The question of how to stop snoring in a dream torments not only the snoring person, but also his environment. Besides the simple noise at night, this is also a big health problem. If a person constantly snores in his sleep, then there are some deviations in the work of the main body systems. You should pay attention to this. Modern medicine offers several options for getting rid of the problem. In addition, there is traditional medicine.
Some people snore all the time, some snore from time to time.
Why it happens:
- uncomfortable body position during sleep. Correct posture for the cervical spine and the whole body is very important. Otherwise, there may be problems with the lumen of the larynx, and this is a direct path to snoring. For this reason, most often you just need to change the position;
- defects of the nasal septum. Occur at birth or after injury;
- diseases of the upper respiratory tract. These are usually chronic diseases;
- neoplasms in the nasopharynx;
- smoking and being overweight also lead to noisy sleep over time;
- drinking alcohol in large quantities;
- disorders of the thyroid gland.
These are the main reasons that lead to snoring. When they are eliminated, the respiratory functions are restored in full and the snoring stops. Some of the problems are treated with medication, and some will require surgery.
Snoring is not a simple everyday problem, but a rather serious illness. Constant snoring can lead to breath holding and sleep apnea. Therefore, a doctor's consultation is required. The main thing is not to run the problem, because this can lead to breathing and heart problems.
The first thing you can do to avoid snoring in your sleep is special gymnastics. It helps to strengthen the muscles of the larynx, and the air does not pass with such a noise.
There are three main exercises:
Such exercises are great if the main cause is weakened muscles in the larynx. The main thing is to observe regularity during their implementation for several weeks, then you can establish a silent sleep.
If the cause of snoring is not a serious health problem, you can get rid of it with the help of simple gymnastics. But when gymnastics does not help, you should seek the advice of a specialist.
Snoring people have been at all times. Therefore, the people have come up with enough means to get rid of this problem. What to do to avoid snoring in your sleep?
Here are some popular recipes:
Also, for home getting rid of snoring, it is recommended to use special tools that hold the jaw in one position, as well as that fight the vibration of the muscles of the larynx during sleep. You can use special pillows for sleeping, which help to keep the cervical spine in the correct position.
What to do, how not to snore in a dream, everyone decides in their own way, but the folk experience is best used. It is also a good idea to use special devices that help change the simple physiological processes that provoke unnecessary sounds in sleep.
When simple ways to avoid snoring while sleeping do not help, it is advisable to see a doctor. The specialist must identify the root cause, only in this case he will be able to choose high-quality drug treatment and tell you how to get rid of the problem.
The following techniques are used to identify the causes:
After identifying the cause, the doctor may suggest appropriate treatment. This can be the removal of the tonsils, as well as surgery to reduce the soft palate. Losing weight also successfully relieves snoring and helps you sleep quietly.
There are a number of drugs that help ease breathing and remove mucosal edema. These medications are prescribed by your doctor and include drops, tablets, and homeopathic remedies. Treatment should be a course and should be repeated from time to time.
Snoring can be an indicator of other disruptions in the body. Therefore, if you snore constantly, regardless of position, be sure to see your doctor. A professional will identify and eliminate the cause of snoring, which will normalize your sleep.
Getting rid of snoring is usually the dream of not only the snoring person, but also all his household members. Everyone wants to sleep well, so you need to create conditions for a good sleep. Pick up a pillow, don't drink alcohol, lose weight, stop sleeping on your back. And be sure to go to the doctor for a consultation.
Snoring is a problem that creates discomfort not only for others, but also for the person himself. In most cases, the patient is not aware of all the danger posed by disturbed breathing during sleep. Doctors have proven that the severity of symptoms depends on the position of the body during sleep. Back snoring is the most severe and often leads to the development of obstructive sleep apnea (OSA).
