Sound Sleep Guide

Archive for March, 2007

There are more than 15 million people in the UK who snore, so this means that the number of partners being kept awake during the night, is also well into the millions. The problem is, there is often a large impact on a relationship from someone who is snoring and some marriages and relationships are often in jeopardy as a partner is forced to sleep in another room.
It is important that a snorer identifies what type of snorer they are before attempting to find a cure to alleviate their problem. The noise that a snorer makes is due to the structure in the mouth, throat or nose vibrating. Therefore by finding which part of the structure is vibrating, treatment options can be identified and given more successfully.
Many people regard snoring as a joke but it has been known to destroy the strongest of marriages. This is usually caused by the partner’s sleep deprivation as when tired and irritable, rational decisions are not usually made, allowing them not to function properly. Some people who are deprived of their sleep may even feel physically ill. Problems such as these do not help a relationship blossom. As mentioned above, snoring can create serious problems between couples. The partner often tries to stop the snoring or find themselves lying there for hours listening to the sounds and wishing that they too were asleep.
Not to mention the snorer and their problems. They are usually getting kicked in the ribs or banished to another room, these all create disturbances to their sleep making them tired and irritable and changing the dynamics or bedtime. This often results in the bedtime intimacy and chatting being ruined and nobody wanting to sleep with the snorer. This then makes the snorer feel isolated resulting in an unhappy relationship. It’s easy to see why the ramifications of snoring are considered quite serious.
The most common triggers for snoring are being overweight, drinking and smoking. It is mainly those who are 50 to 59 years of age who snore the worst.
So what can be done about the problems of snoring? Visiting the doctor (the snorer that is) should essentially be the first step as snoring is not only a nuisance; it can be a dangerous condition, especially if it is accompanied by sleep apnoea, a condition where the body is deprived of oxygen. It could be pointed out that it is a dangerous condition if they are at risk of being kicked and pummelled by their sleeping partner!
Those who sleep alone find it very difficult to ascertain whether or not they snore and if so, the level they snore at. Some are aware that they snore as they wake themselves up due to the noise. Some are even awakened by their neighbours who bang on their walls due to their snoring. A good indicator for those people who suspect they snore but sleep alone is waking in the morning and not feeling rested following an average number of hours of sleep. It is therefore advisable that you see a doctor for advice and possible treatment.

A person with RBD sleep disorder acts out dramatic as well as violent dreams while he or she is in a rapid eye movement (REM) stage sleep. It is also accompanied by shouting as well as grunting, and seems to resemble other sleep disorders that involve motor activity such as sleepwalking or periodic limb movement disorder. However, these conditions do not occur during REM sleep as is the case with RBD sleep disorder, and is characterized by sleep paralysis.

One will notice RBD sleep disorder in men of 60 years of age or above though it can occur in those who are still quite young as well. This condition is the subject of many family anecdotes, and may often not reach the ears of those that matter most – doctors. It has thus led to inexact statistics relating to such incidences. In fact, it was first described in 1986, but there is no sure known cause why such a condition arises.

RBD sleep disorder does occur while there is rapid eye movement sleep in which brain activity patterns are like wakefulness that can be documented by polysomnography as well as other sleep tests. Another characteristic of this condition is a state of atonia or muscle paralysis, and the body is still, but the brain is extremely active.

RBD sleep disorder by itself will not cause the patient to feel sleepy during the day though it is found to be present along with other sleep disorders which could result in daytime sleepiness. Some of these disorders include sleep apnea, periodic limb movement disorder as well as narcolepsy. It will also cause the bed partner to be awoken, which is how the patient will become aware of such a condition.

Not Mental

RBD sleep disorder is not a psychiatric disorder and patients do not have a mental problem though it is most often found to affect men, and is uncommon in women and children. It is believed, that less than one per cent of the population has such a condition. People more advanced in age are most prone to such a condition and anyone with a neurological disorder may also be afflicted.

RBD sleep disorder is likely to affect (it is believed, up to 33 per cent) of those people suffering from Parkinson’s disease and it is believed, that 90 per cent of those with multiple system atrophy are also likely to get this condition. RBD sleep disorder gets worse with time and so, requires consulting a sleep specialist to minimize the risk to both the patient as well as his or her bed partner.

For parents, the health and well being of their child is important, from the nutrition that their child receives to the desire to see their child grow up into a happy individual. One problem that may give trouble to parents is dealing with a child that suffers from any pediatric sleep disorders. From simple insomnia to more serious problems, researchers work to study the reasons behind the treatments for sleep disorders. Here are just a couple of reasons that may give an idea of the range of pediatric sleep disorders that exist.

Insomnia

Simple insomnia is one of the most common pediatric sleep disorders; most parents know of a child who simply wouldn’t go to sleep when put to bed. The director of The Center for Pediatric Sleep Disorders in Boston, Dr. Richard Ferber, is an expert on solving insomnia problems. The basics of his method involve slowly adjusting a child’s sleep habits until they’re more in line with what parents want their child to sleep in, and proper enforcement of a regular sleeping routine in order to make falling asleep a habit. In this manner, treating childhood insomnia is more a matter of gentle adjustment and proper sleep hygiene, certainly one of the easiest pediatric sleep disorders to treat.

Sleep Apnea

Sleep apnea is one pediatric sleep disorder that is an increasingly major problem with adults as well. This sleep disorder is caused by a blockage of the air passage, causing breathing to stop in the middle of the night. This can cause snoring, as well as interrupt sleep and cause wakefulness, resulting in poor sleep patterns, as well as cause damage to the heart and lungs if it occurs for a prolonged time. In adults, this is sometimes worsened by obesity, and while that is the case in children as well, it is most often caused by swollen tonsils or adenoids blocking the air passageway.

This is one of the pediatric sleep disorders that can often be treated with surgery, with a tonsillectomy or adenoidectomy. If swollen glands are not the problem, then a continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) machine, which uses air pressure to keep passageways unblocked, may be the solution. In the case of sleep apnea and all other pediatric sleep disorders, make sure to speak with your pediatrician before attempting any treatments yourself. Do not self medicate a child of any age for any reason, it is just not worth the risk.