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by lky_lou on April 10th, 2005

lky_lou

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Are there any home remedies for sleep apnea?

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Answers. 8 helpful answers below.

  • by Alatea on February 26th, 2006

    Alatea

    1 in 5 adults suffer from sleep apnea. It can be very dangerous so if you suspect sleep apnea is a problem it's best to see a doctor immediately.

    The question is about home remedies. This is not medical advice only a few possibilities to lessen the symptoms of sleep apnea.

    Lose weight - eat less and exercise more
    Lower blood pressure
    Stop smoking
    Stop the cause of heartburn
    No alcohol or sedatives before going to sleep.
    Keep regular sleeping times - sleep on your side
    Raise the head of the bead
    Dental appliances can sometimes help
    Use a humidifier
    Keep sinuses clear
    Stablize blood sugar

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  • by jac5167 on May 20th, 2008

    jac5167

    I hve sleep apnea to the point where I fall asleep clicking the mouse at work. No lie. I am a computer programmer and I can move the mouse to click and between the time I move it and the time I click it, I'm out like a light bulb.

    There are several home remedies I have used to combat this but let me say first, just go get a CPAP machine. If you are like me, then you HATE machinery invading your life, but sleep apnea is somethign you should not play around with. It can kill you, but worse it can leave you crippled because it kills off brain cells as you sleep.

    Here are a few things I have done which helped tremendously.

    First I made a pillow. Anyone who has been trained in CPR knows that the first step is to clear the unconsious person's airway by lifting the chin and tilting the head back. I made a cylindrical pillow which I put under my neck in order to raise it, and tilt my head back. When it is in the correct position it also forces my mouth to hang open. My first one was from a rolled up towel just to see if the experiment would work. It did and I was able to go to work, and stay awake easily.

    Second, sleeping on your side helps. Most people put a tennis ball or golfball in one of their pants pockets so that if they roll over onto their back it digs in and the pain caused them to roll back over. Since I sleep in the nude, this doesnt work for me, but sleeping on a couch does. Teh couch back keeps me from rolling over in the first place.

    Third exercise and lose weight. Excess fat closes up the throat. Also, doign a hundred or more sit-ups a day strengthens your stomach muscles and makes it easier for you to breathe since you breathe with your tummy muscles and not your chest muscles. Endurance exercises like raquetball, running, fencing help your body train itself to more efficiently use oxygen. This way you need less to function at an optimal level. Notice though that I said running and not jogging.

    But remember, unless you are going to go all out and lose any exra weight, get into the best shape of your life, sleep apnea is going to be a problem. Short of major surgery, where they not only trim the uvula but also other areas of the throat (The Stanford protocal)there is no cure for it. The best remedy is not a home remedy, but rather to get a CPAP machine. If you can force yourself to get into good enough shape, then you can always stop using it.

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  • by Dabear1234 on December 14th, 2006

    Dabear1234

    I have actually been diagnosed with sleep apnea. Before I started using my CPAP machine I was pretty close to dead, and I seriously mean that. I had no engergy, I was falling asleep at work, couldn't sit through a 30 minute sitcom without passing out. I would go to sleep at 9:00 at night, sleep till 2:00 the next afternoon, sit on my sofa till 9:00 that night and wake up at 4:00 the next afternoon. That was pretty much a typical weekend for me. I live fifteen minutes from where I work and I would fall asleep at least twice while driving before I got home. I tell you I was dying. I went for a sleep test, was told my blood pressure was dangerously high, and I stopped breathing in my sleep a total of 671 times, sometimes for over a minute at a time. I've been using my CPAP machine since April and my blood pressure is normal, I go to sleep at 11:30 every night, awake at 5:45 with no problem, work through the day without getting sleepy, watch 3 hour movies without dozing and drive without passing out. My advice to everyone, if you have any of the above symptoms go see a doctor now, don't wait till your almost dead like I did. And by the way, it took me less than a week to get use to sleeping with my mask, once I started feeling better it was nothing. Now, you won't catch me sleeping without it. I was a bad case, I waited to long to get checked out, so the doctor said it could be about a year before I'm back to abnormally normal. I'd say I'm at about 75% today.

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  • by Kizz miazz on August 10th, 2009

    Kizz miazz

    There is no home remedy, you need a sleep test and a CPAP, period. Every time you stop breathing you can send a signal to your brain for your heart to stop. Plus lack of oxygen can damage your heart muscle tissue and many other things they do not even know about.

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  • by Katie O. on August 10th, 2009

    Katie O.

    I chose the CPAP machine and it works great! The first week takes getting used to. I would wake up and find the mask off my face. So apparently I was pulling it off in my sleep. But I got used to it. I know 6 people who had the surgery and they are all sorry that they did it. Two of them say that it took so long for their throats to heal that they wanted to sue their doctor.(one of them said that all they could eat was soft foods for 12 weeks and it hurt like heck to swallow). The other 4 said that the surgery did not make any difference at all and they ended up with the CPAP machine after all.

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  • by webgrunt on April 11th, 2005

    webgrunt

    Sleep apnea is the stoppage of breathing while sleeping. Breathing usually resumes, but not before oxygen levels in the blood drop to unhealthy lows. Untreated, it can cause daytime drowsiness, difficulty arising in the morning even when you have had plenty of sleep, headaches; severe cases can cause a heart attack or death.

    It is caused by the soft tissues in the back of the mouth relaxing in sleep to the point where they seal off the airway. It is usually accompanied by snoring, sometimes explosively loud snoring.

    There are a number of treatments, but there is no one "best" one--some work for some people and do not work for others.

    If the apnea sufferer is overweight, the first thing to do is try to lose weight gradually through diet and exercise. When you gain weight, the soft tissues get thicker and tend to seal up easier and when you lose weight they reduce and tend to be more likely to remain open.

    Decongestants may help temporarily shrink these soft tissues, but repeated use of decongestants can reduce their effectiveness, as a tolerance is built up. Also, they have side effects.

    Other treatments for apnea include a machine such as the CPAP (continuous positive air pressure) that pumps a steady stream of air through your nostrils to keep the airways open. It can take a little getting used to one of these before you can sleep with the apparatus on your face, but it is very effective.

    Surgery can remove parts of your soft palate (the back of the roof of the mouth) and in some patients this reduces or eliminates apnea, but results of the surgery are mixed, and while some people don't miss the tissue removed, others find it very uncomfortable and regret having the surgery.

    I encourage you to get as much information as possible on the different treatments so that you can decide which is best for you. The following link takes you to "sleep apnea" search results on Google, there are a number of good links there:

    http://www.google.com/search?hl=en&q=%22sleep+apnea%22

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  • by Mendtos on August 10th, 2009

    Mendtos

    Direct a box fan into your open mouth and hope for the best

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  • by CaRbOnPrOdUcK is Baccuss on October 7th, 2010

    CaRbOnPrOdUcK is Baccuss

    sleep in another room far away from anyone who has to endure the anoying sound

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