Insomnia and Sleep Disorders Articles

Most people take breathing through their nose for granted. But for many chronic mouth breathers, breathing through the nose is a struggle, if not impossible. Not only is their quality of life diminished, but they'll also have a variety of other health-related conditions such as dry mouth, snoring, fatigue, and poor sleep. In my last article I addressed 5 reasons why it's important to breathe through your nose.

Proper breathing is fundamental to good health and vitality. Breathing is the most basic physiologic function that we must do to survive. Improper breathing can lead to illness, disease, and ultimately, death. Ancient Indian cultures recognized this basic principle and developed very sophisticated breathing techniques that we now realize are scientifically sound when it comes to promoting optimal health, energy and life balance. These breathing concepts have spread across various continents to different cultures, but the basic fundamental principles remain the same.

An article was released about teens and the effects of caffeine and technology is having an effect of teens and their sleep. I know I live this issue daily. I have a teen son and a daughter who is just in her 20s. The problem is that we have not created a culture that supports teens and their needs. This article was timely as this week my son took his yearly standardized tests. He has to get up at 6am to get ready for school so he can arrive just before 7am. He will then sit in the testing room he is assigned to and will take a test that will determine his future.

Healthy young and middle-aged adults generally secrete about 5 to 25 micrograms of melatonin each night. This amount tends to decline with age, and this decline is possibly linked with an age-related rise in sleep difficulties. What is Melatonin, Really? Melatonin is sometimes described as the sleep hormone, but this is not correct. It is not geared to the sleep cycle, although it may help you fall and stay asleep. It is produced in the dark, regardless of whether or not the

One of the almost universal phenomena that I see in people using PEMFs, regardless of PEMF system, is that people almost universally describe improvement in sleep. Because of this feedback, I felt it was important to dedicate an update to the subject. Sleep disturbances are very common: from multiple awakenings, problems falling asleep, long waking hours during the night and/or early awakening in the morning. This is not even to take into account sleep disruptions caused by

Only a handful, lucky people have aquiline, straight noses. Even though your nose looks straight and good from the outside, you might still have a slightly deviated nasal septum. The nasal septum is the wall that divides your nose into two airway chambers or nostrils. Ideally, it should be located smack in the middle, giving you identical nostrils. Measuring your nose won’t help you determining if indeed your septum is off-centred. After all, the cartilage is covered with s

Have you ever begun to drop off into sleep to realize that you couldn’t move, speak or cry out? Sleep Paralysis is a waking nightmare brought about because of a sleep disorder which may occur sometime during your teens but does not normally occur past the age of 30. The paralysis may last only a few seconds or minutes and it is brought about because you are sleeping on your back. At least this is what the scientists say. The experience may involve visual, auditory, or tactil

One of the most common reasons for continued nasal congestion despite allergy medications and even nasal surgery is due to flimsy nostrils. Your nose comes in various shapes and sizes, but having naturally thin nostrils or weakened nostrils after rhinoplasty can lead to flimsy nostrils that collapse during even quiet inspiration. Unfortunately, many people undergo a number of different medical treatments using allergy sprays or even surgery before this condition is even considered. There are three simple ways to tell if you have flimsy nostrils:

If you suffer from insomnia, then you have probably been wondering how to fall asleep during those sleepless nights. More often than not, insomnia sufferers complain of not being able to relax enough to sleep. Those racing, relentless thoughts that plague the mind at night seem never ...

Do you stay awake all night and sleep all day? Do you lie around all the time but never get rested? Do you have trouble getting to sleep? Are you able to get to sleep, but wake up frequently throughout the night? Do you believe you are sleeping long enough, but you still wake up tired?nnWe are continually stressed and running short on time and it would seem logical that after running around all day we would have no trouble getting to sleep at night. But that is not the case.

Millions of Americans are suffering from many forms of sleep disorder. And often, sleep problems at night become more than just tossing and turning on your bed and having dark circles or eye bags the following morning. The implications linked to sleep disorders can seriously affect your mental and physical capabilities; in some cases, sleep disorders can even cause death. nnOne glaring example where sleep problems can become lethal can be found in motor vehicle accidents. Fro

This article does not cover enviromental or medial aspects of insomnia, just how you can use NLP and hypnosis for sleep improvement. So How Do People Do Insomnia? This may sound like an odd question, after all people don't 'do' insomnia, they 'have' insomnia, don't they? Well not really. You can 'have' a banana, or a pair of shoes but you can't 'have' insomnia in the same way. If you think you actually have insomnia ask yourself where exactly it is? I know this all sounds

