Can acid reflux make you sleepy?
Gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD) is a chronic, recurrent disease. Reflux esophagitis can interfere with sleep via acid reflux, which can cause daytime sleepiness or fatigue.
How elevated Should I sleep with acid reflux?
Doctors recommend that you: Do elevate the head of your bed 6 to 8 inches to assist gravity in keeping your stomach acid from refluxing. Don’t sleep on your back, particularly if you are obese, because the pressure on your stomach could help drive acid into your esophagus. Don’t sleep on your right side.
Does acid reflux or GERD make you tired?
Gastroesophageal reflux disease, known as GERD, can cause fatigue in people who have difficulty sleeping due to symptoms. For example, a person may repeatedly wake in the night to cough or because of pain associated with heartburn. Medications for GERD can also have side effects that cause insomnia.
Why is acid reflux worse at night?
When you’re laying down, you lose the effect of gravity on the food traveling through your digestive system. Laying down also prevents gravity from keeping bile and acids from traveling up into the esophagus, causing heartburn. Because of this, many people find their heartburn is worse at night.
What’s the best way to sleep with acid reflux?
Sleep on your left side. Multiple research studies have found that being on your left side is the best sleeping position for people with GERD 18. Sleeping with your left side down reduces reflux episodes 19 and exposure of the esophagus to stomach acid. Sleeping in other positions, including on your back, can make reflux more likely 20.
Can a sleep apnea episode cause acid reflux?
When OSA occurs, changes in pressures within the diaphragm and the chest cavity make conditions favorable for acid reflux. It is also thought that an episode of apnea could alter digestive processes in a way that disrupts the function of the LES. Apneas also cause more “respiratory effort” during sleep.
How does stomach acid affect sleep and health?
GERD can have a dramatic impact on sleep, leading to risks of: aspirating (breathing in) stomach acid while asleep aggravating or contributing to obstructive sleep apnea (OSA), and experiencing sleep fragmentation caused by the discomfort of heartburn symptoms
Why does lying down cause acid reflux symptoms?
That’s because some sleeping positions worsen acid reflux symptoms. When a person with acid reflux is lying down, the stomach contents don’t go down the stomach. In fact, it’s more likely for the stomach contents to travel back up the esophagus, leading to acid reflux symptoms.