I spent a week mouth taping for sleep
Maybe you’ve heard the hype from influencers or from friends about mouth taping when you sleep. I was so intrigued when friend after friend just kept saying how mouth taping was changing their sleep and waking lives. I haven’t had much trouble with sleep myself but what I have struggled with is my dental health. I researched and learned how beneficial it is for that, I knew I had to give it a try.
Mouth taping can help with…
Sleep-disordered breathing
ADHD symptoms
Cavities
Gum Disease
Bad breath
Dry mouth
The benefit of mouth taping is that it forces you to breathe through your nose instead of your mouth. When we are mouth breathing it can cause negative effects on our bodies. “It is well documented that mouth breathing adults are more likely to experience sleep-disordered breathing, fatigue, decreased productivity and poorer quality of life than those who nasal-breathe.” stated on Oralhealthgroup.com
When we breathe through our nose we are utilizing the complex filtering system that resides in our nose. This filtration system purifies the air we breathe in before it reaches our lungs. So when we choose to mouth tape for sleep we are assisting our body in breathing in cleaner, more purified air into our lungs. As stated in an Oralhealthgroup.com study “One of the most important reasons for nasal breathing, is due to the production of nitric oxide (NO). NO exists in the human breath, but little is known about its site of origin or enzyme source. Most NO in normal human breath derives locally from the nose where it can reach high levels during breath-holding. This incredible molecule, is said to be produced in mammalian cells by specific enzymes and is believed to play a vital role in many biological events including regulation of blood flow, platelet function, immunity, and neurotransmission.” So, to increase your immunity, maintain homeostasis and most importantly keep our neurotransmitters functioning at their most optimum level we must breathe out of out nose. We have billions of neurotransmitters in our bodies they control our brain function, heartbeat, how we learn, and our psyche (joy, anxiety, pleasure, and fear for example). Take away, breathing through your nose day or night is going to positively impact your overall wellbeing.
Loaded with knowledge and excitement I purchased some medical-grade tape ( this is the one I most prefer) and got to mouth taping for sleep. The first night I had a hard time falling asleep, I am usually quick to sleep but the tape was foreign and strange. Yet once I was asleep I slept so well and woke up feeling alert and rested. This continued over the course of the following 6 days. After that first night, it felt less and less strange. I was able to return to dozing off quickly and found I was waking up less throughout the night. Whereas I usually wake up to 2 times to use the restroom. This shifted with the mouth taping, my sleep felt deeper, more dream-filled, and I slept without no waking before my alarm.
After wearing the tape for 7 days I decided to see what would happen with a night of sleeping tape free. To my surprise, I immediately felt the difference upon waking. When my alarm rang, I was exhausted yet I got the same amount of sleep as the past 7 nights. I snoozed my alarm for the first time in months because I felt so exhausted. Then once I finally woke I felt beat up as if I was hungover. The other piece was I had bad breath. Whereas the mornings after mouth taping my breath was not noticeably bad.
That day after not mouth taping for sleep, I was a blob. I couldn't find any motivation to do anything and found myself laying around, vegging out of T.V. shows, and eating popcorn because, well that’s how I do when I am feeling lazy. By the end of the day, I knew I had to return to mouth taping that night and sure enough I did and haven’t looked back since.
It’s truly such a simple extra step before dozing off, that provides such a huge benefit. My evenings now look like this… lathering my face with Yay for Earth, jumping into bed and reading, kissing Kyle goodnight, and then taping my mouth shut. Then it’s over to dreamland.
Now, I invite you to try mouth taping for sleep! Try it for one week and see how it helps your sleep and overall wellbeing. Be sure to let me know how it helps you in the comments or tag me on your instagram at @simplyrachelbare I cannot wait for you to use this simple tool to improve so much more than just your quality of sleep but your overall well being.
Happy mouth taping for sleep my friends!
*Important note, I am not a medical doctor nor am I trying to provide medical advice, I am only providing my personal experience. If you have any medical concerns about not being able to fully breathe through your nose (i.e. allergies, asthma, or anything of the nature) please consult your doctor before mouth taping.
