{"id":109,"date":"2020-11-17T22:02:02","date_gmt":"2020-11-17T22:02:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.sleepsnoringtmj.com\/blog\/?p=109"},"modified":"2020-12-23T22:02:32","modified_gmt":"2020-12-23T22:02:32","slug":"drowsy-driving-with-sleep-apnea","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.fortworthsnoringandsleepcenter.com\/blog\/2020\/11\/17\/drowsy-driving-with-sleep-apnea\/","title":{"rendered":"Why Driving While Drowsy is Dangerous"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
\"Woman<\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n

The risks of drunk driving are well known, but how often\nhave you considered the dangers of drowsy driving? Not getting enough quality\nsleep can affect your body in a variety of ways, but the most obvious\nconsequence is that you\u2019ll feel tired during the day \u2013 and that exhaustion\ncould easily lead to accidents while behind the wheel. If you suffer from a\ndisorder such as sleep apnea<\/a>\nthat prevents you from getting quality rest, it\u2019s extremely important to be\naware of the impact that it could have on your driving so that you don\u2019t delay\nin seeking treatment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\n\n

How Does Drowsiness Affect Driving?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

According to statistics cited by the National\nSleep Foundation<\/a>, sleepiness has just as much of an effect on driving \u2013 if\nnot moreso \u2013 as alcohol. And the issue is more widespread than you might\nrealize. Roughly one out of six traffic accidents resulting in a death can be\nlinked to drowsy driving. Furthermore, about 41% of drivers have fallen asleep\nin the past while driving. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Many people try to ignore or work past their sleepiness to\nget through their everyday tasks. Unfortunately, drowsiness tends to become all\nthe more obvious when you are in the middle of a particularly repetitive task,\nwhich includes the act of driving down a familiar highway. When you\u2019re sleepy,\nyour vigilance, reaction time, memory, and decision-making processes all become\nimpaired, and that in turn increases the chances of an accident while you\u2019re\ndriving. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Link Between Sleep Apnea and Drowsy Driving<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

If you have sleep apnea, then you probably aren\u2019t getting a\nfull night\u2019s rest even if you allow enough time for 7 to 9 hours of sleep.\nSleep apnea interrupts your breathing multiple times during the night. When\nthese pauses occur, the body is forced to wake itself up so that you can start\nbreathing again. These awakenings are usually so brief that you don\u2019t even\nremember them later, but nevertheless they still pull you out of the sleep\ncycle. That means your body isn\u2019t enjoying the benefits of the later stages of\nsleep, which leaves you feeling tired when you wake up. Since sleep apnea\nepisodes can happen multiple times every night, the disorder can dramatically\nincrease your risk of accidents related to drowsiness. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

What Should Be Done About Sleep Apnea and Drowsy Driving?<\/h2>\n\n\n\n

To make sure you\u2019re at your best behind the wheel, you need\nto ensure that you get plenty of sleep every night. To do that, you need to\nhave your sleep apnea treated as soon as possible. Oral appliances are often a\ngood option as they can keep the airway open without the need for a noisy,\nbulky CPAP machine.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Get in touch with a sleep center near you if you think sleep\napnea is keeping you up at night. Ignoring a sleep disorder for too long\nincreases the chances of it affecting your life in extremely harmful ways. A\ngood night\u2019s rest is essential if you want to stay alert on the road!<\/p>\n\n\n\n

About the Author<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Dr. Mitch Conditt was personally diagnosed with obstructive\nsleep apnea in 2009. After he found lasting relief with oral appliance therapy,\nhe decided to give his patients the same kind of help by specializing in sleep\ndentistry. Thanks to his 35 years of experience in dentistry, he has been able\nto help many people overcome the drowsiness that previously plagued their daily\nlives. To schedule a consultation, visit his website<\/a> or call (817)\n527-8500.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The risks of drunk driving are well known, but how often have you considered the dangers of drowsy driving? Not getting enough quality sleep can affect your body in a variety of ways, but the most obvious consequence is that you\u2019ll feel tired during the day \u2013 and that exhaustion could easily lead to accidents […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-109","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fortworthsnoringandsleepcenter.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/109","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fortworthsnoringandsleepcenter.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fortworthsnoringandsleepcenter.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fortworthsnoringandsleepcenter.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fortworthsnoringandsleepcenter.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=109"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.fortworthsnoringandsleepcenter.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/109\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":111,"href":"https:\/\/www.fortworthsnoringandsleepcenter.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/109\/revisions\/111"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.fortworthsnoringandsleepcenter.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=109"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fortworthsnoringandsleepcenter.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=109"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.fortworthsnoringandsleepcenter.com\/blog\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=109"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}