Quite often, when someone has sleeping problems, their journey is the same as others with the condition. They may start out using sleepy teas or herbal essence drops on their pillow. They may shop around and buy all new bedding hoping that is the solution to their nights of poor sleep. They might then move to medications, firstly trying natural remedies that claim to improve sleep, but when they don’t work they book an appointment with their doctor who may recommend prescription sleeping aids.
Sleeping pills may work initially, but often the patient find the side effects of these medication are undesirable and they are sick of feeling groggy the next day as well as relying on the medication for a good nights rest.
Eventually a bit of research will have the patient realise they want to see a medical professional specifically trained in sleep medicine, to help treat the underlying sleeping problem. This is where a sleep specialist comes in.
What is a sleep specialist?
A sleep specialist is an individual trained in sleep medicine and treating sleep disorders. A sleep specialist is generally however a medical doctor or healthcare provider who focuses on diagnosing and treating sleep disorders, such as insomnia, sleep apnea, restless legs syndrome, narcolepsy, and parasomnias. They use various diagnostic tools, including sleep studies, and develop personalized treatment plans to help patients improve their sleep quality and overall health.
There are various titles a sleep specialist may use, such as ‘sleep doctor’ or ‘sleep coach’, so it is important to find the right kind of sleep specialist according to your need. Some sleep specialists may only specialise in a certain type of sleep disorder, such as insomnia or snoring/sleep apnea. A sleep specialist may also only provide treatment to a certain age demographic, such as babies, children, adolescents or adults.
What does a sleep specialist do?
A sleep specialist will begin by conducting a detailed intake with you to determine your sleeping problems. This will include learning about your sleeping patterns, sleep routine, impacts of your sleep, sleep environment, medical history, mental health, underlying medical complaints, lifestyle and many more. Once they get a clear understanding on your sleep complaints, then they may order a sleep study (sleep test) if medically appropriate.
From there the treatment options will depend on the cause of your sleeping problem or diagnosis. This may include, but not limited to:
- Reset your sleep drivers: Someone along the line, the main drivers to help you get to sleep or maintain sleep have gotten off track and no longer working properly. When this is the case, your sleep specialist will provide insight to you as to why this has happened and explain the process in resetting your sleep systems. They will then give you practical steps to revert your sleep back to normal, and guide you through that process.
- Improve Habits: When you start to sleep poorly, you often start to develop different coping mechanism strategies to help get yourself through the worst of the sleeping issues. This might be consuming more caffeine to keep you alert, change your exercise routine due to increased fatigue as well as starting to you medications and supplements to help you fall asleep or stay asleep. Not all of these new habits can be a positive change in your sleep outcomes, so addressing them with your sleep specialist will help you understand their impacts. Your sleep specialist will help guide you through a range of sleep positive habits.
- Understand the issue: When it comes to sleep medicine, sometimes the solution can sound counter productive. Therefore having a thorough understanding in the fundamentals of how and why we sleep is important to understand the ways in which we treat sleep problems. Your sleep specialist will help educate you on these matters, so you fully understand the entire sleep treatment process.
- Develop sleep coping mechanisms: We all have bad nights at different point in our life. But when you start having a long line of night with poor sleep, you may begin to notice you focus more on your sleep that you previously did. You may start to develop sleep anxiety, where you worry endlessly about getting a good nights rest or you become hyper focused on tracking your sleep through different sleep monitoring devices. Your sleep specialists will help you address these thoughts you are having with your sleep and guide you to remove the stress out of the bedroom. Helping you switch your brain off so you can fall asleep is an important skill your sleep specialist will help you re-learn.
- Guide a pre-sleep routine: The hours leading up to bed time can be important to achieving a good nights rest. Your sleep specialist will help you go through the do’s and don’ts leading up to bedtime.
- Preventing relapse: Sleeping problems, like stress, can come and go at different stages of our life and if you have had a history of poor sleep, then you may be more susceptible to having more sleeping problems later on again. Your sleep specialist will help you understand how sleep can be impacted as well as develop a plan of attack if you start to notice you’re getting poor sleep again. Your sleep specialist will also help you assess preventative measures you can put in place to minimise any future impacts to your sleep.
When to see a sleep specialist?
Seeing a sleep specialist is advisable when you consistently experience sleep issues that significantly impact your daily life and do not improve with basic lifestyle changes. Chronic insomnia, characterised by difficulty falling asleep, staying asleep, or waking up too early, is a common reason to seek specialised help, especially if it occurs at least three times a week for three months or longer.
Sleep apnea, marked by loud snoring, choking, or gasping during sleep, and daytime fatigue, also warrants consultation with a specialist, as untreated sleep apnea can lead to serious health problems such as cardiovascular disease. Restless legs syndrome, causing an uncontrollable urge to move your legs, often accompanied by uncomfortable sensations, is another condition that a sleep specialist can diagnose and treat. Additionally, excessive daytime sleepiness, despite adequate nighttime sleep, might indicate narcolepsy or other hypersomnia disorders, necessitating professional evaluation. Parasomnia’s, which include unusual behaviours like sleepwalking, night terrors, or acting out dreams, are complex sleep disorders best managed by a sleep expert.
