Latest Advancements in Sleep Medicine at Skagit Regional Health

What disturbs your sleep? A badly congested nose, hacking cough or difficulty breathing can cause frequent awakenings. Various sleep-related breathing disorders can fragment and ruin sleep, leaving you unrefreshed and tired the next day. If left unchecked, some sleep disorders can threaten your health resulting in high blood pressure, heart disease and stroke.

At Skagit Regional Health, our dedicated and certified sleep specialists care about your sleep and your health. Using the latest advancements in sleep medicine, they diagnose, treat and manage common sleep disorders so you can sleep well and wake up feeling energized and refreshed.

Do You Have Signs of a Sleep Disorder?

If you answer ‘yes’ to any of these statements, please consult a sleep medicine physician at Skagit Regional Health soon. Signs you may have a sleep disorder include:

• I feel sleepy during the day.
• No matter how much I sleep, I rarely feel restored.
• I wake up too early every morning and am unable to fall back to sleep.
• I am uncontrollably sleepy during the day, but once I take a short nap, I feel restored.
• I frequently have an uncomfortable sensation in my legs, worse at night, which improves if I walk or stretch my legs and is worse if I stay still.
• My bed partner says I frequently kick my legs in my sleep.
• I frequently act out my dreams, sometimes in a violent manner.
• I frequently sleepwalk or eat in my sleep and have barely any memory of it the next day.
• I snore at night (or have been told I snore).
• I wish I had more energy and/or I have difficulty losing weight.
• I often feel weak or my muscles go limp if I laugh very hard or get very upset, but only for a few seconds to minutes.
• I often feel awake in bed, but am unable to move my body as if I’m paralyzed.
• I often feel awake in bed, but see or hear things as if I am still dreaming.
• I wake up gasping or dream I’m suffocating.
• I have a dry mouth when I wake up in the morning.
• I have fallen asleep while driving.
• I have heartburn or a sour taste in my throat, especially at night.
• I am unable to fall asleep at night, even though I’m tired when I go to bed.
• I lay in bed and my mind races at night.
• Once I fall asleep, I frequently wake up and am unable to fall back to sleep

Conditions We Treat with Sleep Medicine Expertise

Skagit Regional Health’s sleep medicine team provides comprehensive diagnostic, treatment and management services for patients ages 15 and older. Our highly-qualified sleep specialists address and treat the following conditions:

• Insomnia
• Narcolepsy
• Parasomnias
• Periodic limb movement disorder
• Restless leg syndrome
• Sleep apnea
• Sleep complaints commonly associated with other medical disorders
• Snoring

Visiting the Center for Sleep Disorders

If you have a suspected sleep disorder or problem sleeping, you may be referred for an overnight sleep study to Skagit Regional Health’s Center for Sleep Disorders. A sleep study helps to diagnose sleep disorders that may be causing not only disruptions in sleep and fatigue, but other health concerns.

Patients usually come to our center in the evening and spend the night for a monitored sleep study. However, daytime sleep studies are available, if preferred. Following the sleep study, you can leave for work or resume your normal schedule. Our sleep medicine experts will score your study within 10 days and the results will be communicated to you at a follow-up physician office visit.

Polysomnograms Help with Best Treatment Options

In order to better evaluate patients' sleep patterns and help physicians determine the best treatment options, the Center for Sleep Disorders offers a polysomnogram, a test that measures bodily functions during sleep through the use of electrodes. Measurements taken include:

• Blood oxygen levels
• Brainwaves
• Breathing
• Chin movements
• Eye movements
• Heartbeats
• Leg movements

Other bodily functions may be recorded to answer questions about such things as chest pains and health issues. Video monitoring may also be used.

For More Information About Sleep Medicine

To learn more about our sleep medicine services at Skagit Regional Health, including sleep studies at our Center for Sleep Disorders, please contact one of our team members at 360-428-2550. We can help you make an appointment with a physician at one of our convenient locations.