If your partner complains that you snore loudly or have breathing pauses followed by choking or gasping noises, make an appointment with your primary care doctor. On average people have been snoring and have struggled with their sleep quality for at least 10 years before they do something about it.

Having sleep and breathing issues, for this period of time, can have disastrous consequences for your health. Tell your primary care doctor you’re not sleeping well or if you don’t feel well-rested in the morning and especially if you have an excess of sleepiness during the day advises Richard S. Gillum, DDS a dental sleep medicine advocate in Greenwood, Indiana. Do the same if you notice cloudy thinking, experience emotional liability or lack of dreaming which can be related to poor sleep. Face it, snoring can destroy the quality of your life and those living with you. Get tested. If your doctor suspects obstructive sleep apnea, you should be referred to a sleep specialist, who may recommend an in-lab sleep study or home sleep testing.

During an in-lab study, you’ll spend the night in a sleep center while technicians monitor the number of times an hour you stop breathing and may give you a trial with a special breathing aide called a CPAP machine. With a home test, which may be less sensitive but more comfortable and convenient, you sleep in your own bed and wear a small device that records snoring and changes in breathing patterns while you sleep. Check with your health insurer before having a sleep study to determine coverage. If your problem is suspected to be disruptive snoring or primary sleep apnea, you will commonly be given a home study.

If you are prescribed a CPAP machine and discover your not going to be compatible bed partners, don’t give up. You are not alone. Although extremely effective, many folks just won’t be able to tolerate it. Dental sleep medicine offers the best alternative to CPAP a comfortable custom oral device worn while you sleep that restores adequate breathing and eliminates snoring.

If you suspect that you have sleep apnea and want guidance and support we are always glad to assist you in getting the help you need.

Richard S. Gillum, DDS

GillumDentistry.com