USDThe Sleeping Positions for Sleep Apnea Patients
All you want to do is sleep and rest after a tedious day, when you finally see your bed! You think little about the best places to sleep. Why you need to think about it?
All have their own sleep preferences. Whether it's on the stomach, on the back, to the right or to the left, or some may like to curl up using an extra pillow. It's a style of its own. Often people get sleep issues and they need to do a sleep test in a sleep clinic. If you have sleep apnea, this article could be helpful for you.
Breathing Staying Horizontal
Your body's breathing conditions vary when you lie down compared with when you stand up. When you sit down or stand, your breathing and airflow are fairly unrestricted. But as soon as you sleep, your body is forced to breathe horizontally, meaning that gravity works against your airways.
Sleep apnea as well as snoring can happen when muscle tissue in the airway are relaxed in your nose or throat and your breathing air is restricted or limited. Thus, while the breathing procedure is the same at night, the tissues around you vibrate and snore.
It is therefore important that you understand the position of sleep that best fits your respiratory patterns and try to sleep. Here are the various positions to sleep and what could be the best for you.
Supine Sleeping Position
When sleep apnea sufferers lie on their make they make the worst sleeping position. This is because the gravity strength enhances the jaw's ability to fall back towards the neck, tongue and soft palate. It restricts the respiratory tract and can cause breathing problems.
Left Side Sleeping Position
Side sleeping is a general recommendation because it helps to alleviate problems such as insomnia and GERD, which both can contribute to sleep apnea. Sleeping is not recommended in general. And since sleep quality is just as important as sleep quantity, it is essential to select a sleep position that will allow us to rest as best we can. And the recommendation is to sleep on the left.
It is particularly recommended to sleep on the left side as it allows the best blood flow and creates little or no breathing resistance. If you want to be a left-hander, start by finding your neck and back with a good, firm pillow. And you can do it with a bit of willpower.
Right Side Sleeping Position
Because sleeping on the side is the general recommendation, it is particularly recommended to sleep on the left side. But sleeping on the right side is also a good choice for anyone who cannot sleep on the left for one reason or another. It decreases snoring probability and promotes good body air and blood flow.
**Disclaimer: The information on this page is not intended to be a doctor's advice, nor does it create any form of patient-doctor relationship.