17-year-old Betty was referred for speech therapy by her otolaryngologist because she had a hoarse voice and was coughing whenever she ate. Inspection of the vocal cords by her doctor revealed that everything looked normal. Continue reading
I have seen my clients’ lives change when they stop mouth breathing. I am shocked to learn that none of my clients’ doctors have ever asked them if they breathe through their mouth or their nose. Does that mean it isn’t important? NO. Does it mean that the doctors don’t know the consequences of mouth breathing? I can’t imagine that being the case, but it may be.
Most of my clients are mouth breathers who snore. I have treated hundreds over the last 12 years and realize that I can call myself an expert on snoring.
Definition of an expert: Professional who has acquired knowledge and skills through study and practice over the years, in a particular field or subject, to the extent that his or her opinion may be helpful in fact finding, problem solving, or understanding of a situation. Continue reading
There was an article in Glamour magazine about somnorexia, written by Camille N. Pagan. One of the experts, Dr. Anne Remmes, said that if you get fewer than 7 hours of sleep a night during the week and more than 10 hours a night on weekends, you fit the profile. She said, “Somnorexia is not getting enough sleep for several days or even weeks in a row; then crashing and sleeping for long periods of time.” Continue reading
Stop. Are you mouth breathing right now? Are your lips apart or are they closed? If they are closed, you are breathing through your nose. If your lips are apart, you may be inhaling air through your mouth and don’t even realize it. Continue reading
I was recently invited to speak at a local “study group” for dentists. They get together once a month to learn new things. They had heard about the IJustWantToSleep® program and wanted me to tell them how it worked, as they all make appliances to help people stop snoring. The night that I met with the group, I was greeted by a dentist who told me that he and his wife had been married for 35 years and he had just had to leave their bedroom the night before because of her snoring. He was devastated!
What great timing for me to walk in with a treatment for snoring. He took the program home that night for his wife. Within two weeks, had just about stopped snoring. He was thrilled – his marriage had been saved! Continue reading
I usually learn something new from each person I treat for mouth breathing and snoring. One reason is because I ask so many questions that most would think are irrelevant. As a result, I have a growing list of behaviors that might occur during or after a night of restless sleep. For example, I started asking people about the condition of their bedclothes (sheets, blanket) when they awoke in the morning. Continue reading
Amy was a 41-year-old news reporter. She contacted me because she was getting complaints from viewers who said she was too slow and robotic.
Amy’s life: She was working weekends at the TV station and only getting about 3 hours of sleep per night. Amy complained of a severely dry mouth and she was afraid she was going to mispronounce words because of the dryness. Hence, the slow and labored word production. Continue reading
I finally understand why people who have completed the IJustWantToSleep® program report that they no longer get up during the night to go to the bathroom! Dr. Ilene Rosen from the University of Pennsylvania explains that when you stop breathing because something is blocking the airway, the brain works very hard to keep your oxygen level up. Continue reading
A large percentage of people breathe through their mouth when they sleep. You may say you don’t breathe through your mouth but if you snore, drool, wake up with a dry mouth/sore throat, wake up tired or with a headache, or have daytime sleepiness, then you do breathe through your mouth for at least part of the night.
Your mouth doesn’t have to be all the way open. Air only needs a small opening between the lips to be inhaled. Continue reading
Only about 4% of those with sleep apnea actually get a sleep study done to diagnose it. Why? Probably because the thought of “sleeping” in a strange lab room with electrodes all over your body, knowing that someone is watching you, is not very exciting. Continue reading