sleep apnea sufferers have discovered that minor dietary changes do make a big difference.
One healthy habit you can start today is not consuming any dairy products, alcohol, or phlegm-producing foods (chocolate, almond milk, etc.) after 5 p.m. You give your mouth and throat a chance to clear up and reduce airway blockage.
That helps you breathe easier at night. You can also try rinsing with warm water to clean out your throat.
To help lose weight and strengthen muscles. You’d also want to start a fitness program. It begins with low-impact walking and then gradually increasing exercise until you lose the weight in your face, neck, and throat. Set smaller goals for yourself and work up to larger weight-loss goals.
If you concentrate on having a healthier diet and exercise regimen this week, pretty soon you’ll have a better body and will have taken a massive step towards reducing or even curing sleep apnea.
No more alcohol or cigarettes
This is easier said than done, but reducing and finally eliminating alcohol and cigarettes will help cure your sleep apnea. As with the dietary and exercise suggestions above, you’ll want to start very small and then work your way up to quitting. There are plenty of programs to help you.
Don’t forget to take some good multivitamins and healthy supplements to counteract the substance withdrawal symptoms. Boost your immune system with plenty of Vitamin C, and find healthier alternatives to these harmful substances. Instead of alcohol, you could try fresh juices, smoothies, milkshakes, or even coffee (early in the day).
With each less drink or cigarette, your body will start to heal and repair itself. That goes a long way towards curing sleep apnea, too.
Using a CPAP or BiPAP machine
If you’ve not heard of a CPAP machine, this is a piece of equipment that is specifically designed to use continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) to open the airways in the back of your throat while you sleep.
Most CPAP machines come in three parts—the actual motorised machine which sits on your nightstand, the mask which is attached with straps to the face, and the hose which connects the two.
Besides CPAP machines, other types work. A BiPAP (bi-level positive airway pressure) machine alleviates the difficulty with exhaling that some CPAP users have trouble with. Instead, the BiPAP has a breath timing feature that can change depending on how many breaths per minute you take. A BiPAP is costlier and not as common, but it is a comfortable alternative.
CPAP machines are one of the most effective treatments for sleep apnea since they use air pressure. They come in many different styles so that you can find the mask that is most comfortable for you.
For the treatment to work most effectively, you’ll want to use the CPAP every night. As you can imagine, using a CPAP might take some getting used to, and bear in mind that it will be uncomfortable at first.
But, with time, patience, and practice, you’ll soon be using your CPAP every night and breathing better than you ever have without it.
Orofacial exercises
What are orofacial exercises? Well, there are muscles in your face connected to your sinuses under your eyes, your nose, cheeks, and throat.
By strengthening these muscles and stretching them out, just like before you did a workout, it would help give you some natural relief from sleep apnea.
Since obstructing your throat is part of a leading cause of sleep apnea, if you exercise your throat and all of its coordinating connected muscles, you will be improving it rapidly.
This is backed up with conclusive evidence present in many clinical studies, confirming that orofacial exercises can cure sleep apnea.
Vocal exercises
Any exercises that strengthen your throat muscles are going to be beneficial towards treating and curing sleep apnea. Your larynx (voice box) is found in the throat, which means that vocal exercises do help.
Researchers have discovered that by practising only 20 minutes of daily singing exercises for three months helped sleep apnea and reduced snoring, too.
Start by vocalising vowel sounds like “ahh,” “eeeh,” and “oooh.’ You can vocalise up and down the scale, from low tones up to as high as you can go.
Pay attention to your breathing, keep your posture nice and straight, and do what’s most comfortable for you. You can also contact a vocal coach to help with these exercises.
Herbal remedies
If you’d like to try a more natural cure, then turn to herbal remedies. Chamomile has long been one of the best ways to get to sleep. It works to calm your heart rate and slow it down. Herbal remedies come in the form of teas, essential oils, and supplements.
Herbal remedies are treatments more for sleeping problems than sleep apnea, but they can help make the transition to using a CPAP mask easier.
There are plenty of sleeping herbal remedies on the market today, used by thousands of people with rave reviews. Shop around and find the one that works best for you.
Other supplements
In addition to herbal remedies, you can start taking over-the-counter natural supplements that are found in a grocery store or natural health food store.
One supplement that has proven to work well is taking 5-HTP. It helps increase serotonin levels in the brain since decreased levels have been linked to sleep apnea.
The nerves that control breathing require serotonin to function adequately. It also works with cortisol to help control breathing muscles. One doctor has suggested that you take between 100 mg and 300 mg of 5-HTP at bedtime. It will help you sleep better.
