Snoring is very common; in fact, 1 in 3 Americans do it! Sometimes snoring is perfectly normal and innocuous—but at others, it can point to a potentially life-threatening sleep disorder. Snoring is one of the most obvious symptoms of sleep apnea, a serious condition that can cause everything from heart trouble to memory loss. In this blog post we explain the causes of snoring, how it relates to this troubling sleep condition, and how to tell if you should be concerned. 

Did you know that if you don't use all of your health insurance benefits this year, you lose them forever? Many 2014 health plans require authorizations for services, and it may take up to three weeks to receive authorization. Now is the time to contact your health care provider.

If you’re suffering from sleep apnea, the go-to treatment is CPAP (continuous positive airway pressure) therapy. But there's also a less common alternative—surgery. What types of operations are available to treat sleep apnea, are they effective, and why is CPAP treatment preferred in the majority of cases?

You may have read our blog post on the difference between an at-home HST (Home Sleep Test) and an in-lab PSG (polysomnography), both of which test for sleep apnea. But that’s just scratching the surface of the sometimes complex and confusing terminology used to describe sleep disorder diagnosis and treatment. What’s the difference between a BiPAP titration and an ASV Titration? What’s a MWT (Maintenance of Wakefulness Test)? Which applies to me?

You’re in luck, because we have the answers.

BOO! It’s getting late in October, which means that Halloween is almost upon us! Soon we’ll be surrounded by spooky ghosts, jack-o-lanterns, and blood-sucking vampires. But if you find yourself dreaming about creepy critters or things that go bump in the dark, you might not be so excited about the Halloween spirit.

If you suffer from bad dreams, you’re not in the minority! Nightmares affect almost everyone: 85% of adults and even a greater proportion of children. Let’s take a look at the causes of nightmares and what you can do to overcome them for a restful night’s sleep.

The American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM) has recently released a pair of free ebooks designed to promote healthy sleep habits in young children. This publication comes as more and more readers, kids and adults alike, swap out their traditional print texts for electronic ebooks. So where does that leave the humble bedtime story?  

Picture the typical person with sleep apnea.

Odds are, you just thought of a man. But studies show that almost one in two sleep apnea patients is a woman. How likely are women to have this disorder…and how often are they treated?   

We’re 3/4 of the way through the year, and we at the Sleep Better, Live Better Blog hope you are having a happy and healthy 2014!

As the year draws to a close, you may not be aware that your health care plan might contain benefits that will expire at the end of the calendar year. Use our list below to make sure you access all the perks your plan has to offer!

October 28, 2015: We've updated this post with some more links and useful information.

• How does the Affordable Care Act affect sleep-related services?
• Guide to Understanding Your Heatlh Insurance
• Frequently Asked Questions About Insurance Coverage for Sleep Studies and Therapy

Who doesn’t use their smartphone or watch some TV at night? If you don’t, you’re in the minority: according to the Sleep in America poll conducted by the National Sleep Foundation, 95% of Americans admit to using some type of electronic device in the hour before bedtime. This in spite of the fact that well-established research has revealed the negative health effects of the blurring line between sleeping and surfing.

If you’ve ever pulled an all-nighter, you probably know what it feels like to have an overwhelming, almost compulsive desire to sleep the next day. But what if that feeling might strike you any day, whether you’d rested the night before or not? That’s what pretty much what narcolepsy is.