One of the known traits of alcohol is that it makes you drowsy. What you may not know is that it does not make your sleeping pleasant when you are snoring and have trouble breathing. By going into treatment for alcoholism, you can have a better night’s sleep.
Why Does Alcohol Influence Your Snoring?
If you go to bed after a night of drinking, that depressant relaxes your jaw and throat muscles. These muscles collapse onto your airway which restricts airflow and causes snoring. This blockage can also cause mild sleep apnea where you stop breathing while you sleep. In a few seconds, the brain responds and starts to breathe again which is accompanied by a loud gasp or snoring. Because alcohol can also dehydrate you, your mouth and throat muscles become dry which makes your snoring louder than before.
What is the Best Way to Avoid Alcohol-Related Snoring?
Avoiding alcohol is the best way to stop alcohol-related snoring. As soon as alcohol enters your bloodstream, you will spend less time in REM sleep which is the critical stage of sleeping. It can also help if you sleep on your side to open the airways more compared to sleeping on your back. There are also anti-snoring mouthpieces to minimize snoring by keeping your jaw forward and your tongue out of the way. You should also drink water or rinse with a mouthwash to remove the taste of alcohol, limiting the dryness to your throat.
How Can You Relax Yourself For Bed Instead of Drinking Alcohol?
Instead of increasing your chances of developing alcoholism, there are other healthier ways to fall asleep at night. It can be things like taking a warm bath to make the muscles and bones in your body less tense. You can light scented candles next to you to help you relax better as well as soothing music. You can also read a book to help you fall asleep as reading requires a lot of concentration. You can also perform deep breathing exercises to put you in a relaxed state as well as some muscle relaxation techniques. It may also help to have the sound of the television on as long as you turn off the picture to prevent the light from keeping you awake. By staying away from alcohol, you will be able to sleep without having to worry about snoring or disturbing sleep apnea again.
Located in Georgetown, Texas, Alma Loma is a transformative living center to help those struggling in early recovery to transition out of our Psychiatric and Substance Abuse residential center. Alma Loma believes that addiction is born from an untreated mental illness in which our facility is willing to help you. Our facility offers residency, medication management education, individualized treatment, life skills education, 12-Step support, and more tools to bring patients the confidence to be able to live an independent life. For more information, please call us at 866-457-3843.
