alt Hacker NewsDidgeridoo playing as alternative treatment for obstructive sleep apnea(2006)
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I started playing didgeridoo 10 years ago for precisely this reason. Sleep apnea already cured by weight loss, but I knew by air pathways were prone to it, and I never wanted it to come back.
It worked
It took me 1-2 years to learn circular breathing, but even just learning to play for 15 seconds on one breath can give the "oxygen high" from breathing so much.
These two https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oXBGZoBYaLY must be best dorm neighbours ever then.
There seems to be a typing mistake. The embouchure should have diameter of 2.8-3.2 centimeters, not millimeters. Perhaps that can be done DIY from an PVC pipe with an hot air gun or a gas burner to soften and shape the end.
"Participants received a standardised acrylic plastic didgeridoo that was developed by the instructor in collaboration with Creacryl GmbH (Ebmatingen, Zurich, Switzerland, and costs €80 (£43; $94), fig 1). The didgeridoo is 130 cm long with a diameter of 4 cm and an elliptical embouchure with a diameter of 2.8-3.2 mm. Acrylic didgeridoos are easier for beginners to learn on than conventional wooden didgeridoos."
Didgeridoo specifically?, or any instrument that requires circular breathing https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Circular_breathing
Last thing I need for my sleep through my thin walls is a neighbor with a didgeridoo.
30% of Americans have reflux, which is associated with obstructive sleep apnea.
Check out the papers on Inspiratory Muscle Training (IMT) and bridge swallowing.
The captcha on this site is irritating.
Original paper: https://www.bmj.com/content/332/7536/266
Looks like there was no placebo group? Don't know what that could be, something silly like otamatone lessons.
There are also various simple tongue and throat exercises that can improve your sleep apnea that would generally be better tolerated by your neighbors than playing a Didgeridoo, see for example...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wNscQ3bGxNk
...along with various other videos on that person's youtube channel (he's an NHS Sleep and Ear Surgeon).
Of course, there are lots of underlying causes of sleep apnea that vary between people, so what helps one person may or may not be relevant for others. Seeing a doctor in the field should be your first step if you suspect you are suffering from sleep apnea.
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> The randomisation list was concealed from the recruiting physicians and the didgeridoo instructor in an administrative office otherwise not involved in the study. We used a central telephone service, which the didgeridoo instructor used to obtain group allocation.
Oh, did you make use of the central telephone service did you? You didn't send the list by carrier pigeons?
A friend of mine started "blowing air into water with an straw" (making bubbles) very seriously. I was very skeptical to say the least; but after a couple of months the effects have been very eye opening. Not only it has helped sleep apnea and snoring but also helped with reducing their weight. They had an online group and most participants reported the same. The wight loss was reverted when they stopped for some personal reasons. I wonder if making bubbles in the water has the same effect.