If you have sleep apnea, then there is a good chance that your doctor will recommend CPAP treatment. Using a CPAP machine can take some getting used to, but the tips in this video will help with the adjustment.
When you get your CPAP, be sure to give yourself ample time to adjust to wearing it and to contact your provider if you experience any discomfort. Cleaning the components of your CPAP regularly will help you to avoid complications that can sometimes occur with CPAP therapy.
At Sleep Dynamics, our sleep medicine specialists in New Jersey can diagnose your sleep disorder and find a treatment plan that works for you. To schedule an appointment, please call us today at (848) 217-0240.
Pediatric sleep studies are used to diagnose sleep disorders in children, including narcolepsy, insomnia, and sleep apnea. Although the method of performing the study is similar to an adult overnight sleep study, children need special attention and care from sleep medicine specialists used to treating pediatric patients.
Pediatric sleep studies are also known as pediatric polysomnograms, or PSGs. During a sleep study, kids are monitored throughout the entire night by a technician who is always available to answer questions and provide care when necessary. As with adults, kids will be attached to a series of machines to measure eye movement, muscle activity, heart activity, and brain activity. Respiratory rates, body position, and snoring are also monitored, along with any other diagnostic services requested by the referring pediatrician.
Sleep Dynamics is pleased to offer pediatric sleep studies in Central New Jersey that are comfortable for kids and parents alike. If your child needs a sleep study, call us today at (848) 217-0240 for more information or to make an appointment.
Cataplexy is a frustrating complication of narcolepsy. It affects about 60 to 70 percent of people who have the sleep disorder, and it can interfere dramatically with school, work, and daily life. If you or someone you love has cataplexy, you are likely to have many questions about the condition. Here are the answers to some of the questions people frequently have about cataplexy.
What is cataplexy?
Cataplexy is a condition that causes sudden loss of muscle strength or paralysis. When sufferers experience it, their knees may buckle, causing them to fall to the floor, or they may become unable to move. During a cataplectic attack, the person suffering from the condition will remain awake and aware but be unable to control his or her muscle tone or movement. These episodes are caused by the brain’s inability to manage sleep and wake cycles in people with narcolepsy. Often, people fall asleep after experiencing an episode of cataplexy.
Are there any triggers for cataplexy?
Most people have episodes after experiencing strong emotions. The emotions can be positive or negative, from excitement or laughter to disappointment and crying. The number of episodes that people with narcolepsy experience varies greatly. Most people eventually learn their own triggers and try to avoid them as much as possible.
What treatments are available for cataplexy?
There are several medications that can help people with cataplexy control their symptoms, including tricyclic antidepressants and serotonin reuptake inhibitors. Because these medications have side effects, it’s helpful to work with a sleep medicine specialist with experience in treating narcolepsy to find the right balance of symptom relief and side effect management. Treatment is usually only recommended with cataplexy episodes if they are frequent and disruptive.
Sleep Dynamics offers diagnosis and treatment of narcolepsy for people dealing with this complex disorder. If you have been diagnosed with narcolepsy in Central New Jersey or want to learn more about diagnostic testing and treatment options, please call us at (848) 217-0240.
A lack of sleep may be emotionally distressing, but did you know that it could also cause serious physical health problems as well? For these reasons, it is essential to seek the help of a sleep medicine specialist if you are experiencing insomnia or symptoms of another sleep disorder.
Watch this video to learn more about the impacts of poor sleep on health. The implications are far-reaching, from an inability to store new memories to heart health issues and an increased risk of cancer.
Don’t let a lack of sleep impact your well-being. Contact Sleep Dynamics to schedule an appointment with a sleep medicine specialist in New Jersey. Dial (848) 217-0240 for more information.
There are a number of diagnostic tools that sleep medicine specialists can use to evaluate patients. You may have already heard about overnight sleep studies, in which a technician monitors a patient in a lab setting while he or she sleeps. But you might be surprised to learn that some sleep disorder studies can be done while patients are awake. Here’s what you’ll need to know if your doctor has recommended a maintenance of wakefulness test (MWT).
