Enough sleep – and still not rested.
“I actually sleep enough.” “I need two hours to get going in the morning.” “I’m not ill, I’m just always tired.” If one of these sentences sounds familiar, what is usually missing is not sleep but recovery. On this page we put into perspective what is known about this – and what is not.
This page goes into more depth on the section Exhaustion & lack of energy in our overview of complaints.
How unrefreshing sleep shows itself
Unrefreshing sleep is rarely the complaint people come with. It hides in passing remarks. We see four forms again and again:
- Falling asleep works, staying asleep does not. You wake up at night, often between two and four o’clock, without knowing why.
- Sleep is long enough and still does not carry you. You get up more tired than when you went to bed.
- Morning is the worst time of day. Headache on waking, stiff neck, dry mouth, blocked nose.
- Your energy does not last until the evening. Not tiredness after exertion, but exhaustion without exertion.
A simple test: do not ask yourself whether you sleep well. Ask yourself how you wake up.
What connects breathing, sleep and the jaw
What breathing and sleep have in common is the supply of oxygen. That a lack of oxygen affects metabolism and the energy available is basic knowledge. For the individual links in between there are studies:
- Mouth breathing and sleep quality. In children who breathe through the mouth, studies more often found signs of breathing disorders at night and lower oxygen saturation during sleep.
- Lower jaw and airway. The position of the lower jaw and of the tongue influences how wide the upper airway is.
- Sleep and pain. Fragmented sleep can increase sensitivity to pain; how much depends on how long and how often sleep is disturbed.
- Sleep and CMD. In review studies, people with poor sleep quality more often have CMD.
Added to this is something many people know: grinding and clenching at night and permanently tense jaw muscles do not let the body come to rest at night.
What is proven – and what is not. To be honest: the individual links above have been studied, some only in children and as an association, not as a cause. This does not say whether the jaw system is the reason for your exhaustion in particular. In the individual case that is an assumption, which only an examination and the further course can support or rule out. We therefore do not tell you that you will sleep better after treatment.
When you should see a doctor first. Tiredness has many causes. With these signs you belong in a medical assessment first – not in CMD diagnostics:
- Suspected sleep apnoea: relatives observe pauses in breathing, loud irregular snoring, falling asleep during the day – to sleep medicine.
- Suspected depression: waking very early, brooding, loss of drive and interest, low mood in the morning – to your GP.
- Suspected thyroid disease: sensitivity to cold or heat, weight changes, hair loss, racing heart – to your GP.
- Suspected anaemia or iron deficiency: paleness, breathlessness on exertion, restless legs, hair loss – to your GP.
This is not a formality, but the point at which the order matters.
Where the jaw system comes in
We do not treat sleep disorders. We examine the jaw system in people who have several complaints that may be caused by CMD – and unrefreshing sleep is often one of them, together with morning headache, neck tension or grinding.
The CMD System Check measures, among other things, how your lower jaw moves and how your muscles work. We tell you what is measured and how you yourself can notice whether something is changing – for example by how you wake up and whether the morning headache becomes less frequent. If nothing unusual shows up in the jaw system, we tell you that just as clearly.
You can take the first step in two minutes with the CMD self-test.
Frequently asked questions
Do you treat sleep disorders or sleep apnoea?
No, not as a separate service. We examine the jaw system in people with several complaints that may be caused by CMD. Unrefreshing sleep is often one of them. A suspicion of sleep apnoea belongs in a sleep-medicine assessment first.
Will I sleep better after CMD treatment?
We cannot promise that to anyone. Whether the jaw plays a role for you is shown by the examination, and whether anything changes is shown by the course over time. We tell you what is measured and how you yourself can notice whether something is changing.
When should tiredness be seen by a doctor first?
If pauses in breathing are observed, with loud irregular snoring or falling asleep during the day; with very early waking, brooding and loss of drive; with sensitivity to cold or heat, weight changes or hair loss; with paleness, breathlessness on exertion or restless legs.
Does the jaw system play a role for you?
Without obligation – with an initial assessment straight away.
Other patterns of complaints
CMD rarely shows itself in just one place. Do you recognise yourself here?