What is snoring and obstructive sleep apnea syndrome
Snoring is the sound effect that occurs when the structures of the pharynx vibrate during the passage of an air stream during breathing. Snoring is often quite high in amplitude. This causes discomfort to the person who is sleeping nearby, makes you wake up and significantly impairs the quality of sleep. In addition, a sleeping snorer runs the risk of complications such as obesity, impotence, and arterial hypertension. OSAS - occurs in about half of snoring patients. This pathology is characterized by nocturnal respiratory arrest.
More details about the mechanism of development of snoring and OSAS syndrome are described in the article:.
Causes of snoring
There are many reasons why a person snores. They are divided into modifiable and non-modifiable. The first are those that you can get rid of if you change your behavior. Modifiable factors include:
- Overweight, obesity. Adipose tissue is deposited in the lining of the throat, narrowing the airway and obstructing the free flow of air.
- Systematic use of alcoholic beverages. Even a small dose of alcohol consumed before bedtime relaxes the smooth muscle tissue of the respiratory structures.
- Smoking. Tobacco smoke causes chronic inflammation of the lining of the airways. As a result, edema occurs. Viscous mucus builds up in the airways. All this leads to a narrowing of the lumen.
- Taking sedatives, hypnotics and tranquilizers. All of them reduce muscle tone to varying degrees. In addition, another of their actions is to reduce the sensitivity of the centers of the brain to hypoxia, which leads to an aggravation of the symptoms of OSAS syndrome.
- Body position during sleep. Snoring occurs in any position of the body, but in some it is much more common. Snoring on the side is less common than lying on the back.
The second group of causes of the disease includes factors that can be changed with medical correction.
The table shows unmodifiable factors and ways to eliminate them:
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Treatment method |
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Hypothyroidism is a symptom of thyroid disease. At the same time, it synthesizes and supplies an insufficient amount of thyroid hormones into the bloodstream. They are involved in the metabolism. Hypothyroidism leads to obesity and poor breathing during sleep |
Treating the thyroid disorder that caused the symptom. Appointment of hormone replacement therapy with drugs containing thyroxine |
|
Congenital nasopharyngeal abnormalities: low soft palate and / or elongated uvula |
Correction is performed surgically. Operations: uvuloplasty, palatoplasty |
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Myasthenia gravis, diseases occurring with a decrease in muscle tone |
Treatment of the underlying disease that led to myasthenia gravis |
In addition to the above, a person snores after severe physical fatigue and in old age. In older people, there is a loss of physiological muscle tone, the mucous membranes atrophy and lose their elasticity.
Whether snoring is related to body position and the pillow you sleep on
Snoring during sleep depends to some extent on the position of the body. The reason is that when supine, the structures of the pharynx: the soft palate and uvula, are more pressed against the back wall. By doing this, they significantly narrow or block the respiratory space. Snoring occurs less frequently and is less intense in those lying on the stomach. The degree of respiratory distress also depends on the pillow the person is sleeping on. High and soft - alters the physiological position of the spine, contributing to snoring.
How to lie down to avoid snoring:
- The position of the body should be comfortable. It is preferable to sleep on your side or on your stomach.
- Always go to bed at the same time. This will greatly improve the quality of your sleep.
- Use a low, slightly harsh pillow. This improves the free flow of air through the respiratory tract.
- Before going to bed, you need to stop drinking alcohol and sedatives.
Having the right posture and sleeping pillow can significantly reduce the likelihood of snoring. Many people believe that snoring with a closed mouth does not exist. Snoring allegedly occurs when the patient opens his mouth. And if you fix the lower jaw with a special bandage, the problem will be solved. But this is a delusion. Snoring also occurs when the mouth is closed, so a bandage does not get rid of it in any way.
Does a snoring person need to see a doctor
The presence of snoring in yourself or a loved one is a reason to think about a visit to the doctor. It is impossible to get rid of the problem on your own. Especially when the etiology is not precisely defined. It is necessary to see a doctor for several reasons. First, treating snoring will significantly improve the quality of sleep for the patient and those around them. Morning headaches, chronic fatigue, apathy, irritability will disappear. Secondly, breathing disorders lead to serious consequences - angina pectoris, heart attacks, respiratory arrest during sleep.
