Posts Tagged ‘sleep apnea’
How Menopause Affects Sleep
This article is from the WebMD Feature Archive
How Menopause Affects Sleep
A new area of research in sleep medicine focuses on women’s health and how menopause affects sleep. Menopause, regardless of age, is associated with poor sleep quality. These sleep problems are thought to be associated with hormonal function and also with psychological factors.
One study shows shows an association of hot flashes with a shorter amount of time sleeping and a higher incidence of arousals from sleep. Hot flashes that occur during sleep have the ability to affect the quality of sleep adversely by bringing women from a deeper, more restful stage of sleep to a lighter, less restful and restorative stage.
Worst Menopause Symptom? Lack of Sleep
This article is from the WebMD News Archive
Worst Menopause Symptom? Lack of Sleep
April 22, 2008 — New research shows that women in early menopause report that lack of sleep is their biggest problem.
Researchers interviewed 110 women. All were healthy white women between the ages of 43 and 55 with an average age of 49. They all had experienced their last menstrual period within the last three years.
Incoming search terms for the article:
Might be connected to paranormal activity.?
It sounds like night terror. I had it from age 10 through 27. At 10, my family went bankrupt and we moved into a housing project. It was a pretty scary place. That’s when it started. For some reason, it stopped when my mother died when I was 27. I think the decline in our resources affected her worse than anyone, and when she was no longer alive, I was no longer hearing about it.
Read the rest of this entry »
Maintaining Proper Sleep Hygiene
by Richard O’Boyle, PublisherMore about Richard…
Getting a good night’s sleep is not only satisfying and invigorating, but also the foundation for a healthy and productive day. Yet up to a third of older individuals report difficulty maintaining sleep on a recurring basis and more than half report occasional problems with their sleep. Identifying and correcting poor sleeping habits can help older adults to improve their well-being and quality of life.
It is generally believed that older people require the same amount of sleep as younger adults – seven to nine hours each night. But they then to become lighter sleepers and may wake three or four times throughout the course of the night. They may have to go the bathroom frequently or find their sleep disturbed by the discomfort of a chronic illness. Some of these disturbances may be correctable with lifestyle and nutrition changes, but others may be symptoms of more serious medical conditions.
Incoming search terms for the article:
Green Tea Puts Sleep Apnea Woes to Bed?
Green Tea Puts Sleep Apnea Woes to Bed?
May 16, 2008 — A cup of green tea may be just what the doctor ordered if you have learning and memory problems related to obstructive sleep apnea, the most common type of sleep-related breathing disorder.
Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) starves the body of oxygen during sleep. Persons with the condition experience pauses in breathing while sleeping. This condition can cause a drop in oxygen levels, which can affect organs of the body. OSA increases your risk for high blood pressure, heart attacks, and strokes, and affects cognitive function such as learning and memory.
Incoming search terms for the article:
Sleep Study Types for Sleep Apnea, Insomnia, and More
Sleep studies are tests that watch what happens to your body during sleep. The studies are done to find out what is causing your sleep problems. Sleep problems include:
- Sleep apnea, when an adult regularly stops breathing during sleep for 10 seconds or longer. This may be caused by blocked airflow during sleep, such as from narrowed airways. Or it may be caused by a problem with how the brain signals the breathing muscles to work.
- Problems staying awake, such as narcolepsy.
- Problems with nighttime behaviors, such as sleepwalking, night terrors, or bed-wetting.
- Problems sleeping at night (insomnia). This may be caused by stress, depression, hunger, physical discomfort, or other problem.
- Problems sleeping during the day because you work at night or do rotating shift work. This sleep problem is called shift work sleep disorder.
- Conditions such as periodic limb movement disorder, which is repeated muscle twitching of the feet, arms, or legs during sleep.
Sleep studies can also determine whether you have a problem with your stages of sleep. The two stages of sleep are non-rapid eye movement (NREM) and rapid eye movement (REM). Normally, NREM and REM alternate 4 to 5 times during a night’s sleep. A change in this cycle may make it hard for you to sleep soundly.