Many homes are infested with these wingless insects that have been a cause for stress and insomnia to some people. Bed bugs suck blood from the skin and the resulting itch can last for several hours, other times it could last for several days.nnThe scientific name of these bed bugs is Cimex lectularius.nnThe color of bed bugsnHatchlings are almost transparent and slowly turns to burnt orange upon maturity. Every time it undergoes moulting, its color turns darker.nnThe shape o

The septoplasty operation is one of the most misunderstood surgical procedures that lay people, and even many physicians have. Some people even equate septoplasty with having a nose job, which is not true. Although, some people use having a crooked septum as an excuse to undergo a rhinoplasty, septoplasty, done correctly, can help patients breathe better, and more importantly, sleep better. Understanding the Anatomy In order to fully appreciate if septoplasty is the right procedure for you, you must understand the anatomy of how it’s done.

Because of the fast-paced lifestyle and the cutthroat competition both in business and employment, many people are plagued with tension, anxiety, depression, stress and other psychological disorders. One effect of these mental and emotional tensions is insomnia or difficulty in getting to sleep. nnIt is a well-known fact that not having adequate sleep can also cause a plethora of diseases and psychological problems. Moreover, chronic sleep deprivation can also lead to serious

Sleep has an important effect in our daily life and functioning, it also affects our physical and mental health in many ways. This can be proved easily, when we do not sleep well or have problem sleeping we wake up tired, without energy and sometimes angry, and as a result of this, we are not able to do all the things that we normally do as working or studying, also it is very difficult to concentrate on anything and we usually are not in the mood to talk with anybody or get

Introduction to sleepwalkingnnSleepwalking (also called somnambulism) is a parasomnia or sleep disorder where the sufferer engages in activities that are normally associated with wakefulness while he or she is asleep or in a sleep-like state.nnThe sleepwalkers show a variety of behaviors, ranging from cleaning the house, switching the lights on-off, walking in the house or street, going places, talking as if in a ‘conversation’, shouting, abusing, throwing things, hitting

Tonsils are one of the most misunderstood structures in the throat, not only by patients, but by many doctors as well. Traditional teaching states that tonsils are glands in the throat that help to fight infection. Because they are blamed for most cases of repeated throat infections, tonsillectomy is one of the most commonly performed operations in the United States. As I’ll reveal in the remainder of this article, many tonsillectomies today are being performed unnecessarily. Simultaneously, there are too many tonsils still left in place when in fact they should be removed.

Sleep disturbances are common in trauma survivors, and they can exacerbate depression and PTSD, increase symptomatology, and have a negative effect on health (Krakow et al., 2000; Roberts et al., 2000). In a sample of female rape survivors with post-traumatic stress disorder, trauma-related sleep disorders had an independent impact on health, even after controlling for both depression and PTSD (Clum, Nishith, & Resick, 2001). In this article, I describe what we know about tra

At first mention of the phrase sleeping disorder, the thing that would probably pop out of your mind is insomnia, or a condition whereby a person is experiencing difficulty in maintaining or initiating sleep. However, the more common sleeping disorder, which affects the very young to the very old, is actually called parasomnia. All of us, at one time, have actually experienced at least one type of parasomnia in our lifetime.nnUncovering The Truth About ParasomniannAccording t

A lot of people ask 'How much sleep do I need to function at optimum level?' but unfortunately there isn't a simple answer for that. The amount of sleep you need depends on a number possible of factors including, age, genetic make-up, the amount of exercise you get, what you do during the day, ...

Although many people assume that big nosed people naturally breathe better, there's nothing further from the truth. The shape and size of your nose is mostly cosmetic. How well you breathe actually depends on what your internal breathing passageways look like. And for many sleep apnea sufferers, a stuffy nose can make or break their treatment therapy.

If you suffer from obstructive sleep apnea, and you're frustrated with conventional treatment options, you may feel an urge to look at alte ative options. If you spend enough time researching this, you'll find a number of strange, interesting and sometimes bizarre ways of treating sleep apnea. To save you some time, I've listed 7 unusual ways below, along with my personal opinions for why it may or may not work: 1. Singing for snorers. There are various programs that teach snorers ways of singing to tighten throat and tongue muscles which in theory can lessen the severity of snoring.

The somnoplasty surgery is now the popular option to resolve snoring. Aside from the significantly good somnoplasty results and success rates, the operation also has low pain factor and short recovery period. Snoring has long been considered a harmless sleeping condition, except to the bed partner of the snorer. But studies would reveal that snoring is a latent symptom of obstructive sleep apnea. This is due to the obstructions of slack muscles in the throat and nasal airways

Habitual sleepless nights are a clear signal that something in your life needs to change. The question is, what? With so many possible causes, beating insomnia can sometimes seem confusing. Fortunately, it only seems that way. Let's simplify things. There are three basic ways to combat ...