What’s the purpose of the MWT?
With the MWT, the sleep medicine doctor can evaluate how well you’re able to stay alert and function normally during the day. Usually, a MWT is done when patients are diagnosed with disorders that affect daytime functioning, like sleep apnea and narcolepsy. It’s particularly important to perform an MWT if a patient might have a risk of daytime accidents because of sleepiness.
What do I need to do to prepare for the test?
Beforehand, the specialist will determine whether there are any factors that may affect the accuracy of the results. These can include the amount of sleep you got before the test. Caffeine, tobacco, and certain medications can also affect the results, and you may be asked to avoid these substances beforehand. Many patients are asked to have an overnight sleep study the night before the MWT.
What happens during the test?
On the day that you’re scheduled to have the MWT, you’ll actually have four tests. These are scheduled at two-hour intervals. Normally, the first test starts between 1.5 and three hours after waking up. The technician will place sensors on your skin. During each of the tests, you’ll need to remain in the bed, staying still and trying to stay awake without engaging in any activities. If you can stay awake, the test will end after 40 minutes. You’ll repeat it later that same day.
Here at Sleep Dynamics, we provide a full range of diagnostic services, including maintenance of wakefulness tests. Our skilled sleep medicine doctors and technicians will work one-on-one with you to develop an effective treatment plan that allows you to get the restorative sleep you need each night. Get in touch today at (848) 217-0240 if you think you might have a sleep disorder and you live in New Jersey.
While you’re asleep, your brain is still capable of registering noises. It’s why sudden, loud sounds can wake you up. White noise is different. It provides a steady, soothing background sound that can muffle sudden noises. Many people with insomnia find it easier to fall asleep and stay asleep through the night if they use white noise in the bedroom. An ambient noise may be particularly helpful for shift workers, who must sleep during the day while the rest of the household is active.
Consider adding white noise to your sleep disorder treatment plan. You could invest in a white noise machine, which can be set to different sounds, like ocean waves. Or, just run a fan or an air purifier in your bedroom at night.
Sleep Dynamics offers a Behavioral Sleep Medicine program in New Jersey to help individuals resolve sleep disorders with non-drug techniques. If you’re struggling with insomnia, call us today at (848) 217-0240.
If you live with a sleep disorder, chances are that you have a love/hate relationship with caffeine. Although it can help you fight off the fatigue that accompanies sleep disorders, it can also end up interfering with your sleep even more. If you drink caffeine, then timing your consumption could be important to managing your sleep disorder symptoms.
Caffeine can impact your system for long after you initially consume it. It peaks in your bloodstream about 30 to 60 minutes after consuming it but remains for much longer. The half-life for caffeine is between three and five hours. Studies have shown that having caffeine six hours before bedtime can impact your ability to sleep.
At Sleep Dynamics, we help patients overcome sleep disorders with a combination of behavioral sleep medicine and treatments like oral appliance therapy. Find out how to manage your sleep disorder in Central New Jersey by calling us at (848) 217-0240.
Sleep disorders can take a long time to diagnose properly, and sometimes it never happens at all. By understanding sleep apnea and its symptoms, you can get ahead of the problem so your child doesn’t have to suffer. Keep reading for some questions and answers about sleep apnea in kids.
How do I know if my child has sleep apnea?
The most common symptom of sleep apnea is snoring. Children aren’t quite known for it, so if you hear your kids snoring, it could be a result of sleep apnea. Kids with sleep apnea may also toss and turn throughout the night as well as stop breathing for long periods of time. Not all children end up suffering from sleep apnea throughout their whole lives, but the immediate impacts can be significant, so address the problem as soon as possible.
What can I do about it?
The first step in treating sleep apnea is diagnosing the problem. The bad news is that the condition is commonly misdiagnosed as a mood disorder like depression or anxiety. In many cases it can take up to 10 years for sleep apnea to be diagnosed properly, and every night without treatment can take a toll on your son or daughter’s health. If you suspect that your child suffers from sleep apnea or a similar disorder, sleep testing can help you find out for sure. The specialist might suggest an oral appliance or a CPAP machine to treat the symptoms.