Incoming search terms for the article:
Toddler Sleep Problems Tips for All Tired Toddler Parents
Toddler Sleep Problems Toddler sleep problems are very common. As your toddler continues to grow and develop his sleeping patterns will change. Sometimes these changes are for the good and sometimes they create a huge problem.
Here are suggestions and information about toddler sleeping patterns and toddler sleep problems.
Build a regular bedtime routine everyone enjoys. For a toddler, this could include:
Incoming search terms for the article:
Berkeley Parents Network: Co
Berkeley Parents Network Home Members Post a Msg Reviews Advice Subscribe Help/FAQ What’s New
Co-Sleeping with a Baby Berkeley Parents Network > Advice > Sleep > Co-sleeping > Co-Sleeping with a Baby
- Planning to Co-sleep – what do I need?
- Co-sleeping 3-month-old thrashing & kicking at 4am
- We want 4-mo-old in bed but not between us
- 6-month-old only sleeps lying on top of mom
- Co-sleeping 9-month-old sleeps very lightly
- Baby naps only while being held
- We Love Co-sleeping but Baby isn’t sleeping well
- Co-sleeping with a baby and an older child
- Moving baby out of our bed
- Breastfeeding and Co-sleeping
- Safety Concerns of Co-sleeping
- More advice about co-sleeping
- Co-sleepers & Snuggle Nests (reviews)
Co-sleeping 3-month-old thrashing & kicking at 4am June 2005
Our 3 1/2-month old sleeps in bed with me and my husband. He does well until around 4:00 am (easily goes back to sleep after nursing, etc.). But starting around 4:00 am he becomes very restless — thrashing and kicking his arms and legs. (At first we thought it was because he had gas, but we have discovered he thrashes regardless.) He seems to sleep through it all, but my husband and I have a hard time doing the same. This has been going on for at least a month. Does anyone know if this is common baby behavior? Has anyone been able to calm their baby’s restless arms and legs? Or is it time for us to start transitioning him to his own bed?
My baby moved around quite alot as well at that age. We put her in a bassinet right next to the bed (or you could use a co- sleeper) which would minimize the disruption to your sleep. Good luck Your post reminded me of a friend’s infant – now 7 years old – who started to be a big thrasher around 5, 6 months. In that child’s case, the child was diagnosed with sleep apnea and was I guess thrashing around for increased air. The baby’s adenoids turned out to be big and partially blocked breathing. My friend described her baby as snoring, mouth breathing, and doing a kind of sucking, choking sound as well as thrashing. Just a thought. I think that an ENT doctor evaluates that sort of thing. P.S. The baby had her adenoids out and become a champion quiet, still sleeper. Good luck to you! Fredericka It’s normal for babies to move around when they sleep, particularly when they go through milestones. At this age your baby is becoming much more aware of the world around him, is getting control over his body and soon will start rolling around and sitting down, plus he may be starting to teeth. All these things disturb his sleep. Chances are that he’ll go back to a quiet type of sleep for a while, only to be disturbed again when he reaches another milestone. In a few months, you’ll have him crawling in his sleep! If his movements bother you and your husband, you should think of transitioning him now, when it’s still easy. You could put a crib near your bed so you still have him close but he doesn’t hit you. anon One of our babies did the same thing–he’s now 7 months and I’d say it hasn’t been a problem since 4 months or so? I’m finding that with most baby-related ”problems,” the simple answer is that you just need to wait and it will resolve itself! Genevieve Three months is when we moved our daughter into her own sleeping space. We really liked the idea of having her in bed with us but nobody was getting any rest because she is so restless. It was hard – I missed having her right next to me! – but it was really good we did because we all slept better and she really likes being in her own crib now. good luck sleeping well The same thing happened to us with our now 12 month old son when he was around that 3-4 months, so we began to swaddle him at naptime/bedtime and it helped a lot. We swaddled him until he was about 6 months and swaddling helped keep him asleep longer, and it also helped on the transition from our bed to his crib. Hopefully that will help you guys, good luck! Teresa My baby began to thrash around at four months and I started to transition him to his crib at this time. For me, it has worked out just great, and my son loves his crib. If you aren’t ready to start moving him out, you could try swaddling him when he sleeps with you and this might keep his movements down… lisette Try swaddling your baby. It sounded kind of old-fashioned to me but it works and it is fine for the baby. One explanation (and instructions) can be found in Harvey Karp’s ‘Happiest Baby on the Block’ book. Apparently there is a DVD version, too. Anon. i have a 2 year old who has done this on and off forever. he’s now transitioning to a toddler bed….i entirely missed the crib boat. my advice is you will all sleeep better if he goes in a crib. i wish i had taken my own advice. good luck We want 4-mo-old in bed but not between us May 2002
