“For us, life is one breath away”. – Global Awareness of Sleep Apnea slogan.

About six years ago, at the end of a failing relationship, I threw a Hail Mary pass by investing in a mouth appliance that would alleviate my snoring, one of many unappreciated traits that contributed to our impending doom. I should note that snoring does not always mean the existence of sleep apnea, but in my case, it did. I had gone to a specialist who outfitted me with a home monitoring test. The result was apnea, but due to other contributing factors, I often wondered whether the test result was accurate. The appliance purchase was too late to save my relationship, but it did get packed up when I exited and followed me to my new destination.

Zoom ahead 5 years, and I decided it was time to check whether I genuinely had apnea and had my doctor send me for a sleep test. One very restless night and six weeks later, I received the results—mild apnea when on my back but none when sleeping on my side. The doctor provided a few suggestions to address my situation. One, a little ball in a vest worn to bed, would disrupt my comfort when attempting to lie on my back. Two, a wedge pillow would hold me in a side position, and three, a mouth appliance, which I already owned but would need to dust off.

As it had been a long time since I had worn the device, I visited the prescribing doctor to ensure it was still safe to use, and it was! I restarted in January of this year and can’t say I noticed a difference in my sleep, except that I had experienced a blocked airway a few times and was unsure if it was a dream or an actual event. I contacted the doctor, and his assistant suggested downloading an app called Snorelab to monitor my sleep patterns. Very easy to use and free for the first 7 days, this is a fun little tool that allows you to discover what your bedroom sounds like.

On the first night, I didn’t wear the appliance, and I awoke to a graph with audio capturing how much I had been snoring. No wonder it had been an issue in my past life! I giggled and wore the appliance on night 2. What a huge difference! I had minimal snoring and felt rested. I will monitor for the next few months to see if there is any truth to my airway issue, and have also been given a set of nightly tongue exercises. Seriously? Tongue exercises?

Research suggests a strong link between apnea and an increased risk of dementia, which makes me wonder why more doctors don’t recommend the test to their patients. Life will see me quietly (no pun intended) wearing my appliance, hoping to keep dementia at bay and any future bedmates close by.