In this article we look at some simple and effective sleep techniques. We've all heard about counting sheep and to be honest its effectiveness varies from person to person. With others it may not work at all. The reason often being is that too much concentration and focus is put on the actual ...

Many people snore and many snorers also have obstructive sleep apnea. Here are 5 common myths about these two conditions that many people, and even some doctors continue to perpetuate: 1. Sleep apnea occurs only in older, overweight, snoring men with big necks. Although the stereotypical description does fit people in the extreme end of the spectrum, we now know that even young, thin women that don't snore can have significant obstructive sleep apnea. Sleep apnea begins with jaw structure narrowing, and later involves obesity.

Since CPAP therapy was introduced as a therapeutic treatment for obstructive sleep apnea in the early 1980s, the sleep disorder of sleep apnea has become increasingly well-understood and diagnosed by medical professionals. Millions of people use CPAP therapy safely and effectively every night, and right now there's no better treatment for sleep apnea. If you've already been diagnosed and are already using CPAP - or Continuous Positive Airway Pressure - to treat sleep apnea, then you're definitely on the right track toward living a more healthy and fulfilling life.

A good night's slumber is something that everyone is yearning for but is having difficulty achieving. It is no wonder that hotels around the globe and even in the US are striving to be known as havens for people who badly needed a heavenly respite from busy and long days. From wide variety of pillows to choose from and orthopedic beds, to soothing music and sweet calming fragrances, hotels have come up with almost anything under the sun to lure customers in spending a night o

These days, most people complain of not getting adequate sleep. On an average, people need 6 to 8 hours of complete rest but most people get less than 7 hours of sleep per night, many getting much less. One of the most obvious sleep deprivation symptoms is the inability to work effectively during the day. Lack of adequate rest is known to hamper our decision-making abilities and concentration. Though many of us feel that we do not get enough sleep, we are not considered sleep

There is an issue during pregnancy which every woman must concern and that is insomnia . This issues during pregnancy are common and generally arise when the baby gets bigger and the burden on the ‘mother’s’ body is more pronounced. However, with this conditions insomnia troubles can arise at any time during pregnancy. By understanding how to deal with insomnia issues during pregnancy, it can help make a woman feel good especially if it’s her first pre

As I write this I'm inspired because of the time of year. Spring break is fast approaching and summer is just around the corner - in the northern hemisphere anyway - which means millions of people are beginning to make travel plans. Travel plans for many people include checklists. Checklists to help ensure happy and efficient traveling for everyone involved. Plane tickets booked. Check. Hotel or apartment reserved. Check. Rental car reserved. Check. CPAP battery charged and packed. Wait! Say what?

Some patients with sleep apnea do remarkably well, despite all the hurdles and obstacles that arise. Then there are others that procrastinate, or refuse to take any action at all. I've noticed 7 commonalities amongst the ones that do succeed in the end: 1. They take responsibility for their own health, and not rely on doctors alone. They surround themselves with a team of medical professionals, constantly reading and learning, asking questions, and staying up to date on the latest in new sleep apnea treatments and research.

More than a few times per month, I have patients comment that they think others perceive them as being lazy. Whether they like to "sleep in" or have trouble getting up in the mornings, or if they're prone to taking naps in the afte oon, their sleepiness often elicits other's perception of them as being lazy or unproductive.

Insomnia effects millions of people every night, and most people try sleeping pills to help out with this condition. This article will show that you can treat insomnia without sleeping pills. What is insomnia? Insomnia is a condition where people have trouble falling asleep, staying asleep or having a restful night sleep. Often times people who suffer from insomnia will turn to sleeping pills to get relief. Sleeping pills is a bad idea, because it will just create more proble

As I’ve mentioned in earlier posts, your goal in setting up your bedroom is to create a space that is completely conducive to sleep. The energy of smelly feet can only be distracting. Why is it that I so often find pairs of shoes strewn over bedroom floors? I’m fairly certain that part of the problem is not having adequate storage for the number of shoes that people own these days. Also, sometimes shoes just don’t make it to the closet. You may be thinking, “Why put them aw

Sleep - An Essential Component of Good Health: Sleep is absolutely essential to good physical and mental health. Most adults need 7-9 hours of sleep EVERY night. Sleep deprivation -- caused by insufficient sleep or poor quality of sleep -- impairs the body’s immune system, physical reflexes, emotional stability and cognitive functions, such as the capacity to focus one’s attention, memory, decision-making and the ability to complete complex creative activities or mathematical