The mineral magnesium is essential for human health and used in hundreds of cellular processes throughout the body. It helps your body and brain relax, which enables you to sleep better with apnea.
Furthermore, it helps regulate the hormone melatonin, which guides sleep-wake cycles. Magnesium can help improve your daily moods, too.
Melatonin by itself has been used as a sleeping remedy for decades. It is a hormone that directly interacts with your brain, making you sleepy at the right time and helping you wake up refreshed.
Homeopathy
What about giving homeopathy a try? This old method of healing has been very useful for millions of patients who have tried it since it was created 200 years ago.
Homeopathic remedies for sleep apnea haven’t been studied as much as more conventional methods. But if it works, it works. It’s promising as an adjunct treatment along with a CPAP machine.
Find a local professional homeopathic doctor, who will diagnose you based on your complete lifestyle and can then put together a personalised treatment plan for you.
There are specific homeopathic remedies that can help you with your sleep apnea. One of them is called opium (it’s not real opium, that’s just the name). It helps to treat the confusion that comes from fragmented sleep at night.
Sambucus could be prescribed to help clear out a nasal obstruction. Lachesis is recommended as another remedy that helps with sleeping problems.
Yoga for breathing
Sleep apnea most affects your entire oxygen intake system, from your mouth down your trachea and into your lungs. So, to help cure sleep apnea, you can start doing yoga poses specifically designed for the lungs and breathing.
It will help expand your rib cage, open up your lungs, and make them stronger and healthier. Yoga also helps strengthen your diaphragm, increasing oxygen intake and building up the muscles in your upper torso.
Now, your breathing will improve, and along with it, your sleep apnea will reduce. Try doing yoga breathing at night before bed.
All of these treatments and cures will help your sleep apnea. Give just one a try, keep a record of your progress, and you’ll see how effective sleep apnea treatments can be.
Living better with sleep apnea
Sleep apnea affects your ability to fall asleep, sleep soundly, stay asleep, fall back asleep after waking up, and wake up in the morning without feeling groggy or over-tired.
Living with sleep apnea can be a nightly nuisance that becomes very frustrating and upsetting since you feel like you can’t win.
Living with sleep apnea is like living with many other types of ongoing conditions—you need to try many remedies and find the ones that work for you.
Since the lack of good quality sleep affects the rest of your life, you’ll want to take the time to find the best products you can to make a living with sleep apnea much more bearable.
Keep records
When starting a diet or quitting smoking, it helps to have a diary where you log your progress. Daily changes lead up to significant changes, but the best way to see those big changes is with a journal.
Likewise, you can keep a sleep apnea diary. You can record any daytime treatment or curative therapy you tried during the day, incorporating the suggestions above.
You can record the time you go to sleep, your sleep quality that night, whether you woke up or not, and how you felt in the morning.
Most sleep apnea cures and treatments take at least three to six months to see any true effectiveness. So, keeping a diary is the best way to monitor your cures and treatments. It helps you live better with this condition.
How’s your mattress?
One of the best ways to live better with sleep apnea is to have a good quality mattress. Whether you’re a side sleeper, back sleeper, or front sleeper, you’ll want to find the best mattress that works for you. It does make a huge difference. Now would be an excellent time to find the perfect mattress.
You’ll want one that’s made from all-natural materials and is advertised to be hypoallergenic since that would be the cleanest one and have the least amount of chemicals to interfere with your sleeping. Your body will thank you, and your sleep apnea will be greatly helped.
Your mattress isn’t just another piece of furniture in your house. It’s where you’re going to spend at least one-third of your life. Besides, who doesn’t want a valid reason to stay in bed all day?
The right body position for sleep apnea
The way your body is positioned at night will also help you live better with sleep apnea. Choosing the right position can offer both comfort and a better night’s sleep.
Did you know that most obstructive sleep apnea sufferers sleep better on their side? There are many products you can try that will keep your body in a side-sleeping position at night.
One of the most common is a sleep belt or bumper belt. It’s positioned around the waist and comes with a protruding section on the back that would make it supremely uncomfortable if you were to change position. This, combined with a CPAP mask, is very effective at treating sleep apnea.
Many sleep apnea patients sleep far worse when they’re on their back. If you prefer to sleep on your back, however, there is good news: You can buy a wedge pillow.
Wedge pillows raise your entire upper body by several inches, thus opening your airways and helping you sleep better at night with the apnea. Now, those with sleep apnea can rest on their back and won’t stop their breathing throughout the night as much.
