SNORING!

[JohnBuffaloMN]

When I was 40lbs heavier my wife had a snoring problem - ME! I saw the commercial on TV for a device you place in your mouth that holds your bottom jaw out just enough to keep the throat from collapsing. Try it - if you push your lower jaw out it's hard to collapse the throat, if you pull it in it collapses. I recalled the mouth guards you can get at the drugstore that we used for football. Put them in hot water then into your mouth and bite down. I did that holding my jaw forward as I bit down and it worked! No more snoring for a few bucks.

I still highly recommend losing the weight. I no longer need one now with the weight down nor do I snore much anymore.

 

[Doofy]

Anyone look into rhinoplasty?

I suffered from chronic oxygen deprivation for over 35 years. All from a deviated septum.
Could sleep for 10 hours and wake up still fatigued.
The deviated septum was corrected and also rhinoplasty.
A balloon is inserted into sinus cavity, which is a spongy porous cavity. The balloon compresses the material and the cavity is enlarged.

The results are incredible. Waking up rested and ready to go was a new experience.

We go through life and never realize our entire life is affected by chronic fatigue and never know it.
I would fall asleep in class, meetings etc. Very poor quality of life. Now in my mid 60's work longer and harder then ever before. Well yeah I do take naps at noon to cool off and take B12.

Anyways, rhinoplasty is painless and the results are truly priceless. Yes, on occasion still snore, but have to be really fatigued for that.

The Wife had her nose rebuilt last year as she had absolutely no cartilage due to a snow machine vs airplane collision when a youngster. She didn't know it and it only took 45 years to figure it out. Her surgery was very painful and took 2 months to heal. She can finally say that the pain was well worth it because she can breathe thru her nose now.

 

[Doofy]

Snoring is no laughing matter. It is the result of partial airway obstruction, which can end up causing DEATH.

Snoring is almost always related to obstructive sleep apnoea. The causes of the obstruction can be varied, and include deviated septum, enlarged turbinates, enlarged tonsils and/or adenoids, obesity, narrow palate, large tongue, to name just a few.

If there is obstruction from a deviated septum, enlarged turbinates, tonsils and adenoids, etc. these need to be addressed by an ENT. if the problem persists once one is satisfied that 'the pipes are clear', the most commonly used methods to try to improve airflow are CPAP or dental splints that hold the lower jaw forward which in turn hold the tongue forward, thereby reducing the obstruction caused by the tongue.

Obesity is a major factor in obstructive sleep apnoea.

It really is prudent for anyone who snores, or who is constantly tired or who falls asleep when not actually in bed (micro-sleeps or falling asleep when driving is an obviously lethal problem), to see a specialist sleep physician, who almost certainly will arrange for a sleep study to be done. Once one knows the extent of the problem and the likely causes, one can address the causes properly.

When people talk about someone 'dying peacefully in their sleep' they are very often referring to someone who suffocated to death when their airway completely obstructed while they were sleeping.

Two simple and short questionnaires (STOP-BANG) that will help you to identify if you are at risk of sleep apnoea can be found on my website Snoring and Sleep Apnoea - Dr Ken Lipworth They are not diagnostic, but will help you to identify your potential risk.

Ken

Thank You. Great info. Odd thing is, I snore massively with my mouth totally closed. Snore with or without teeth and with any pillow. If losing weight doesn't work then it is off to the Sleep Dr.

 

[Doofy]

When I was 40lbs heavier my wife had a snoring problem - ME! I saw the commercial on TV for a device you place in your mouth that holds your bottom jaw out just enough to keep the throat from collapsing. Try it - if you push your lower jaw out it's hard to collapse the throat, if you pull it in it collapses. I recalled the mouth guards you can get at the drugstore that we used for football. Put them in hot water then into your mouth and bite down. I did that holding my jaw forward as I bit down and it worked! No more snoring for a few bucks.

I still highly recommend losing the weight. I no longer need one now with the weight down nor do I snore much anymore.

Weight loss is my first step. Drop 72 pounds and see what happens. Since I snore with my mouth closed, I'm thinking that my nostrils are collapsing some and causing my soft pallet to vibrate. I want to try everything before cpap.

