SCOTTS VALLEY, SANTA CRUZ CA
People tend to be more active during summer. Perhaps it is the longer daylight hours or, the warmer weather beckoning you to attend social gatherings late into the evenings. Young adults and teens often do away with their usual sleep routine, staying up late and sleeping in the next day. Unfortunately, summertime can also wreck your sleep schedule, leaving you feeling tired and fatigued once your usual schedule resumes. And for some, it’s an uphill battle no matter how much time you spend “sleeping.” In these cases, a sleep-breathing disorder known as Obstructive Sleep Apnea could be hindering your goals of getting enough quality ZZ’s. In today’s blog, our Scotts Valley airway dentists discuss ways to get a better night’s sleep and signs to look for if you think you might have a sleep-breathing disorder.
Exercise more
When you exercise at least 30 minutes a day, it can improve your health. It helps to lower your risks of heart disease and other health problems. Exercising can also help you sleep better at night. You don’t have to join a gym to get exercise. You can go for a walk in your neighborhood, work out to exercise videos on YouTube, or look online for HITT (High-Intensity Interval Training) workouts you can do in your living room. To ensure that you are staying healthy, try and work out at least 30 minutes a day.
Eat better
Eating healthy can help improve your sleep. Eat food that is low in sugar and try and stay away from caffeine and alcohol. If you do drink caffeine, try and drink it in the morning only, and not later in the day. Drinking it later in the day or before bed may make it difficult to sleep. If you drink alcohol, limit how much and how often you drink. Many people think alcohol helps them sleep better, but this is not true. It actually hinders the brain from reaching the sleep cycle’s deepest sleep, which is REM. It also causes you to urinate more frequently and can make you restless throughout the night.
Establish a routine
Each day you should have a set time of when you want to wake up and when you want to go to bed. Keep this routine on holidays and weekends. Having a routine will help you sleep better. If you think you can catch up on sleep, think again. This is why it is important to go to bed and wake up at the same time each day. It will ensure that you are getting enough sleep. Set yourself reminders on your phone so that you do not lose track of time and when you should head to bed or wake up each morning.
Wind down before bedtime
About an hour before you’re ready to go to bed, avoid activities that stimulate the brain. These include scrolling on your phones, watching T.V., or playing with an electronic device. Think of things that can help you relax. Maybe take a hot bath, or use some essential oils. Start reading a good book or magazine. Don’t have serious conversations before bed. Do those at a time when you’re alert and not trying to wind down from the day. Your brain needs to rest and so do your eyes.
Get a sleep apnea screening
Living a healthy lifestyle starts with getting a good night’s sleep. Sleep apnea does not just occur in heavy-weight or older individuals. It also occurs in healthy young people. If you cannot sleep no matter how long you spend in bed, it may be time for you to get a sleep apnea screening.
Common ways to tell if you have sleep apnea:
- Loud snoring
- Gasping for air during sleep
- Difficulty staying asleep
- Waking with a dry mouth
- Weight gain
- Mood swings
- Headache
- Depression
Snoring and pausing while breathing are the most common signs of sleep apnea, but there are other signs that could point toward a sleep-breathing disorder. If you have ever experienced any of the above symptoms, schedule an airway consultation with Ebrahimian Integrative Dentistry. Our dentists can do a sleep apnea assessment and may recommend a sleep study to help diagnose if you suffer from sleep apnea. Our dentist also offers oral appliance therapy, which can help open your airway while sleeping. This is an appliance that is made to comfortably fit in your mouth to open the airway and reduce snoring and allow more airflow. Studies show that oral appliance therapy is very effective in treating mild to moderate cases of sleep apnea. Oral appliance therapy is so effective that people often do not have to use a CPAP machine.
Sleep Apnea Screening in Scotts Valley, Los Gatos, and Santa Cruz
Contact Ebrahimian Integrative Dentistry at (831) 438-4411 if you would like to learn more about sleep apnea. We are passionate about helping our patients find relief from their sleep apnea symptoms. We look forward to seeing you and helping you get a more restful night’s sleep.
