It seems these days that the holiday season starts earlier every year. Along with it comes parties and concerts, shopping, food preparation, and decorating. No wonder some people find the season more stressful than enjoyable. In order to maintain optimal health, CPAP users must ensure that proper sleep is not sacrificed during the holidays. Here are some tips to keep in mind:
- Power down an hour before bedtime… no electronics, no exercise, and calming activities only, avoid caffeine and nicotine.
- Use a sun rise clock. It replicates the sun by gradually lighting the bedroom 20 to 40 minutes before a scheduled wake up time and helps you transition to being awake.
- CPAP therapy only works when you use it. Make sure that you have your CPAP machine packed if you are having overnight travel.
- Alcohol can worsen obstructive sleep apnea. Limit cocktails within four hours of bedtime.
- Consider heated tubing to prevent water problems in your CPAP tubing. This problem can be worse in the winter, when the room temperature is much cooler than the temperature of the air coming out of your CPAP.