FAQs About Sleep

It’s tough to give an exact answer since everyone is different. It also depends on your age, sex, and general health. That said, a good rule of thumb for the amount of sleep you need is between 7 and 9 hours a night.

Insomnia can be caused by a variety of factors: anxiety, depression, poor sleep environment, irregular work hours, excessive caffeine, excessive nicotine, medical conditions, or prescribed medications. Some sleep disorders like obstructive sleep apnea or restless legs syndrome can also cause insomnia.

While you’re asleep, the muscles of your throat relax. This causes your tongue to fall backward and your throat to become narrow as the muscles loosen. Your breathing will cause the loosened walls of your throat to vibrate. The vibrations are what cause snoring. The narrower your throat becomes, the more vibration happens and the louder your snoring gets.

To determine if you might benefit from a sleep evaluation, think about the following questions:

• Do people tell you that you snore?
• Has anyone ever told you that you stop breathing at night, or that it sounds like you’re gasping when you’re asleep?
• Do you experience tingling, aching, or unusual feelings in your legs when sitting or lying down that causes a strong urge to move or kick them for relief?
• Do you often have difficulty getting to or staying asleep?
• Are you so tired that you have difficulty functioning normally during the day?
• Do you fall asleep watching TV?
• Have you fallen asleep while driving?
• Does your fatigue persist for more than two or three weeks?

If you answered yes to any of the above questions, a complete sleep evaluation should be considered and discussed with a physician. Take the Stop-Bang Questionnaire here.

Some of the most common sleep disorders include:

Insomnia: Consistent inability to fall asleep or stay asleep.
Sleep Apnea: Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA) is a sleep-related breathing disorder. OSA causes you to stop breathing for periods of time while you sleep.
Hypersomnia: Feeling tired during the day or falling asleep at inappropriate times.
Restless Leg Syndrome: A strong urge to kick or move your legs, particularly when trying to relax or trying to sleep.

Sleep disorders can be treated in a number of ways. It depends on the type of diagnosis and the cause. These treatments can include:

• Medication
• Behavioral therapy
• Weight loss and dietary changes
• CPAP machine treatment

A Continuous Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP) machine is worn by patients who have been diagnosed with sleep apnea. A mask worn during sleep delivers positive pressure through the nose and mouth. Air blows into the back of the throat, which helps keep the airway open. This allows you to breathe easily as you sleep.

If you’re feeling tired all day, falling asleep at the wrong time, or having a hard time falling asleep every night, a sleep study can be a major help.

A sleep study works by examining your behavior during sleep. From studying how you sleep, we can determine a variety of different issues which can help with diagnosis and treatment. An in-lab sleep study is done in a comfortable room designed to help you relax while the study is conducted overnight. An at-home sleep study gives you the tools to measure specific values (like how you breathe and your heart rate) while you sleep in your own bed.

A sleep technologist will record a number of your biological functions while you sleep. Brain wave activity will be monitored, which will be used to determine when you’re awake and the stages of sleep you enter throughout the night. Eye movements, muscle tone, heartbeat, breathing, and leg movement will also be monitored during the study. Sensors will be attached to your head, chest, and legs that will be used to take these readings.

Yes, we are accredited by the Accreditation Commission for Health Care (ACHC)

Accreditation is required for hospital sleep laboratories participating in the Medicare program. Common Sleep has voluntarily participated in the accreditation process. We feel it is important to demonstrate our commitment to quality and assure our patients that we work continuously to maintain and advance our abilities.

Common Sleep performs both in lab and at Home Sleep Apnea Testing.

You do not need a physician order for Home Sleep Apnea Testing. In lab sleep testing does require a physician order. Your family physician can provide the order or Common Sleep has a board certified sleep physician on staff who can provide a pre-test sleep exam and order if appropriate.

A home sleep apnea test costs $250.00, an in-lab study costs $995.00

Yes, the interpretation is included in our pricing.

Common Sleep will accept cash, checks and debit/credit cards. Common Sleep also participates in Care Credit with 0% interest on terms up to eighteen months.