Is it common for children to have sleep apnea?
Older people are at a higher risk for sleep apnea, but nobody is immune. A small percentage of children suffer from sleep apnea. Some children grow out of it, but some end up with sleep apnea for life until they eventually seek treatment.
Don’t let your kids suffer from sleep apnea near Central New Jersey. Instead, call Sleep Dynamics at (848) 217-0240. Sleep apnea isn’t the only condition we deal with, and our multiple sleep latency test may be the first step towards a better quality of life.
The human body is capable of all sorts of amazing things—from predicting inclement weather with achy joints to predicting an early spring with itchy eyes. Some of the incredible things the body does happen while you sleep. The following bodily changes highlight the importance of diagnosing and treating sleep disorders to give yourself the restful sleep you need.
You can grow taller.
You might have heard that astronauts gain some height while they’re in space. This change is temporary, but it’s measurable. It happens because the microgravity releases pressure on the body, allowing the spaces in the spine to expand. A similar thing happens when you sleep. Since you sleep lying down, your spine isn’t subjected to the pressures of your body weight. It allows the spinal discs to rehydrate and expand slightly, which in turn gives you a slight height increase.
Your cardiovascular system takes a break.
Each night, your blood pressure and heart rate decline. It’s like a working vacation for your cardiovascular system. This mini-break is necessary to allow the heart muscle and blood vessels to repair themselves. This is one reason why people with sleep disorders like sleep apnea are at a higher risk of heart disease. Not getting enough sleep cheats the cardiovascular system of the nightly vacation it needs to maintain health.
Your skin’s collagen stores get replenished.
There’s a reason why dermatologists can tell if their patients aren’t getting enough sleep. Since you don’t eat while you sleep, your body enters a temporary fasting state. This triggers the release of growth hormones for the purpose of releasing energy from fat cells. As a side effect, the growth hormones also trigger collagen production. Collagen is one of the proteins responsible for keeping your skin elastic and resilient.
Here at Sleep Dynamics, it’s our mission to help our patients throughout New Jersey overcome sleep disorders. Our sleep medicine specialists genuinely care about your health and quality of life. If you’ve been referred for a multiple sleep latency test, you can get in touch with our friendly office staff at (848) 217-0240.
If your doctor suspects that you have a sleep disorder, there are a number of different tests he or she may recommend to determine what is causing your symptoms. Although lab tests and an assessment of your symptoms can provide your doctor with a lot of information, sleep tests are usually the best way to get an accurate diagnosis. Here is a closer look at some common types of sleep testing you may undergo.
Overnight Sleep Study
An overnight sleep study, which is also called a polysomnogram or PSG, is a basic type of sleep study designed to collect an array of information about your sleeping patterns. Overnight sleep studies are conducted in sleep labs, where you will be connected to machines to monitor your brain, heart, air flow, eye movement, and muscle activity as you sleep. Snoring, body position, oxygen saturation, and any other parameters requested by your physician are also monitored. Technicians monitor patients by video and audio throughout the night. If you exhibit symptoms of sleep apnea during an overnight sleep study, the technician may start CPAP treatment with you during the study to see if it alleviates your symptoms.
Maintenance of Wakefulness Test
Maintenance of wakefulness tests, or MWTs, assess your ability to stay awake during the day. You will be asked to remain awake for a series of four tests that are two hours apart. The tests will record brain and heart activity to see if you stay awake or fall asleep during that period. MWTs usually are scheduled for the day following an overnight sleep study and can be particularly helpful for patients with narcolepsy.
Multiple Sleep Latency Test
Many people refer to the MSLT, multiple sleep latency test, as a nap test. It is used to determine if a diagnosis of excessive sleepiness is appropriate. These tests are scheduled for the day after an overnight sleep study. Patients are asked to take period naps, and heart and brain activity are recorded to see if napping really does occur.
Our sleep specialists in New Jersey at Sleep Dynamics analyze the results of these tests so you can get the diagnosis and treatment you need for your sleep disorder. To schedule an appointment, please call (848) 217-0240.