Our 41/2 month old son has been sleeping in bed since he was born, (first baby) now he is strong and big 16lbs. and rolling so we need to figure out something else, but we don’t know what. We need to have some personal snuggle time but the baby is always between us. We tried to get one of those bed rails so he could be on one side but our mattress is too big 15”… any suggestions- we were also told that co-sleepers are onle good for 17lbs or less? The bedis already next to wall – not good enough. The thought of a crib has come up but we still want him in bed with us and we don’t think he will sleep alone. He has to fall asleep on one of us and sleeps on me most of the night after nursing. Help with ideas are really appreciated. Liza
We kept our son in bed with or near us for the first year, which we all loved, except for the part about the kicking, thrashing, sideways-sleeping little body taking up most of the bed. My solution was to take my sister’s porta-crib [one of those miniature cribs where the sides fold in] and remove its 4th side, so that it became kind of a co-sleeper for big kids. I secured it around with a belt clamp, keeping the sides all snug. You can also use some c-clamps to secure it more snugly to your bed; ours was jammed between the bed and the wall pretty tight, so we felt it was safe. You can place a piece of board or cardboard beneath the crib mattress if you think the gap presents a problem. The crib’s mattress was somewhat lower than our mattress top, but our son climbed up to us when he needed us and we were able to slide him over into the crib pretty easily too. It’s so nice to just be able to reach over and comfort him – it worked really well for us. It did make it a lot harder to make the bed. Jean Have you tried all different types of bed rails? We have a tall mattress too and finally found a brand (Safety First I think?) that works perfectly. It doesn’t need to be really high off the bed-just enough to prevent a roll. I would not recommend the bed against the wall as baby can get wedged between the bed and the wall. I put my baby on the outside with the bed rail up and find she is more far more likely to roll towards me than she is to roll to the outside near the guard. Nicole we had a lot of luck putting our son’s crib, minus one side rail, right up against our bed. It functions just like a co- sleeper, but give us a lot more room in the parent’s bed. he can roll over when he needs some milk or a snuggle and we can roll him back when he falls asleep again. Jolie You could try putting your mattress right on the floor and adding a second mattress and extra bedding materials right next to it, to make a super-sized bed for all three of you!
Read the rest of this entry »
Incoming search terms for the article:
Sleep Aids and Insomnia | National Sleep Foundation
Some medications can lead to insomnia as well. These include medications for cold and allergy (some antihistamines and decongestants, high blood pressure (antihypertensives), heart disease (betablockers), thyroid disease and birth control (hormones), as well as asthma and pain medications (containing caffeine).
Some common sleep disorders can also cause poor sleep. These disorders range from restless legs syndrome (a creeping, crawling sensation in the legs only relieved by movement) to a bed partner’s sleep apnea (a breathing disorder with loud snoring and brief periods when breathing stops).
Insomnia may be experienced for a few days, for two to three weeks, or it may be chronic, lasting for three weeks or more. Chronic insomnia is more difficult to treat, and doesn’t go away on its own. You may need to see a physician or sleep specialist.
ABCs of ZZZZs — When you Can’t Sleep
Does it often take you more than 30 minutes to fall asleep at night? Or do you wake up frequently during the night — or too early in the morning — and have a hard time going back to sleep? When you awaken, do you feel groggy and lethargic? Do you feel drowsy during the day particularly during monotonous situations?
If you answered “yes” to any one of these questions, you may have a “sleep debt” that is affecting you in ways you don’t even realize. And, you aren’t alone. A recent NSF Sleep in America poll found that a majority of American adults experience sleep problems. However, few recognize the importance of adequate rest, or are aware that effective methods of preventing and managing sleep problems now exist.
Why Do You Need Sleep?