Sleep problems during hot weather are very common and the fatigue that accompanies it makes sleep more important then ever. However, if you can not make yourself comfortable then you will not get the rest you need to have the energy you want during the day. So here are a few tips that might help you to feel great during the day and sleep well at night.r

In 1975, Dr. George Goodheart mentioned a dentist, Dr. Willie May of Albuquerque, New Mexico who was achieving cures for many systemic diseases. I decided to study with him. I remember him well: a wiry man, mercurial, always active. Filled with passion and enthusiasm. Utterly, utterly dedicated to his work. And always smiling. His program lasted a week. The patients, usually about a dozen, would fly in from all over the country on the Sunday and come to his little office on M

I've always taken jet lag seriously. Really I have. As ex-pats from England living in Los Angeles, our house is always inundated with sun-deprived Brits and close (and not so close) family members and friends, gleefully calling and announcing their impending arrival.

Do you want to sleep peacefully? Do you want to have sweet dreams? If so, it’s a good idea to become very conscious of what can influence you while you sleep. Most people have books and other reading material on their bedside tables. Some have a book or two and others have the equivalent of a whole library. Let me describe for you what a book is in terms of the FIVE ELEMENTS. In feng shui there are five elements: wood, fire, metal, water and earth. The hottest, most energe

You have been diagnosed with obstructive sleep apnea or OSA and then they hit you with a bunch of words you have never heard before. They start talking about machines and mask and humidity. You are told this is long term therapy. What they do not explain is what the machine does, what types of therapy are you eligible for and what will be the best type of therapy for you. • CPAP stands for continuous positive airway pressure. It is the most common therapy used for the treatment of OSA. It is one continuous pressure that supports the airway.

An organic mattress is created with organic supplies, like organic cotton and naturally fire-resistant wool. Natural latex (which come from the sap of rubber trees) are also utilized. These supplies make organic mattresses free from the pesticides and toxin-ridden flame retardants present in conventional mattresses. This is due to the fact common mattresses are typically produced of a core of polyurethane foam, that is a manufactured, synthetic material that is naturally flam

If ones life is measured by ones passion then Dr. William Dement is one of the most successful people alive. His passion for increasing knowledge goes hand in hand with his desire to educate everyone about the need for adequate sleep. Dr Dement has been teaching and researching for 57 years ...

Your First Week on CPAP Everyone has questions and issues as they learn about their new bedtime friend, their CPAP machine. This first week will really set the tone for your success with your machine. During this time it is essential for you’re to ask questions and get the help you may need so that you sleep better at night. These 5 steps will help you have a great first week on your CPAP and will help you move on to a successful future of restful sleep

Sleep apnea is a serious condition that can present itself in three forms, central, obstructive, and mixed, and it is extremely essential to know how to stop sleep apnea for several reasons. Obstructive sleep apnea is the most commonly found form of the condition, which occurs when there is obstruction of the airway, and is often found as an underlying issue that increases the severity of snoring as well. The condition is extremely serious, especially if left untreated, as i

This is an area that has not had enough research. The general consensus is that either ADD causes sleep disturbances like insomnia and fragmented sleep (sleep that is not continuous.) Or that sleep deprivation can bring on the symptoms of ADD/ADHD. So how do you know what to look for? How do you ...

If you are a chronic mouth breather because of a stuffy nose, you're not alone. Do you feel like you can never get enough oxygen into your longs? Do you feel tired all day no matter how much sleep you get? Have you tried various home remedies, over-the-counter medications or even prescription medications with no help? If you answered yes to any of the above, what you will read below will show you how critical it is to breathe well through your nose. Chronic mouth breathing can not only affect your quality of life, but your life, period.

Here's a radically new approach to treating obstructive sleep apnea: hypoglossal nerve stimulation. I read about initial successful pilot studies many years ago out of Johns Hopkins, but thought the concept never took off since I didn't hear anything more. I was wrong. ImThera recently announced their aura6000 Targeted Hypoglossal Neurostimulation (THN) device for obstructive sleep apnea at the Annual Meeting of the American Academy of Otolaryngology - Head & Neck Surgery in San Diego last month. There are two other companies rushing to come out with similar products.

People suffer from insomnia for many different reasons ranging from emotional stress to dietary habits. One thing is for sure, sleep is one of the single most important factors in health. Well being depends on adequate rest so the body and mind have all the opportunity to regenerate and carry out the endless functions that make up your health and well being. Here are some tips: 1. Eat a lighter dinner. Eating lighter means better digestion before you go to bed. 2. Eat ear