Do you frequently snore at night and suffer from severe daytime exhaustion or mood swings? If so, you might have sleep apnea. People with this disorder experience multiple episodes of interrupted breathing at night that prevent their bodies from getting enough quality rest to support a healthy mind and body.
Unfortunately, you might also experience higher stress levels if you don’t get enough z’s at night, which can exacerbate symptoms of sleep apnea. If you have this condition, continue reading to learn more about how it can be impacted by anxiety and what you can do about it!
What is Anxiety?
Before diving into how your stress levels can potentially impact your sleep apnea, it’s essential to first establish exactly what anxiety is and how it affects your body. For instance, everyone is likely to experience times of heightened fear or stress periodically throughout their lives, but that doesn’t necessarily mean they all have a disorder.
Patients must meet certain criteria to be diagnosed with a problem. For example, generalized anxiety disorder (GAD) is defined by experiencing excessive anxiety or worry most days over a six-month period that is severe enough to impact their relationships, employment, education, or other aspects of their daily lives.
How Does Anxiety Impact Sleep?
You might think of your chronic apprehension as ‘merely’ a mental or emotional issue, but the truth is that it can also impact your physical body. When you feel afraid, even if there is no apparent cause, your body reacts by producing chemicals that prepare your ‘fight or flight’ response. Such panic attacks can occur repeatedly or frequently, filling your body with hormones like cortisol that keep your system in a constant state of alertness, which it’s not designed to maintain for extended periods.
Unfortunately, this can also hinder your ability to fall and stay asleep. Your body experiences physical symptoms when it thinks you are under attack, including sweating, a racing heartbeat, and difficulty breathing, which can make it challenging to relax enough to fall asleep at night.
Can Treating Sleep Apnea Reduce Anxiety?
Would you be surprised to learn that, according to the National Alliance on Mental Illness (NAMI), more than half of patients with diagnosed sleep apnea also had some form of depression or anxiety? Another recent study, published in 2019, found that the incidence of these disorders was higher in individuals with sleep disturbances than in those without them, especially among women.
Thankfully, treating your sleep apnea can help improve your anxiety, and vice versa. Your dentist can offer solutions to help keep your airways open at night, reducing the severity and frequency of episodes that block your breathing. This allows your body to complete the circadian cycles required to rejuvenate your systems so you feel rested and more at ease in the morning.
If you’re unsure whether your anxiety is impacting your nightly rest, you can learn more about sleep apnea by contacting your dentist!
About the Practice
Patients with Cedric C. Chenet, DDS, PA benefit from a team of dentists eager to help them enhance their daily lives by improving their dental condition. They share decades of combined experience and collaborate to offer a wide range of services, including sleep apnea treatment, all at one convenient location. Their caring approach is combined with advanced technology to deliver accurate, comfortable results intended to last. You can request an appointment on the website or call (321) 253-3136.