Polysomnography is a method of recording respiratory disturbances during sleep (photo: www.img.medicalexpo.com)
First of all, you need to seek advice from a family doctor. He will conduct an initial examination and draw up a plan for a diagnostic examination. In some cases, to determine why a person snores, it is necessary to resort to instrumental research methods. These include:
- Polysomnography is the most informative method for diagnosing respiratory arrest during sleep. It is carried out using special sensors attached to the patient's body.
- Pulse oximetry - determination of the oxygen concentration in the blood.
- Spirography is the diagnosis of the degree of airway obstruction.
- Radiography, magnetic resonance imaging and computed tomography of the head. Allows you to diagnose malformations of the nasopharyngeal structures.
- Complete blood count - shows the presence or absence of bacterial, viral inflammation in the body.
- Rhinoscopy - examination of the nasopharynx using mirrors.
- Endoscopy is a modern method of examining the nasopharynx using a thin tube with an attached camera. The image is transferred to the monitor screen.
After passing the examinations and establishing the cause of the snoring, the patient is referred to a doctor of a narrow specialty. The table shows which doctor treats breathing problems during sleep, depending on the cause:
There is a medical specialization, whose representatives deal exclusively with problems related to sleep disorders - somnology. This specialty has arisen not so long ago and there are very few doctors of this profile.
Snoring cure technique
The right treatment will help you to forget about the problem of snoring forever. Treatment of the disease is conventionally divided into three areas:
- Therapy with folk remedies.
- The use of special devices and fixtures.
- Surgery.
At home, preparations of various plants are used to treat snoring. The most popular are sea buckthorn, eucalyptus, sage. It is also recommended to use breathing exercises to increase the tone of the smooth muscles of the pharynx.
The range of snoring devices is quite diverse. It includes:
- Anti-snoring pillows, which respond to sound, change their size and force you to change the position of the body.
- Intraoral devices - mouth guards.
- Nose clips.
- Special clothing.
- Bandages.
- Anti-snoring devices.
The main disadvantage of all these devices is that they act only symptomatically, without eliminating the main cause of the disease.
Medical treatment has a completely different approach - an integrated one. It includes etiological, pathogenetic and symptomatic components. This means that the treatment affects the cause, mechanisms of development and symptoms of the disease. Surgical treatment is used for curvature of the nasal septum, adenoid vegetations, chronic tonsillitis, uvula and soft palate pathologies. For severe disorders and OSAS syndrome, CPAP therapy is used.
Perhaps everyone has encountered the problem of night snoring. According to research, about 30% of people constantly make sounds in their sleep, and the rest are forced to wake up from other people's roulades. Many people think that this is a predominantly male pathology, which is not true. Both the stronger sex and the women suffer from it equally. The question of how to stop snoring in a dream is relevant for everyone. It is also necessary to pay attention to this problem because it has not only an aesthetic side. In the absence of proper treatment, it can lead to very negative consequences.
Causes of snoring and why it is dangerous
First of all, it must be remembered that snoring is a violation of breathing during sleep, which is accompanied by sound and vibrations (ronhapathy). This pathology develops in most cases after thirty years.
Snoring men are more common than women. This is due to the fact that they have weaker muscles of the palate, which, when air enters the oral cavity, begin to vibrate, which leads to a characteristic soundtrack.
In women, it can be caused by low levels of estrogen in the blood during menopause, which leads to a narrowing of the airways. In turn, the sound during sleep in a young girl can be a symptom of dangerous diseases such as diabetes or polycystic ovary disease.
Children and adolescents are most likely to snore due to infections and inflammation in the nasopharynx, which cause swelling. In very young children, the problem with night breathing can be caused by enlarged adenoids.