 

[thepumpguysc]

The sleep dr. is gonna sell you a cpap machine for thousands of $ that you'll use for 2 weeks to a month & throw it in the corner to collect dust & mold. seen it 100x..
You'll shout its marvels for a few days or even a week.. then its gonna be loud & cumbersome & your partner will sleep in another room.. see sentence #1..
I hope you find a solution..
I often thought about the same thing John Buffalo.. Football mouth guard..

 

[Doofy]

The sleep dr. is gonna sell you a cpap machine for thousands of $ that you'll use for 2 weeks to a month & throw it in the corner to collect dust & mold. seen it 100x..
You'll shout its marvels for a few days or even a week.. then its gonna be loud & cumbersome & your partner will sleep in another room.. see sentence #1..
I hope you find a solution..
I often thought about the same thing John Buffalo.. Football mouth guard..

Hahahaha! Exactly what I have been thinking. I will try nostril dilators and mouth guards first and of course, lose weight.

 

[Gale Hawkins]

The sleep dr. is gonna sell you a cpap machine for thousands of $ that you'll use for 2 weeks to a month & throw it in the corner to collect dust & mold. seen it 100x..
You'll shout its marvels for a few days or even a week.. then its gonna be loud & cumbersome & your partner will sleep in another room.. see sentence #1..
I hope you find a solution..
I often thought about the same thing John Buffalo.. Football mouth guard..

True.
Over the past 14 years I have purchased ones with 100-300 total hours on them.

Some now have built in cell phone and call and report your usage info. Medicare would stop payment on the lease if you have not met required hours off successful usage I was told by one person.

 

[Doofy]

True.
Over the past 14 years I have purchased ones with 100-300 total hours on them.

Some now have built in cell phone and call and report your usage info. Medicare would stop payment on the lease if you have not met required hours off successful usage I was told by one person.

Nice. Dealing with Medicare can certainly be a grind and a lot of Doctors no longer accept us Old Farts. I should have done all this while I had great insurance but didn't have such a loud problem then.

 

[kenlip]

The sleep dr. is gonna sell you a cpap machine for thousands of $ that you'll use for 2 weeks to a month & throw it in the corner to collect dust & mold. seen it 100x..
You'll shout its marvels for a few days or even a week.. then its gonna be loud & cumbersome & your partner will sleep in another room.. see sentence #1..
I hope you find a solution..
I often thought about the same thing John Buffalo.. Football mouth guard..

You are right and you are wrong.

Your are right in saying that the sleep physician might recommend CPAP, and he might try to sell you a machine. However, nothing forces you to buy a machine from him. In Australia, and I would assume the same is in the USA and other places, one can hire CPAP machines to trial. Of course, the mask is specifically for a particular patient, but they are not a major expense. Of course, the sleep physician might recommend that a CPAP is not the right treatment option for you and might recommend other approaches to handing your sleep apnoea.

You are also right about the compliance with CPAP being quite low. As better machines are being designed, the compliance is improving, but it is not fun having to use CPAP. On the flip side, there are people who are 100% compliant with CPAP use and for whom is is a total life changer and life SAVER.

You are wrong about using a sports mouthguard. The appliances dentists make are called Mandibular Advancement Splints. While they fit over the teeth, as does a sports mouthguard, they function completely differently. The tongue is attached to the lower jaw (mandible) to an area behind and below the lower front teeth. If the mandible can be pulled forward, the tongue gets pulled forward and away from the throat. A mandibular advancement splint (MAS) does precisely that. It is a two-component device, with one component fitting over the upper teeth and the other component over the lower teeth. It is designed so that the mandible is held in an advanced position. there are dozens of designs for MASs, but they all have the same two basic properties - they advance the mandible and the extent to which they do this adjustable.

A sports mouthguard does not advance the mandible, so it does nothing to improve the flow through the airway. In fact, it can actually reduce the airflow. Sports mouthguards are bulky and their bulk reduces the available space for the tongue, which in turn tends to drive the tongue backwards which is the opposite direction that we want the tongue moved. Also, most people looking at using a sports mouthguard to try to help their snoring are probably looking at the sort one buys at a sports store. These are not custom fitted and are going to be significantly worse than a mouthguard that is custom made by a dentist. Even a custom made mouthguard would be a bad choice, and an off-the-shelf one is significantly worse.

Ken

 

[Doofy]

Kenlip,

Can these mouthgards be made for denture wearers? Most denture wearers don't wear their dentures to bed.