If you do sleep on your side and prefer that position, try a contour pillow. These horseshoe-shaped pillows elevate your face and neck while providing adequate support for your upper back. They are comfortable to use even with a CPAP machine.
Keep it clean
As you can imagine, having a dusty or pet-hair-filled bedroom is not going to help your sleep apnea. Even using old sheets, blankets, and pillows can interfere with you getting a better night’s sleep.
Consider this the perfect excuse for a full bedroom makeover. Invest in top-quality, hypoallergenic materials for your bedroom, including brand new sheets, blankets, and pillows.
You’ll also want to keep your bedroom very clean, especially nightstand surfaces, which can quickly get dusty. Declutter everything but the essentials, and make your room as relaxing as it can be.
Often, the bedroom becomes the last place in the house to keep clean, because it’s the most private room. But the cleaner you keep it, the better a night’s sleep you’ll have.
Caring for your CPAP equipment
Don’t forget to keep your CPAP mask, hose, and water reservoir tray scrupulously clean. There are excellent products on the market that disinfect, sanitise and deep clean your equipment.
Every time you exhale into your CPAP mask, you’re breathing out all kinds of microscopic particles that get into those tiny, hard-to-reach crevices. By combining moisture with warmth, your CPAP mask has the potential to become a breeding ground for harmful microorganisms like bacteria, germs, mould, and even viruses.
Keep your CPAP mask, hose, and water tray clean and dry every time you use them, and you’ll live much better with sleep apnea.
Aromatherapy
Sleep apnea can make it so difficult to be well-rested, and aromatherapy can really help with this. You can buy high-quality essential oils, a bedside oil diffuser, calming lotions, pillow sprays, and unique aromatherapy sleeping socks.
Did you know the sense of smell is linked to memory? The more restful nights of sleep you have by smelling the same scent, the better your sleep apnea will be.
Allergy treatments
If you have hay fever, dust, seasonal, or pet allergies, those are going to be worsened with sleep apnea. Allergies worsen your quality of sleep and produce a stuffy, drippy, running nose. Treatment of allergies could improve the quality of your sleep.
Don’t forget about food allergies, too. There might be some foods that are producing too much mucus in your mouth and clogging up your airways. Some common foods that you could be allergic to include dairy products, soy products, shellfish, food items with gluten, peanut butter, chocolate, or certain nuts or seeds.
If you don’t feel well after eating a particular food, or have noticed in your sleep apnea diary that you didn’t sleep well after having a specific meal, then that could be an indication of an allergy. Check with a nutritionist to be sure.
Reducing caffeine
Coffee is fantastic for giving you a daily wakeup call, but it can also be addictive and affect your sleep cycles. Quitting coffee or caffeinated teas cold turkey can cause pretty severe headaches, so you’ll want to gradually reduce until you’re down to just a small cup in the morning.
Also, those with sleep apnea should never have caffeinated drinks afternoon. You want the caffeine entirely out of your system well before it’s time to go to bed at night. Reducing your morning coffee is a process, but you’ll be glad you did after you sleep better and sleep more soundly.
Night-time ritual
Many sleep apnea sufferers have found that just having a relaxing, calming nighttime ritual helps give them a better night’s sleep. You can start to set up your routine. Perhaps there’s a particular time you want the TV turned off in the evening.
You can make yourself a cup of chamomile tea or purchase a special sleepy tea brew. Then you can read quietly or listen to relaxing music. There are also natural sleeping supplements you can take to help you sleep better.
All of these suggestions can help you become more well rested, even with sleep apnea.
These little changes in your daily and nightly routines will help you live better with sleep apnea.
You’ll improve your quality of life and get to enjoy the full benefits of a clean bedroom, a relaxing evening, healthier foods, stronger lungs, and your personal sleep apnea diary can help you live better and better each day.
Conclusion
Having sleep apnea is a condition that has the potential to truly disrupt not just your sleeping, but the rest of your life. It’s no fun not to be able to fall asleep, stay asleep, or to wake up groggy. Within this article are life-changing tips to help you live better with the sleep apnea condition.
Start making changes today. They don’t have to be huge. You can start by purchasing a notebook as your sleep apnea diary, and doing some comparison shopping for different over-the-counter remedies.
Record your progress. Make another change tomorrow. Sleep apnea is a lifelong condition after you get your diagnosis, but it doesn’t have to be a disruption to the rest of your life.
Live better with sleep apnea, and you’ll live a better life!