Regardless of gender and age, people can snore at night for many reasons. The most common prerequisite is a sedentary lifestyle. The fact is that without proper stress, the cardiovascular system distills blood worse, as a result of which the tissues of the palate lose elasticity.
The reason may be: overweight and various pathologies of the endocrine system, as a result of which metabolism is disrupted. And:
- trauma to the nose;
- features of the structure of the oral cavity;
- upper respiratory tract diseases;
- neoplasms in the nasopharynx;
- hormonal changes (especially typical for women and adolescents);
- allergy;
- constant lack of sleep;
- smoking.
Sometimes people snore while taking certain medications. Such side effects are usually given by sleeping pills, muscle relaxants, antidepressants, which relax the muscles of the tongue and pharynx.
Whichever of the reasons snoring is caused, it is advisable to get rid of it. This will help avoid serious health problems.
Negative consequences
The most dangerous thing that snoring can indicate is obstructive sleep apnea (stopping breathing during sleep). With such a disease, a sufficient amount of oxygen does not enter the lungs, which leads to oxygen starvation (hypoxia) of organs, including the brain.
During the night, a person can stop breathing from 2 to 500 times, depending on the stage of the disease. This threatens, first of all, with complications in the form of diseases of the cardiovascular system.
Attention! At the first sign of respiratory arrest during sleep, consult a doctor immediately! Apnea can be fatal.
In addition, a person loses the ability to fully restore the body during sleep, which, in turn, leads to the following negative consequences:
- headache;
- chronic fatigue;
- irritability;
- disorder of sexual function;
- memory impairment;
- diseases of the lungs and bronchi;
- enuresis at night (in children);
- depression.
You should not despair in any case. There are many methods of treatment, and a doctor - a somnologist will help you choose the right one.
How to stop snoring
Modern medicine offers a fairly wide range of methods for those who want to get rid of snoring. It all depends on the reasons that cause it. It is almost impossible to figure it out on your own in this matter, and only a specialist should prescribe the required treatment.
Surgical methods
Surgery is used when snoring is caused by structural features of the upper respiratory tract, or mild apnea. For example, when breathing during sleep is disturbed due to defects in the nose, rhinoplasty and removal of polyps, if they are the cause, help well.
Snoring is often caused by weakening and sagging of the tissues of the palate, an increase in the length of the uvula, characteristic of the elderly. In this case, uvulopalatoplasty is very effective - an operation on the tongue and arch of the palate. Excess tissue, tonsils and adenoids are removed, the airways become wider, and night breathing is facilitated.
Uvulopalatoplasty is done both by the classical method and by means of a laser or radio waves. The operation in most cases helps to get rid of snoring forever, but it has a number of contraindications:
- pathology of the cardiovascular system;
- acute form of any disease;
- oncology.
After what time a person stops snoring after uvulopalatoplasty depends on the disease and the postoperative period. Full recovery takes up to 10 days. Additional procedures can last up to 4 months.
Attention! Uvulopalatoplasty is contraindicated for a pregnant woman, as well as during breastfeeding!
In children, problems with breathing at night can sometimes be caused by surgery. When, after removing the adenoids, the child stops snoring, depends on various reasons.
- Firstly, the reason may be that very often the tonsils enlarge along with the adenoids - secondary snoring develops. Then an additional operation will be required.
- If the baby is sniffling due to nasal congestion, it will be enough just to rinse the nose before bed.
Also, the child can simply get used to breathing through the mouth during the illness, then it is recommended to perform a set of special exercises to restore breathing through the nose.
Gymnastics
Exercise is suitable not only for children, but also for adults, as a way to prevent breathing problems during sleep. They strengthen the muscles of the jaw and the respiratory system, and prevent the narrowing of the airways. They can be performed in various combinations, but always regularly and before bedtime.
Here are some of the exercises:
- stretch the tongue as far forward as possible, lower it down and hold it in this position for several seconds;
- pronounce aloud "and", "y" 20 times, straining the muscles of the neck;
- squeeze the tablet with your teeth for 4 minutes;
- perform ten circular rotations to the right and left with the lower jaw;
- press the tongue on the upper palate for a minute in three sets.
