If you’ve recently been diagnosed with sleep apnea and started using a CPAP machine, you may be looking forward to getting the best sleep you’ve had in years. With continuous pressure keeping your airway open as you sleep, you can count on fewer interruptions while you try to rest. Using a CPAP machine is the best and most effective way to encourage healthier sleep, but it‘s not the only way to improve your sleep quality. There are plenty of other ways to help your body get ready for sleep, including natural remedies that your grandmother or mother may have used and common-sense recommendations from experts. Here are some of the top ways to encourage better sleep along with the use of your CPAP machine:

AromatherapyAromatherapy helps you sleep with your CPAP

While essential oils are currently seeing a surge in popularity, the tales about how effective they can be in curing small ailments date back hundreds of years. Before people had widespread access to medicine, these remedies were invented to help cure common conditions like insomnia. Some of the scents that are meant to help calm anxiety and encourage sleep are:

  • Lavender
  • Jasmine
  • Eucalyptus

You can use an aromatherapy oil diffuser or take a hot bath with a few drops of essential oil in the water to help immerse yourself in the scent.

Detox from Electronics

Science shows that electronics keep your brain awake, which means it takes longer for you to relax and get to sleep when you do eventually turn the TV or phone off. Research from the National Sleep Foundation shows that when you watch television or look at your phone or tablet, the blue light emitted by the device tricks your brain into thinking it’s still daytime. This means your brain takes longer to secrete the natural hormones your body needs to go to sleep. If you hate lying in bed waiting to fall asleep, you can still use a lamp or overhead light as you read or do another task before putting on your CPAP machine and laying down. Some of the things you can do instead of using electronics that will help encourage quicker sleep include:

  • Reading a physical book or magazine instead of reading articles on your phone or scrolling social media.
  • Writing down your thoughts or memories from the day in a journal. This will also help your mind relax by getting rid of some of the thoughts or anxieties you may be holding on to without even realizing it.
  • Catch up on thank you notes or write someone you love a letter. These tasks often fall by the wayside if you have a busy schedule, but they will be truly appreciated by the recipient.
  • Listen to music, a podcast or sleep sounds to help your mind relax.

Diet Modification

Some of the ways to help encourage sleep through changes in your diet are easy to implement and don’t require you depriving yourself of the things you like, just having them at different times of the day. If you drink soda or coffee, cut down on the amount you drink or drink them earlier in the day to reduce your sugar and caffeine intake. These stimulants can affect the way you sleep, even if you drink them within two or three hours of going to bed. Even tea can have enough caffeine to keep you awake, so if you like to drink a cup before bedtime, switch to caffeine–free or green tea blends. You can also reduce your alcohol intake to see if that influences how well you sleep. While some people think a drink or two helps them sleep, for sleep apnea sufferers, this is not the case. Alcohol consumption can actually encourage sleep apnea symptoms.

Keep Your CPAP Machine Clean

Keep Your CPAP Machine Clean

As you use your CPAP machine regularly, mold and mildew can build up inside the unit. In order to keep your CPAP in good working order, you must use a CPAP cleaning machine to eliminate all the buildup before it gets fed into the mask where you breathe it in. A good CPAP cleaner and sanitizer will kill all the germs inside the unit and leave it ready for use.

If you’re looking for a way to make maintaining your CPAP even easier, try VirtuCLEAN! This all in one CPAP cleaner and sanitizer saves you time each week and helps to extend the life of your unit. To find out more about VirtuCLEAN, how it works, and where you can get one, click here.