Tips for Solving Pediatric Sleep Apnea

Although EatDrinkLA generally covers restaurants and things to do, this post is dear to my heart because it concerns improving the quality of my child’s sleep. Maybe you are a parent as well who has combed the internet at 3 a.m. for the secret of curing sleep apnea without removing adenoids or tonsils. I am not a medical professional, but I am a mom who has been through it and is almost on the other side of normal sleep with my now 6-year-old. Here is my story with some tips for solving pediatric sleep apnea.

*This post is sponsored by GhostBed – but it is only after I shared my personal story with them that they asked me to write it. There are no affiliate links present.

What is Pediatric Sleep Apnea?

According to the Mayo Clinic, Pediatric sleep apnea is a sleep disorder in which your child’s breathing is partially or completely blocked repeatedly during sleep. The condition is due to narrowing or a blockage of the upper airway during sleep, and in children, it can result in behavioral problems.

My Personal Story

When my son was less than two years old, he began sweating in his sleep. I brushed it off as having a kid that runs hot. Next, he started snoring and having night terrors. He would swim the whole bed looking for a way to find some sleep. His face would contort terribly while his neck would crane for air; something that is devastating for a parent to watch. I spent over a year sleeping with him; holding him upright while he attempted to sleep. Needless to say, neither of us slept at all. When I began examining the situation with his pediatrician, she sent me home with a nasal steroid. It helped a bit, but not nearly how it should. By his fourth birthday, I was desperate. Trips to an allergist just diagnosed him as allergic to dust and pollen with recommendations to make our home impossibly sterile. A visit to a specialist said our only hope was an adenoidectomy. That meant major surgery to remove the adenoids with no promise that it would improve the situation.

I have to admit I wanted the surgery, but my husband insisted we examine all avenues. Pediatric sleep apnea generally improves as a child’s head gets larger, and we were already approaching age five. We decided to tackle it from the inside out.

Start with the Gut

Attempting to ease my son’s seasonal allergies with Flonase was only performing at a 50% return. Plus, it’s a temporary bandaid. My maniacal googling led me to investigate the idea that allergies could be lessened with probiotics. When I began searching for children’s seasonal probiotics, I discovered a company called Jetson. At the time they created a probiotic that specifically tacked allergies one season at a time for children. The probiotic is in powder form, making it easy to mix into smoothies or water. I also made an effort to lessen the amount of sugar in his diet. After just two months, I began to see a difference, and his breathing began to improve at night. I was overcome with joy.

Move onto the Body

Next on the list of tips for solving pediatric sleep apnea was trying to find a solution for the night sweats that my son was suffering from. By chance, I was sent a sample GhostBed Pillow for editorial consideration on this website. As soon as my son lay his head on that pillow, he fell in love. It became his security blanket for difficult nights and the thing he reached for over a stuffed animal – which is quite unusual for a five-year-old. I would prop it up on top of another pillow to create an incline. That, coupled with probiotics, and Flonase, began to lead to hours at a time of him sleeping with a closed mouth.

Currently, GhostBed makes a split king adjustable bed with mattress, which is perfect if you’re finding you need to sleep beside your child and continually prop them up all night. Just as the name implies, the bed is split, and you can adjust either side to an inclined position based on personal preference. Best of all, the entire mattress offers cooling relief, not just the pillow. This bed would have saved me hours of sleepless nights when I was the incline!

Importance of Good Sleep for Children

According to the Sleep Foundation, good sleep is responsible for happiness, cognitive performance, memory consolidation, resiliency, etc. Before rushing to diagnose a child with ADHD, evaluate how they sleep every night. You might be surprised that there are things you can do, such as limiting screen time before bed, reducing sugar consumption, or investing in some of the items I have mentioned in this article.

Wishing you pleasant dreams and a good night’s sleep for all.