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Sleep Apnea is a serious sleep disorder that can be life threatening and at times fatal. People with sleep apnea often fall asleep normally; however, once asleep their ability to breathe is blocked. Usually this inability to breathe is caused by the muscles in the throat relaxing too much and collapsing into the airway. The body then sends a signal to the brain that breathing has temporarily been blocked. This causes the person to wake up and start breathing again. The cycle of interrupted breathing can occur many times throughout the night. These episodes can occur up to 50 times an hour and last for ten seconds or longer. Often the person that suffers from this sleep disorder is unaware that anything is happening to them. They can not understand why they always feel tired during the daytime.The most common form of this sleep disorder is obstructive sleep apnea, known as OSA. Some sufferers of obstructive sleep apnea also suffer from cental sleep apnea. This sleep disorder is then called mixed sleep apnea. It is believed that obstructive sleep apnea affects between 18 - 20% of the adults in the United States. If this sleep disorder is left untreated in can become life threatening and in rare cases fatal. It is the underlaying cause of illnesses such as heart disease, stroke, pulmonary hypertension and systemic hypertension. There are several method of treatments for sleep apnea, both surgical and noninvasive. The first line of therapy for someone suffering from moderate to severe sleep apnea is called positive airway pressure. Known as PAP, positive airway pressure is a noninvasive form of treatment. A machine delivers a constant flow of air through a mask that is worn while sleeping. The force of the air flow must be determined by a sleep technician during an overnight sleep study. There are three types of positive air pressure therapy, CPAP, BiPAP and AutoPAP.Dental devices are also used to treat this sleep disorder in mild to moderate cases. Dental devices fall into two general categories: mandibular, or lower jaw, advancing devices or tongue retaining devices. Mandibular devices are used most often. They attach to the upper jaw and pull the lower jaw and base of the tongue forward. This shift in position keeps the airway open.Medications are generally not a successful form of treatment for most people with sleep apnea. However, many of them do take antidepressants and mondafinal. Supplemental oxygen is often used in conjunction with a PAP machine. Oxygen alone can not prevent the collapse of the airway or sleep fragmentation. However, oxygen can prevent the drop in the level of blood oxygen that occurs when the airway collapses. There are also surgical treatments for obstructive sleep apnea that may be an option for some sufferers of this sleep disorder. These include uvulopalatophrayngoplasty, somnoplasty, corrective jaw surgery, palatal implants and tracheostomy.People with this sleep disorder generally find that their quality of life can improve with the proper treatment.

Spend a summer day making musical instruments with the children it is lots of noisy fun. Once everyone is equipped with their homemade instrument go on parade through your neighborhood to show off you new marching band.Make a tambourine with two paper plates and something that makes noise to go between them. You can use beans, rice, or small bells from a craft store. Use staples to keep the two plates together with the noise makers inside. Have the child decorate the outside and hang long streamers from the edges.You can make a drum with a large empty cereal box. Punch two holes in the sides of the cereal box and tie a piece of yarn to go around the child

Parents can celebrate a back to school party or kids may prefer to call the festivities an end of summer party. Other way, it is a fund way to look back on the summer and have a get together with everyone before school starts again (or for some the first time).An outdoor party with a barbecue is the perfect way to feed the party guests. Ask the children what their favorite parts of the summer were and what they are looking forward to most when going back to school. Try and incorporate these things into the party.Make a school bus cake using two square cake pans. Use one cake as the body of the bus and cut up the second cake making wheels and the front part of the bus that jets out. Make goodie bags for all the children to take home and place them in brown paper bags with their names written on them. Things to put in the bags:* An apple* Small notebook* Pencil* Eraser* Calculator* Anything else school related Hold a spelling bee and give a prize to the winner (maybe a new backpack). Have a large jar full of jelly beans or another fun treat and have the children guess how many are in the jar. The closest person gets to take the jar home. Think of other activities that revolve around the curriculum the children will be going back to once the school bells starting ringing again.Invite children from your child