It is also worth paying attention to breathing exercises.
Attention! For obstructive sleep apnea, exercise may provide some relief, but only as an adjunct to your doctor's prescription!
Innovative methods
Will help to overcome snoring and modern inventions of medicine, which can be purchased in specialized stores. It can be: mouthguard, clip, or a special plaster. They will help to cope with the uncomplicated form of the disease, will give you the opportunity to sleep peacefully.
To stop snoring at night, you can use an intraoral mechanism that looks like a baby pacifier. It fixes the tongue in the mouth and prevents it from blocking the airways.
In severe cases, you can use a compressor mask that maintains airway pressure throughout the night. CPAP therapy even helps with apnea.
All of the above methods of getting rid of are used depending on what disease is caused by snoring. And to eliminate its immediate cause, pharmaceuticals are often prescribed.
Drug treatment
There are no special pills, but medications that make breathing easier help many people to stop snoring:
- Drops in the nose ("Naphtizin", "Naphazolin", "Galazolin", "Rinostop", etc.) help if a person snores due to a cold, allergic rhinitis. Sprays, lozenges, for example, "Anti-Angin", are also relevant in such a case. As a vasoconstrictor, nasal patches are used.
- To soften the mucous membranes of the nasopharynx, drugs based on essential oils (sprays, drops for gargling, etc.) are used, which remove the "sticking" of the membranes and reduce vibration. The most effective are: "Slipeks", "Doctop Xrap", "Sayleks".
- Pregnant women are advised to take medications based on natural substances only. Constricting vessels are also used in exceptional cases, but in a dosage for children and no more than 1 week. During the period of childbearing, as a rule, doctors prescribe: "Faringosept", "Lizobakt", "Tantum-Verde", "Stopangin", "Ingalipt", "Hexoral" or some other drugs. They are selected strictly individually, so you should not self-medicate.
Note that all these remedies can be used by those who have an uncomplicated form of snoring, they are not effective for apnea. A completely different treatment is required. Tranquilizers should not be used for snoring, as these drugs relax the muscles in the nasopharynx.
Attention! Any drugs differ in their composition and belong to different groups. You need to take them only as directed by your doctor!
If snoring is not complicated, not caused by serious illnesses and does not cause too big problems, you can try to cope with it at home using folk remedies:
- mix gruel (or juice) from cabbage leaves with honey and take before bedtime;
- add baked carrots to food, it helps to strengthen the larynx;
- instill a few drops of sea buckthorn oil into the nostrils before going to bed;
- you can gargle with olive oil to eliminate dryness. This method is especially recommended for smokers.
Attention! You cannot rely only on traditional medicine! Severe snoring is the reason for the obligatory consultation with the attending physician. This will help avoid complications.
- In the supine position, even perfectly healthy people can snore, so you need to force yourself to sleep on your side. For this, some people sew a pocket on their pajamas (on the back) and put a tennis ball there - it prevents them from rolling over on their backs in a dream.
- An orthopedic pillow will help get rid of night trills. The fact is that on too small a person sleeps with his head thrown back, and on a large pillow - the neck arches unnaturally. All this leads to the appearance of sounds.
- It is necessary to make the head of the bed higher (10 cm is enough). This will prevent tongue sinking.
- Lead a healthy lifestyle. Lose excess weight. Exercise, including exercises for the muscles of the nasopharynx.
- Try to quit smoking.
All this will not take much time, but it will help maintain the health of the respiratory system for many years.
Summing up, I would like to emphasize once again that snoring, like any other signal from the body, cannot be ignored. Interrupting breathing during sleep is very dangerous and can lead to serious complications. See a specialist as early as possible. How quickly and painlessly it will be possible to solve the problem depends on the timeliness and literacy of the prescribed treatment.
