Not feeling rested after a seemingly full night’s sleep is a nightmare. After all, you take the appropriate steps to get a solid seven or eight hours of rest, yet you wake up feeling groggy and generally out of it. This not only causes lethargy but can make your life much more difficult to navigate. If this ever happens to you, you could be suffering from Obstructive Sleep Apnea (OSA), which is generally marked by loud, often violent-sounding snoring. This issue affects many people, but luckily there are helpful solutions. In today’s blog, your Kansas City, MO dentist discusses obstructive sleep apnea and the ways we can treat it, ensuring that you can have restful sleep once again.
Understanding OSA
Sleep apnea stems from your airways becoming blocked while you sleep. Sometimes, the muscles in the back of your throat become too relaxed, subsequently causing you to stop breathing. This momentary stoppage is hardly noticeable — especially while you slumber — but it still triggers a panic response in your brain, causing you to wake up. However, because you are waking up so briefly, you will not even notice it is happening. The damage is done, though, and your sleep cycle becomes interrupted. Because this period of wakefulness is so quick, you won’t even know that you are losing sleep. This is particularly difficult because without recognizing that you are awake, you likely will not know you are suffering from an issue. Unless you share a bed with someone who can inform you about your snoring, you probably won’t understand something is amiss without experiencing its symptoms. If you are in bed for seven to eight hours yet you are always tired, that is a big sign. Moreover, interruptions to your sleep can cause exhaustion, memory loss, elevated blood pressure, increased stress, and more.
An Oral Appliance Can Help
If you suspect you are suffering from sleep apnea, we can create a custom-crafted night guard for you to wear while you sleep. It will adjust your tongue, jaw, and palate into a position that stops the blockage of your airways. You will then cease the loud snoring and actually get a good night’s sleep. This serves as a great alternative to a CPAP machine, as it is not cumbersome, loud, or complex; you simply wear it in your mouth while you sleep.
Contact Us For More Information
If you are consistently waking up tired after seemingly getting a full night’s sleep, you could very well be suffering from OSA. If you have any questions or would like to schedule an appointment, we encourage you to contact Delightful Dental Care in Kansas City, MO by calling 816-942-7669. We look forward to hearing from you and helping you feel more rested.