People who often snore are at risk of higher blood pressure, strokes, heart attack, and of course relationship strains. If that’s not enough to look into ways to get your snoring treated, you may be interested to know that snoring can also have a dangerous effect on your eyes.

People who snore often may have a condition called obstructive sleep apnea, a life-altering condition, in which a person unknowingly stops breathing during sleep, or has oxygen-dipping events throughout the night.

This lack of oxygen affects the body negatively in many ways.  In relation specifically to eyes, people with obstructive sleep apnea are at risk for:

• Floppy Eye Syndrome
• Normal tension glaucoma
• CPAP associated – eye strain
• Asthenopia (generalized eye discomfort)
• Papilledema (swelling of the optic nerve)
• NAION (decreased oxygen and blood flow to optic nerve)

These last 2 conditions can lead to vision loss.

Also, some of the most common symptoms of sleep apnea include:

• Fatigue
• Tiredness
• Eye strain
• Morning headaches

These common symptoms of snoring and apnea are often confused with eye problems.

If you are snoring or have a family history of snoring, consider treatment and evaluation for your particular situation. If you are experiencing the symptoms mentioned above and sleeping disorders have been ruled out, it may be time to get your eyes evaluated.

Dr. Sosenko’s husband, Dr. Chris Burch, is a local optometrist (eye doctor) who provides state-of the-art-eye care at Danada Vision Center located 10 minutes north of Sherman Oaks Dental at 115 Danada Square W, Wheaton, IL near the Subway at Butterfield and Naper Blvd. Their telephone number is (630)668-0378.

Dr. Lydia Sosenko of Dental Sleep & TMD Center of Illinois is a general dentist with specialized training in the state of the art treatment of snoring and apnea with oral appliance therapy.  She also works with local physicians who treat obstructive sleep apnea with other treatments such as CPAP (continuous positive airway pressure device).

For more information on the dangers of snoring and apnea, visit Dr. Sosenko website www.TiredOfSnoring.com.  It could save your relationship, and your life!

Sleep is as important in your daily routine as brushing your teeth and showering.  Sleep is critical to maintaining and improving your physical and mental well-being. The National Sleep Foundation estimates 47 million Americans are sleep deprived, recommending 8 hours of sleep for most adults.

Sleep deprivation leads to:

• Weight gain
• Depression
• Decreased memory
• Poor Concentration
• Irritability
• Relationship trouble

What can you do to help yourself get the sleep you need? Set a sleep pattern for yourself and get into a regular sleep routine.  Start with the minimum of 7 hours each night for a consecutive week.  If you awake unrested, add 30 minutes each night until you notice your alertness return.

A few ideas to help you make Sleep changes at home:

1. Log the sleep hours of each family member, before and after you try to add sleep to your new year. (You’ll be surprised!)
2. Cut out all electronics 1 hour before bedtime.
3. Eliminate caffeinated drinks after dinnertime.

If you are getting a full night’s sleep and STILL wake unrefreshed and fatigued throughout the day, you may be suffering from a sleep disorder. Please, consult with your physician and let him know you are concerned. Make changes today to start off on the path to a full night of sleep, every night! For more information on how Dr. Sosenko can help you get the sleep you need.

Lydia Sosenko, D.D.S. Diplomate of the American Board of Dental Sleep Medicine Founder of Dental Sleep and TMD Center of Illinois.

Dr. Lydia Sosenko provides this week’s Smart Sleep Tip. If your child grinds their teeth, please watch this video.

Dr. Sosenko is a general dentist and Diplomate of the American Board of Dental Sleep Medicine. She offers state-of-the-art snoring and apnea patients relief through professional oral appliance therapy. She may be contacted at www.TiredofSnoring.com or call 630.369.5508.

For the past fifteen years,  we have been working with patients who suffer from snoring and sleep apnea. We find it a privilege to improve their quality of lives and sleep with oral devices that help them reach peaceful sleep. These oral devices are small, convenient and fit in the palm of your hand, far easier to deal with than previous failed attempts of CPAP therapy (often prescribed for snoring and apnea patients). Simply, these devices save lives.

One of the obstacles of moving forward with oral appliance therapy that we often hear from our newer patients includes cost and payments. So here are a few facts we put together.

• In most cases,  medical insurance reimburses a large portion of the service and device if the claim is properly handled.

• If insurance should not cover your situation, let’s do the math. If you consider the wide range of oral devices for snoring and apnea, let’s choose as a sample to use a longer lasting high quality custom device. A new custom type quality mouth device for snoring and apnea can last 3 years and usually much longer. (One of my patients who came in yesterday brought in his 10 year old oral appliance, and it is still in great shape!)  If you wore your oral device every night for 3 years, it would only cost you $2.47 a night.  If you compare that to a tall cup of Starbuck’s coffee which averages $3.00, that is 53 cents more a day to drink coffee than to wear a much needed, life saving device.

• Ask us if there is a temporary option using a lower quality and not as highly custom type device for you. For some patients,  this device can give some relief but we still recommend working with a dentist trained and willing to help you with this.  Side effects for these devices are often worse than  FDA approved adjustable custom devices.

Let us look at some of the possible outcomes with the lack of treatment in relation to obstructive sleep apnea and snoring. There are thousands of dollars of cost that often accompany these conditions.

• High Blood Pressure
• Stroke
• Heart Attack
• Morning Headaches that last all day.
• Sexual Dysfunction
• Mood Changes
• Relationship strains
• Higher traveling expenses (separate rooms)

Consider this: An oral appliance last years and profoundly change the quality of your life, especially if you have already attempted CPAP therapy. Make sleep a number one priority in your life! Peaceful, restful nights can add years to your life.

Dr. Sosenko is a general dentist and Diplomate of the American Board of Dental Sleep Medicine. She offers state-of-the-art snoring and apnea patients relief through professional oral appliance therapy. She may be contacted at www.TiredofSnoring.com or call 630.369.5508.

On a recent trip to Mexico, our beautiful resort was situated such that our room faced a tropical forest. It was lush and tranquil to look at but come morning look out!!

Our first morning resulted in loud birds squawking out our windows at 4:30am. This is not good when the entire family is now awake and not very happy…remember this is our vacation, and we would like to sleep in a little. Knowing that this is not just a fluke, I knew I have to find a remedy.

Preparing for what was to come the next morning. I started researching white noise apps on my iPhone that may help this situation. When you are out of the country, it is not always convenient to find a drug store to buy ear plugs.

I came across the app called White Noise Ambience. This app is great! You can choose beach sounds, rain, and lots more. For me? Well I chose the basic fan white noise setting. It did not completely eliminate the sounds, but it did help tremendously.

Whether you are worried about street noise, hotel elevators, and young children and adults running down hotel halls and talking loudly outside your door, you may want to try this app for white noise. Remember to plug your phone into your charger so that you won’t run the battery down.

Please share with us if you know of other similar apps that have helped you sleep better.

by Dr. Lydia Sosenko

Dental Sleep and TMD Center of Illinois, a premiere snoring and apnea treatment center in Naperville has been providing the CPAP alternative treatment of oral appliance therapy for over 15 years successfully. For more information on this physician recommended treatment option, visit www.TiredOfSnoring.com or call us at (630) 369-5508.