Shift workers or those with irregular sleep schedules may benefit from a specialist’s advice on aligning their sleep patterns with their work demands. Overall, if your sleep problems persist, affect your mood, cognitive function, or overall health, or if they interfere with your ability to perform daily tasks safely, it is prudent to consult a sleep specialist who can offer a thorough evaluation, accurate diagnosis, and tailored treatment plan.
Can a sleep specialist help with insomnia?
Absolutely!! Insomnia is the most common sleep disorder with approximately 10% of the population meeting the diagnosing criteria at any given time. A sleep specialist will be able to help you assess, diagnose and then treat an insomnia issue.
The most effective treatment for someone with insomnia disorder is Cognitive Behavioural Therapy for Insomnia (CBT-I). CBT-I is a medication free approach, that aims to address the underlying cause of the sleeping problem and help revert your sleep back to normal. CBT-I is considered the gold standard treatment for insomnia and outperforms any medication on the market for long term sleep improvements. CBT-I is generally performed over a 6-8 week process, with the sleep specialist having regular contact with the patient to give advise and monitor sleep progress. You can access CBT-I online in Australia with TM Insomnia treatment, making it even more convenient to begin your journey towards better sleep.
Do I need a referral to see a sleep specialist?
A referral might be needed depending on the type of sleep specialist you are seeing. Some however, do not require them if they work in the private setting. Details on whether a referral letter is needed can generally be found on their website.
If you want your private health insurance to pay for the appointment with your sleep specialist then it is advisable to contact your insurance provider to first confirm if they cover the cost, and if they do, if they require a referral letter from your general practitioner.
At TM Insomnia Treatment a referral letter is not required for the majority of the cases. If you have another acute health complaint that may interact with your sleep treatment, your sleep specialist may desire to speak to your doctor prior to starting.
Where do I find a sleep specialist?
Speaking to your general practitioner may be the best way to find a local sleep specialist that is suited to your sleeping problem. However doing a search online should also help in finding a specialist. Most specialised sleep clinics are located in major towns and cities in Australia, so if you live in a slightly remote area, you may have to factor travel into your appointment.
However at TM Insomnia Treatment, we conduct all of our appointments online via video tele-health. This means you can significantly cut down travel time as well as conduct your sleep consultation in the privacy and comfort of your own home. TM Insomnia Treatment provides individualised sleep therapy for adults experiencing insomnia, or for those wanting to improve their sleep in general. Wait time as currently short, so book your first appointment with a qualified sleep specialist with TM Insomnia Treatment.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why would you see a sleep specialist?
If your fatigue, sleepiness or symptoms of your sleeping complaint start interfering with your daytime activities (work, social life and your ability to complete your standard daily tasks), then you should see a sleep specialist. If you are getting less than 7 hours of sleep as an adult or if you feel like your sleep quality could be better, then you should see a sleep specialist.
Is it better to see a sleep specialist online or in person?
It depends on the nature of your sleep complaint. If you need some sort of physical examination (such as the case if you have a sleep breathing disorder – sleep apnea), then at least one physical appointment might be necessary. However many sleeping issues do not need a physical examination and an online consultation would be enough to achieve the same result.
Are sleep specialists worth it?
Good sleep is vital for good health, so if you are experiencing poor sleep then the help of a sleep specialist can have a large positive impact on your health.
Will I always need to do a sleep test when I see a sleep specialist?
Not necessarily. It will depend on the nature of your complaints. If the sleep specialists suspects you may have an underlying sleep disorder such as restless leg syndrome or sleep apnea, then they will order a sleep test to help diagnose the condition. If there is no suspicion, then a sleeping test may not be necessary.
Do sleep specialists come to your house?
For adult patients, this is not very common. Some sleep tests can be performed in your bed at home, so some companies offer to come to your home to set up the test, but in terms of a consultation to discuss your sleeping complaints, appointments are likely to be either o
nline via tele-health, or in their office/clinic.
Are a sleep plan has been established, how long does it take for results to improve?
Every patient has a different journey with this, so it is difficult to predict when improvements will start to show. Improvements can also be gradual, and so it may take a while before patients are happier with their sleep. Improvements also vary depending on the nature of your sleep complaint.
Is treatment with a sleep specialist a quick fix?
It depends on the nature of your sleep complaints, however treatment that requires you to un-learn sleep habits, or to re-teach your brain to reset its sleep drivers may take a bit of time. Some sleep complaints can be fixed more quickly, so it is a very individualised process.
Do sleep specialists just do sleep hygiene?
When you see a sleep specialist, they should do a detailed intake appointment with you to not only learn about your sleep and sleeping patterns, but also to learn about your daytime activities and lifestyle. By collecting all this information they will better be able to assess your sleep issues and then offer individualised training for your sleep. Some of that will likely include sleep hygiene practices, but will unlikely to be limited to that is your have a sleep disorder such as insomnia.
Will a sleep specialist assess my bedroom?
Your sleep specialist is likely to ask about your sleep environment to determine if there is anything about it that may be contributing to your sleep problems.
