Teens & Sleep Disorders

The scariest thing about sleep disorders could be that so many victims go undiagnosed. Parents, we just want the best for our children, right? Well, listen up because this could be your teen that we’re talking about. If your teenager has a hard time falling asleep at night, if it’s a battle to get them out of bed every morning, or if they’re sleepy throughout the day, they could be displaying a pattern of disturbed sleep. Your teen could be diagnosed with sleep disorders like narcolepsy, insomnia, restless leg syndrome (RLS), sleep apnea, and nocturnal enuresis, or bed wetting. The significance of this lies in the fact that this pattern of disturbed sleep could be an early warning sign of even greater problems to come.

Not to mention all of the complications that go hand-in-hand with a lack of sleep! A sleepy teenager is more likely to experience problems with cognitive function. This could lead to greater problems in the future such as the development of learning disabilities, memory impairment, personality changes and depression, daytime sleepiness, mood swings, drowsy driving, poor grades, and even weight gain. In other words, if your teenager isn’t getting enough sleep because of sleep disorders that should be treated but aren’t, fighting to get them out of bed in the morning could be the least of your worries. A lack of sleep is a problem in itself, but the consequences of sleep deprivation tend to permeate into other aspects of life outside of the bedroom like school, relationships, and even health.

There are several things that you should be on the lookout for in your teens. Most common sleep disorders among teenagers include nocturnal enuresis, otherwise known as bed-wetting, sleep terror, rhythmic disorder (moving in sleep), insomnia (a lack of sleep or a disturbed sleep), teeth grinding (oftentimes due to stress), sleep walking, and sleep talking. If your teen displays any of these common sleep disorders, be sure to get the proper treatment for your loved ones before you start to see the chain reaction of consequences reach outside aspects like grades!

There are even things that you can do to prevent the development of sleep disorders and to get a good night of sleep for your kids. For example, cutting down their consumption of soft drinks, cold coffee, and nighttime snacking of chocolates will encourage a healthy sleep schedule for your teens. In addition, relieving or even reducing stress related to their studies will make getting to sleep a lot easier for them. Make sure that the television and video games are turned off at night too!

When it comes down to it, parents should stay aware and pay attention. Make it a habit to sleep at a proper time, and your children will be more likely to follow your example. Activities like listening to soft music and reading books encourages a healthy sleep pattern a lot more than violent video games and late night sitcoms. We know how important sleep is for a growing body and mind. We also know how much you love your children. We all want what’s best for the next generation!

Teens & Sleep Disorders

The scariest thing about sleep disorders could be that so many victims go undiagnosed. Parents, we just want the best for our children, right? Well, listen up because this could be your teen that we’re talking about. If your teenager has a hard time falling asleep at night, if it’s a battle to get them out of bed every morning, or if they’re sleepy throughout the day, they could be displaying a pattern of disturbed sleep. Your teen could be diagnosed with sleep disorders like narcolepsy, insomnia, restless leg syndrome (RLS), sleep apnea, and nocturnal enuresis, or bed wetting. The significance of this lies in the fact that this pattern of disturbed sleep could be an early warning sign of even greater problems to come.

Not to mention all of the complications that go hand-in-hand with a lack of sleep! A sleepy teenager is more likely to experience problems with cognitive function. This could lead to greater problems in the future such as the development of learning disabilities, memory impairment, personality changes and depression, daytime sleepiness, mood swings, drowsy driving, poor grades, and even weight gain. In other words, if your teenager isn’t getting enough sleep because of sleep disorders that should be treated but aren’t, fighting to get them out of bed in the morning could be the least of your worries. A lack of sleep is a problem in itself, but the consequences of sleep deprivation tend to permeate into other aspects of life outside of the bedroom like school, relationships, and even health.

There are several things that you should be on the lookout for in your teens. Most common sleep disorders among teenagers include nocturnal enuresis, otherwise known as bed-wetting, sleep terror, rhythmic disorder (moving in sleep), insomnia (a lack of sleep or a disturbed sleep), teeth grinding (oftentimes due to stress), sleep walking, and sleep talking. If your teen displays any of these common sleep disorders, be sure to get the proper treatment for your loved ones before you start to see the chain reaction of consequences reach outside aspects like grades!

There are even things that you can do to prevent the development of sleep disorders and to get a good night of sleep for your kids. For example, cutting down their consumption of soft drinks, cold coffee, and nighttime snacking of chocolates will encourage a healthy sleep schedule for your teens. In addition, relieving or even reducing stress related to their studies will make getting to sleep a lot easier for them. Make sure that the television and video games are turned off at night too!

