Asthma-like symptoms can be a nuisance at night.
Even if you aren’t asthmatic, there are certain issues that can cause you to feel like you have the condition.
For most people, it often worsens during bedtime when hormone levels drop, leaving you vulnerable to the many triggers that lie buried in your surroundings.
If you find yourself waking out of a night’s slumber due to bouts of coughing and wheezing, it’s possible that you’re experiencing nighttime asthma. This is dangerous as it could lead to a greater risk of death.
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Here are some tips to better control your asthma for an uninterrupted night’s sleep:
1. Protect the bed from dust mites.
Dust mites are no good for someone with asthma. These little critters hide in the mattress, sheets, and pillows of your bed and become triggers for asthma attacks at night. Many stores sell mattress protectors, which are designed to keep dust mites from gathering in your bedding.
There are also allergy-free pillows – which could really come in handy since your nose is most in contact with the pillow during sleep.
It’s also good to change sheets regularly and purchase a new mattress every few years.
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2. Use Breathing Techniques
When it comes to opening up your lungs, breathing exercises can help tremendously. It also helps stabilize your breathing in order to calm you down and take in more oxygen. Here are few breathing exercises to try:
A) 4-7-8 breathing technique
Here’s how to practice the 4-7-8 breathing technique:
Allow your lips to gently part.
Exhale completely, making a breathy whoosh sound as you do.
Press your lips together as you silently inhale through the nose for a count of 4 seconds.
Hold your breath for a count of 7.
Exhale again for a full 8 seconds, making a whooshing sound throughout.
Repeat 4 times when you first start. Eventually work up to 8 repetitions.
RELATED: 5 Breathing Exercises That Guarantee a Better Night’s Sleep
B) Three-part breathing exercise
To practice the three-part breathing exercise, follow these three steps:
Take a long, deep inhale.
Exhale fully while focusing intently on your body and how it feels.
After doing this a few times, slow down your exhale so that it’s twice as long as your inhale.
Some people prefer this technique over others because its probably the most simple out of all of them.
C) Buteyko breathing
To practice buteyko breathing for sleep:
Sit in bed with your mouth gently closed (not pursed) and breathe through your nose at a natural pace for about 30 seconds.
Breathe a bit more intentionally in and out through your nose once.
Gently pinch your nose closed with your thumb and forefinger, keeping your mouth closed as well, until you feel that you need to take a breath again.
With your mouth still closed, take a deep breath in and out through your nose again.
3. Change Your Posture
Stand Up
Stand with your feet shoulder width apart.
Lean your hips against a wall.
Rest your hands on your thighs.
Relax your shoulders, leaning forward slightly and dangling your arms in front of you.
or…
Rest your elbows or hands on a piece on furniture, just below shoulder height.
Relax your neck, resting your head on your forearms.
Relax your shoulders.
Extra: Schedule your medication.
It may not be enough to take your last dose hours before bedtime.
If your asthma is really acting up at night, you should speak to your physician about ways to better time your medicine so it works throughout the night, which will help prevent the coughs and breathlessness that’s waking you in the wee hours.
