When you know that you have sleep apnea, the need to treat it can seem obvious. However, if you don’t know that you have sleep apnea, you may not even realize it, despite the fact that the signs can become increasingly more apparent as time goes by. At our Northeast El Paso dental office, we can often help alleviate those signs and the mechanisms behind sleep apnea by custom-designing a sleep appliance. If you exhibit these signs, then you may be a good candidate for a custom sleep appliance.
Your snore literally every night
Snoring is a telltale sign of sleep apnea. The condition is caused by oral tissues collapsing into your airway, and as they do so, they force you to breathe through a much narrower pathway. This increases the pressure of your breathing, causing throat tissues to vibrate loudly every time you inhale and exhale. While snoring can often be nothing more than snoring, doing it every night, especially at increasingly louder volumes, may mean that you’re experiencing sleep apnea episodes.
You wake up with chronic headaches
Struggling to breathe every night can wreak havoc on range of areas, and the reduced oxygen can contribute to chronic headaches every time you wake up in the morning. Headaches can become migraines the longer sleep apnea is left untreated, and can be accompanied by several symptoms related to chronic sleep deprivation.
You lose energy too fast every day
Besides causing you to snore, the airway obstruction that marks sleep apnea gradually causes you to stop breathing altogether. It only takes a few moments for the lack of oxygen to cause your body to panic and clear the airway. However, it isn’t usually enough of an interruption to wake you from consciousness. Nevertheless, the constant episodes can stop you from ever sleeping deeply enough to properly rest, causing you to lose energy and become fatigued every day.
You’re unusually moody or irritable
An inability to regulate your mood and think rationally are also common signs of sleep deprivation. If you notice yourself growing agitated and irritated easily and frequently, or if you experience bouts of sadness, depression, or mental unclarity, then these may be signs that you’re not resting as well as you believe.
Find out if you have sleep apnea
Untreated sleep apnea can lead to a variety of different symptoms. If you exhibit any of these, or others that might indicate you’re not sleeping soundly, then schedule a consultation by calling Sunny Smiles in Northeast El Paso, TX, today at 915-759-7000! We also have offices in East and West El Paso, and we happily serve patients from Chaparral, Canutillo, Vinton, and all surrounding communities.