The Role of a Sleep Diary
There are several ways a doctor can diagnose sleep apnoea. These include a physical examination and reviewing your medical history. Your doctor will most likely want to discuss your family’s medical history in case there are certain conditions and risk factors for sleep apnoea. A sleep study is extremely useful, yielding data that can confirm if you have sleep apnoea and its degree of severity. However, your sleep specialist might also request you keep a sleep diary for a couple of weeks.
What Information Is Recorded in a Sleep Diary?
Your doctor will ask you to note when you go to sleep and when you wake up, whether you take naps, and how you feel in the morning, for example, if you feel alert and well-rested or continually tired. You might also be asked to note if you feel sleepy at various times during the day and provide other pertinent information. It is quite easy to put together a comprehensive sleep diary and to make sure it includes the following:
- The date, including the month and year
- The time you went to bed
- How long you took to fall asleep
- The time you woke up
- The number of hours you slept last night
- How many times were you awake during the night
- Approximately how long you stayed awake during the night
- A note of any medications taken
- How you felt when you awoke this morning; it can be useful to make a numbered scale, ranging from wide-awake to sleepy
- The number of alcoholic drinks and the time you consumed them
- The number of caffeinated drinks and the time you consumed them
- Did you exercise, and if so, at what time
- If you took naps during the daytime, how long did each nap last
- Whether you snored and, if so, how loudly (you might need to ask another family member or sleeping partner for this information)
it is essential to keep a sleep directory for at least two weeks and to bring it with you to your next appointment so your doctor can review it with you.
The information provided in your sleep diary can help confirm if you have a sleep disorder. It can also provide useful information about your sleep patterns. It helps your doctor identify behaviour patterns before you go to sleep, during sleep and after you wake up and track any irregularities that may indicate you have sleep apnoea.
For example, some people find that checking their email or text before bedtime is enough to keep them awake. This is often because of the blue light emitted from a mobile phone and other electronic screens that is enough to stop your body from releasing melatonin. Melatonin is a hormone that helps your body regulate sleep more effectively. Another reason might be exercising too close to bedtime. Even though exercising can help improve sleep quality, exercising just before you go to bed can leave you too alert and wide awake for sleep. Keeping a sleep diary can help you to develop habits that promote better sleep or determine if you need treatment for sleep apnoea.