A person with acute insomnia is familiar with the torture of a missed night of sleep. But, if you woke up groggy and exhausted every morning, you might not be able to handle it. This is what happens with patients of OSA, a condition where a person’s breathing momentarily stops at night. In such cases, daytime sleepiness and brain fog are constant reminders that you are not catching on good quality rest even after lying in bed for the required hours. To improve this problem, there are many solutions available. One of these is changing your sleep position. Here is all you need to know about it!
What is obstructive sleep apnea?
Obstructive sleep apnea Treatment (OSA) refers to a condition where the person cannot breathe normally at night because of airway obstruction. The pauses in the respiratory functioning degrade the quality of sleep, because of which you wake up feeling tired and exhausted the next day. In people with this condition, excessive daytime sleepiness, loud snoring, difficulty concentrating on tasks, abrupt awakenings accompanied by a choking noise, and morning headache are common.
Sleep apnea causes the patient to awaken, even if it is just momentarily, because of a hindrance to breathing. The episodes, called arousals, are similar to the instance when someone shakes you awake from your sleep. Because of this, you catch up on fragmented and non-restorative sleep.
Explain severe sleep apnea disruptions
People with obstructive sleep apnea experience sleep disruption and lack of oxygen saturation while resting at night. As a result, the untreated condition can prove dangerous for your overall health and well-being. People in severe conditions may experience about 500 episodes in a single night. In milder cases, up to 15 arousals every hour are common, which means you are awakening every 4 minutes throughout the sleep period, leading to bad sleep fragmentation.
Sleep apnea worsens with time, and more episodes occur during the period of REM sleep. During their period, your eyes move rapidly, which is why it is called rapid eye movement (REM) sleep. The human body cycles through REM sleep in 70 to 120 minutes, and the period increases with each cycle. As a result, most of the REM sleep concentrates during the final hours, just before you wake up.
Possible treatments for sleep apnea
For sleep apnea, several types of treatment methods are available. One of these is altering your sleep position. Making this lifestyle change can prevent the collapse of the airway. This, in turn, may treat the condition or reduce its severity. The four best sleep positions among which you can make a choice include lying on your left side, right side, belly, or back with an elevated head.
Experts suggest that for apnea patients lying on the back (in the supine position) can worsen things. It is so because when you rest in that position, the tongue falls back and blocks the airway. Switching to your side can lessen or alleviate snoring and other apnea symptoms. But, the mentioned sleep position can be awkward for people and may cause them to wake up with a stiff neck. Thus, it is vital to choose a thick pillow. For stomach sleepers, a thin pillow is a suitable choice.
Sleep apnea can be caused because of several reasons. To manage the condition, you should try different cures. One such treatment is altering your sleep position. It can help improve your rest quality.