Have you been diagnosed with sleep apnea? If so, it’s important to take whatever steps you can to get the issue under control before it can lead to life-threatening problems. One thing you definitely need to do is identify any variables that could make your sleep disorder even more severe. Your sleep dentist is here to help by explaining 5 factors that can potentially worsen your sleep apnea.

Migraines can be a truly debilitating experience, especially if you have them over and over throughout the month. If you suffer from chronic migraines, you’ve probably scoured the internet to find relief. But have you ever considered that your headaches might be linked to a condition called Temporomandibular Joint Disorder (TMD)?

Continue reading to explore this potential connection and how addressing TMD might help alleviate your migraines.

Many people dismiss obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) as nothing more than an annoyance because it causes snoring and tiredness. However, that thinking is woefully inaccurate. Not only can this condition have devastating consequences for your daily quality of life, but it could also lead to an early death! How might it do that, and how could sleep apnea treatment help you live longer? Read this blog post to discover some important information.

According to the American Medical Association and Johns Hopkins Medicine, sleep apnea affects about 30 million people in the United States, but only 6 million are diagnosed with the condition that could lead to life-threatening consequences.

While many people choose to use a CPAP machine to help them sleep through the night, your sleep dentist can offer alternatives known as oral appliances.

These mouthguard-like devices push the bottom jaw slightly forward, allowing for better airflow while you’re asleep. They can be invaluable for treatment of the disorder. Read on to learn how to take care of your oral appliance so it can better serve your needs.

If you struggle to remain asleep at night, there’s a good chance you suffer from sleep apnea. But this condition doesn’t just inhibit your ability to rest; it can lead to potentially dangerous health complications if left untreated. With that in mind, it’s important to understand what sleep apnea is so that you can manage your symptoms and get back to bed, and sometimes knowing that you aren’t alone in your struggle can be encouraging. Keep reading to learn a little more about sleep apnea and how it’s treated, along with some examples of some of the famous faces who are subject to the condition themselves.

When the temporomandibular joint (TMJ), which links the jawbone to the skull, sustains injury or excessive strain, it leads to a TMJ disorder, triggering persistent jaw pain and headaches. Thankfully, your dentist can offer several remedies to alleviate your discomfort. Frequently, they might propose teeth realignment or the use of an oral appliance. Alternatively, they might suggest BOTOX treatment in certain instances! Curious about the connection between BOTOX and TMJ therapy? Continue reading to uncover the details.

Obstructive sleep apnea is a common disorder that causes frequent pauses in breathing while sleeping. The soft tissues in the back of the mouth and throat collapse to block the upper airway. This results in frequent breathing disruptions that can have potentially deadly complications. Believe it or not, exercise can be a solution to prevent and manage sleep apnea. Here’s how taking a walk can improve your health and help you sleep better.

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Quality sleep is vital for your physical and mental health; however, if your partner snores, it can keep both of you tossing and turning at night. You don’t have to sleep in another room or struggle with daytime fatigue. You can give the gift of snore-less sleep and better health to your loved one with an oral appliance. Although everyone snores occasionally, chronic snoring can be a sign of an untreated sleep disorder that can increase your partner’s risk of many health concerns, including heart attacks and strokes. Here’s how an oral appliance can improve their health and quality of life, so you both can sleep peacefully.

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If you often experience facial soreness or occasionally have trouble opening and closing your mouth, you might have a problem with the TMJ (temporomandibular joint) that connects your lower jaw to the rest of your skull. A TMJ disorder can occur for any number of reasons, but you might be surprised to learn that in many cases, it’s connected to a sleep disorder. The following post explores the often-overlooked connection between TMJ and sleep apnea.

Sleep apnea is a serious condition that causes you to lose sleep night after night. Over time, that sleep deficit can have seriously negative impacts on your overall health – like increasing your risk of heart disease and diabetes as well as making it more likely that you will experience a serious car accident. Treatment is available for sleep apnea, but do you really need to seek professional help? In most cases, the answer is yes – but keep reading to learn about some ways that you can lessen the effects of sleep apnea, and how to know when treatment is right. 

What Is Sleep Apnea?

Sleep apnea is a condition that is characterized by the collapse of soft tissues in the mouth and throat during sleep. The collapse blocks the proper flow of air, causing the sufferer to briefly wake in order to resume breathing. Loud, chronic snoring is also common. A person with this condition may wake up hundreds of times per night without realizing it. All that they may notice is a groggy, fatigued feeling the next day – and every day after that. 

Tips to Improve Sleep Apnea

If you have sleep apnea, there are several things you can do to improve the condition. They include:

• Losing weight: If you are overweight or have obesity, then one of the best things you can do to improve your sleep is to lose weight. Extra fat around the neck makes it more likely the tissues will collapse, causing the interruptions in breathing and sleep.
• Avoiding alcohol: That glass of wine or cocktail before bed doesn’t just help you feel calmer mentally – it also physically relaxes your muscles, reducing their ability to remain engaged to facilitate breathing throughout the night. Thus, people with sleep apnea often note their symptoms improve when they cut out alcohol. 
• Try side-sleeping: It could be that your symptoms improve just by adjusting your sleeping position. Avoid sleeping on your back for a few nights to see if you can regain better rest – this position greatly increases the chances of snoring and disrupted sleep because it puts pressure on the airway.

Do You Need Professional Treatment?

If you try the above tips and still can’t seem to regain your restful eight hours, then it may be time to reach out to a professional for diagnosis and treatment. Today’s solutions to sleep apnea, like oral appliance therapy, are more convenient and effective than ever.  

You deserve to enjoy all the benefits of a great night’s sleep every night! Don’t wait for sleep apnea to go away on its own – get started with a professional today.

Meet the Dentist

Dr. Keane Fedosky is a highly experienced general dentist and is also a member of the American Academy of Dental Sleep Medicine. As such, he is the expert to turn to for help with snoring and sleep apnea. Dr. Fedosky and his team offer a range of treatments, including oral appliance therapy. To learn more about your options, contact Sleep Rehab & TMJ Treatment by phone at (972) 753-3737.