When it comes down to it, parents should stay aware and pay attention. Make it a habit to sleep at a proper time, and your children will be more likely to follow your example. Activities like listening to soft music and reading books encourages a healthy sleep pattern a lot more than violent video games and late night sitcoms. We know how important sleep is for a growing body and mind. We also know how much you love your children. We all want what’s best for the next generation!

Diary of an Insomniac

The older I got, the more my sleeping problems began to affect me. First it was just a restless night here and there. But ever since recently, it seems like every night I find myself ready and able to sleep only to be wide-awake in the wee hours of the morning – bone-tired.

Maybe it’s something in my diet? Coffee? Could it be the caffeine in the things I drink? Or could it be that there’s too much sugar in the things that I eat. I begin to avoid all the things that could potentially keep me up the whole night. I wait a couple of weeks to see if my abstinence has its desired effect. To no avail, I spend the last 4 nights out of the week slave to the whims of my restless mind. And the other days of the week I wake up a zombie to the world and spend the rest of my day fatigued. I backtrack a little and try to see what else could be the culprit for all my restless nights. I stare at my bare bed in rapt trying to think for clues. Could it be that I have some sort of sleeping disorder? Impossible. I couldn’t possible have anything like that. I try taking melatonin. It actually works for a little bit. But after a couple of weeks, I find that I need more and more to sleep. As my body grows more familiar with the natural supplement, I find that Melatonin no longer helps me sleep.

I decide that getting myself tested is probably the best thing to do at this point. Because if there really is something wrong with me, then nothing I do will work anyways. I use the Internet to gather relevant information. I schedule an appointment to be tested for the entire range of possible disorders that could apply to my case: Restless legs syndrome, sleep apnea, and even narcolepsy. It turns out I have sleep apnea. Meaning that I don’t get enough oxygen to the brain because there is an obstruction in the movement of air to my lungs. In my case the soft tissue located at the top my throat blocks the passage of air when relaxed.  Now I have to sleep with a CPAP machine by my bedside to make sure that I receive the proper amount of sleep. It has helped though, it has allowed me have more peaceful sleep even though the machine makes a low humming at night. You grow used to it after awhile. I hope that more insomniacs’ get tested because there a millions of people out there who were like me and didn’t know that there was an underlying reason to their nightly affliction.

Sex and Sleep Disorders

When patients suffering from sleep disorder symptoms get themselves tested at a Sleep Clinic, many of them already sleep on separate beds or bedrooms from their spouses.

In what is less of a surprise, married couples who sleep in separate beds or bedrooms from their spouses often does not bode well for their marriage. And that is only 1 of the many things that sleep disorders take its’ toll on a marriage that has one family member suffering from narcolepsy, insomnia, ES (extensive sleepiness), sleep apnea(OSA), etc.

Studies from the Stanford University Sleep Medicine Center say that men or women with sleep disorders manifest problems with sex. The lack of sleep translates to fatigue, sleepiness, and a lack of interest in sex, or sexual dysfunction.

In particular, men with OSA, suffer from low testosterone levels, decreasing libido and the interest to engage in sexual activities.

Yet, all is not lost. With the advent of Home Sleep Testing, making diagnosing sleep disorders easier, more conveniently, and cheaper, the problems of sex (or the lack of it) associated with OSA or any other sleep disorders can be arrested by recognizing the symptoms early, diagnosis, and treatment of the ailment itself.

The impetus to have yourself tested, and tested early is there. After all, when your family life is adversely affected by OSA, it is incumbent upon the family member with OSA to have treatment  so as not to damage your overall family life.

Especially when it comes to sex.

www.n2sleep.com

Three (3)Reasons for Home Sleep Testing

A new trend in the field of sleep science has been the shift to Home Sleep Testing.

Why is this significant? Let me give you three (3)reasons.

Comfort: Isn’t your bed the greatest place to sleep in?  Whereas Lab-based testing requires you to spend a night in a Sleep Clinic with all sorts of wires glued to your body, most people find Home Sleep Testing preferable because you are in the comforts of your home, and amongst family and friends.

Convenience: No need to drive to some Clinic far away from your home,  no hassles on whether you have coverage on your insurance policy, and a simple device the size of an MP3 player attached unobtrusively on your body which you can simply click on and get accurate results, plus short waiting periods for your reults.

Cost: Since the cost of the test itself is minute compared to the costs of a full Lab-based test, it’s savings all the way around. Most deductibles in insurance policies are higher than the cost of a Home Sleep test. Result: reliable results, without fretting over costs.

While Home Sleep testing is not for everyone, it does convince many people with sleep disorder symptoms to go for the test rather than to leave yourself undiagnosed, which could lead you ever exposed to the dangers of narcolepsy, insomnia, sleep apnea, just to name a few disorders.

An ounce of prevention is better than a pound of cure! Home Sleep Testing is the way to go…just to be sure.

www.n2sleep.com