Sleep health guides
Plain-language guides to help you prepare for a sleep clinic visit.
Why Can't I Sleep at Night? Common Causes and Real Fixes
Quick answer: Most sleepless nights trace back to a handful of culprits: late caffeine, alcohol, screens, an irregular schedule, pain, worry, restless legs or sleep apnoea itself. A few evidence-backe…
What Is CPAP and How Does It Work?
Quick answer: CPAP stands for continuous positive airway pressure. A small pump pushes air at a constant, gentle pressure through a hose into a mask you wear while sleeping, and that steady airflow wo…
What Happens During a Sleep Study
Quick answer: You arrive at a sleep unit in the evening, a technician attaches painless sensors to your head, chest and legs, then you sleep in a private room while equipment records your breathing, b…
Telehealth Sleep Consultations: How They Work in Australia
Quick answer: Sleep care has moved decisively onto video. Medicare rebates are available for eligible specialist telehealth consultations when your GP refers you, and initial reviews, follow-ups, CPAP…
Snoring vs Sleep Apnoea: When Snoring Is a Warning Sign
Quick answer: Snoring is the sound of air vibrating through relaxed tissue in your throat, and on its own it is often harmless. Sleep apnoea is different: the airway actually closes, breathing stops, …
Sleep Apnoea Treatment Options in Australia
Quick answer: There is more than one way to treat sleep apnoea in Australia, and the right one depends on what your sleep study shows. CPAP is the usual first-line treatment for moderate to severe obs…
Sleep Apnoea Symptoms and Warning Signs
Quick answer: Sleep apnoea shows up in two places: what happens in your bedroom overnight, and what fatigue does to your daytime. Snoring, witnessed pauses, gasping and night-time toilet trips belong …
Sleep Apnoea and Weight: What Actually Connects Them
Quick answer: Carrying extra weight is one of the strongest risk factors for obstructive sleep apnoea, mainly because of fat around the neck and upper airway. But slim people get apnoea too, and modes…
Signs You Should See a Sleep Specialist
Quick answer: If you snore loudly most nights, someone has watched you stop breathing in your sleep, or you wake unrefreshed despite enough hours in bed, it is time to talk to your GP about a referral…
Oral Appliance Therapy vs CPAP: Which Suits You?
Quick answer: CPAP and a mandibular advancement splint treat the same problem in different ways. CPAP holds the airway open with air pressure and is more effective for severe apnoea; a splint repositi…
Morning Headaches and Sleep Apnoea: What the Evidence Says
Quick answer: Studies have found an association between sleep apnoea and morning headaches, so a headache on waking, several mornings a week, is a reasonable reason to ask your GP about sleep testing.…
Insomnia vs Sleep Apnoea: How to Tell the Difference
Quick answer: Insomnia is mainly trouble falling or staying asleep. Obstructive sleep apnoea (OSA) is breathing that repeatedly stops and starts during sleep. Many Australians have both at once, so ge…
How to Tell If You Have Sleep Apnoea
Quick answer: Most Australians with obstructive sleep apnoea have no idea they have it, because the loudest evidence happens while they are asleep. The clearest clues are snoring that people complain …
How to Choose a Sleep Clinic
Quick answer: Choose a clinic led by a specialist sleep physician, reachable through a GP referral, that offers the study type your case actually needs. Check billing arrangements, waiting times and w…
Home Sleep Test vs In-Lab Study
Quick answer: A home sleep test is a portable recording you do in your own bed, best suited to straightforward suspected obstructive sleep apnoea. An in-lab study is attended overnight by staff and re…
Excessive Daytime Sleepiness: Causes and When to Act
Quick answer: Excessive daytime sleepiness (EDS) means struggling to stay awake during the day even after enough hours in bed. Causes reach well past sleep apnoea: too little sleep, shift work, medica…
Does Insurance Cover Sleep Studies
Quick answer: Yes, in many cases. Medicare covers diagnostic sleep studies when a GP or specialist refers you and the test is clinically appropriate, and private health insurers may contribute to hosp…
CPAP Therapy: Getting Started in Australia
Quick answer: CPAP therapy in Australia starts with a sleep study and a diagnosis from a sleep physician, who then writes a prescription for your machine and mask. Most Australians find their equipmen…
Central vs Obstructive Sleep Apnoea: What Is the Difference?
Quick answer: Both central and obstructive sleep apnoea involve breathing repeatedly stopping during sleep, but the machinery failing is different. In obstructive sleep apnoea, your body keeps trying …
APAP vs CPAP: What Is the Difference?
Quick answer: CPAP delivers one fixed air pressure all night, set from your sleep study or titration. APAP works within a range your sleep physician sets an algorithm, adjusting the pressure up or dow…