TWO WEEK SLEEP DIARY INSTRUCTIONS

* Keep a list of all medications and supplements you take.

* Tell your primary care physician (family doctor), behavioral healthcare professional, sleep doctor, and/or pharmacist about all the medicines you take including any over-the-counter medicines, as well as any drug allergies that you may have.

* Ask your pharmacist about side effects and what foods or liquids to avoid while taking medications.

* Read the label, including warnings. Make sure that you receive the medication that was prescribed for you and you know how to use it.

* If the medication looks different than you expected, ask the pharmacist about it.

Medication Information Log

* Use this log to record the medications that you are taking. If you have any concerns about them, then ask your doctor.* Bring this log with you when you go to the doctor.

Personal Information:

Before Visiting Sleep Doctor 

It is recommended to ask your bed partner to accompany you to the appointment. Another person who lives with you or visits frequently may finish the questionnaire, if you don’t have a regular bed partner.

* Make sure he or she completes the Bed Partner Questionnaire for you and brings it to your appointment if it won’t be possible for your partner to attend. In fact, the sleep doctor may talk to your bed partner at another time.

* Do not forget to bring with you all medications you are presently taking, because most people can’t recall details of prescriptions or over-the-counter medications.

* Complete the Medication Log and bring it to the appointment.

In addition, you maybe asked to fill other medical forms and sleep-related questionnaires. Also, the sleep center or the doctor may ask you to keep notes of events, called a “sleep diary,” Those notes will display psychological and social issues and your own thoughts and feeling regarding your sleep problem. This diary may be very important for your doctor. It will enable you to reconstruct specific bad nights of sleep, as well as the events of the day before. The sleep diary could help you in understanding particular events, which affected your sleep.

Are you licensed medical doctor?

Do you have any professional accreditation from your Association?

•  If you are in the search for a sleep specialist or sleep center, it is important to ask about their medical status as health care providers.
• It is quite common that not all licensed sleep specialists practice at a licensed sleep center and likewise.
• From another hand, not all licensed sleep centers employ licensed sleep doctors.
• With the reference to American Academy of Sleep Medicine (AASM) we can be assured that accreditation means that the sleep facility meets the highest standards for being knowledgeable in the field of sleep medicine, procedures, and treatments. In this case you as a patient will expect some degree of confidence and protection.
• The same conditions are applied to Canadian Sleep Society (CSS), which is a professional association of clinicians, scientists and technologists formed in June 1986 to further the advancement and understanding of sleep and its disorders through scientific study and public awareness.

• Please refer to Sleep Centers section of this Web site for more actual location, directions, and phone numbers.

How long have you been practicing sleep medicine?

• If you are in the sleep center, this question could be modified to the following: “How long has this sleep center been diagnosing and treating sleep disorder patients?”

• If there is a sleep specialist, ask him/her the following question:“How many years have you been practicing sleep medicine?”

Before making an appointment and after you decided about the sleep center where you are planning to see a sleep specialist, you need to check yourself if you experience (presently or in the past) the following conditions that may indicate that professional consultation is needed:

* Your sleep-related difficulties persisted for over a month

* You have noticed that one or more conditions, such as: often unable to fall asleep, unable to stay asleep all night, or unable to stay awake during the day

* Due to your sleep problem you happened to run into a car accident, lost employment, or destroyed personal relationship

* Your sleeping pills make you addicted

* You are trying to sleep in separate beds to stay away from your partner because of your snoring and/or your restless legs behavior

* You realized that after trying everything you know, you still have problems with your sleep.

Another sign that you must see a sleep doctor is when your night time sleep pattern reflects your daytime performance

Your family physician will be able to determine the cause of your sleep problems and can refer you to a reputable, licensed sleep specialist or a sleep center in your area.

Watch Video: Ask the Doctor

Just before Your Scheduled Appointment

Most sleep centers perform many similar procedures. Usually, you can ask the receptionist of the center to mail you their forms and other required questionnaires before your appointment. It is advisable that you also complete the Sleep Log:

Bed Partner

It is recommended to ask your bed partner to accompany you to the appointment. Another person who lives with you or visits frequently may finish the questionnaire, if you don’t have a regular bed partner.

* Make sure he or she completes the Bed Partner Questionnaire for you and bring to your appointment if it won’t be possible for your partner to attend. In fact, the sleep doctor may talk to your bed partner at another time.

* Do not forget to bring with you all medications you are presently taking, because most people can’t recall details of prescriptions or over-the-counter medications.

* Complete the Medication Log and bring it to the appointment.

Sleep Diary

In addition, you maybe asked to fill other medical forms and sleep-related questionnaires. Also, the sleep center or the doctor may ask you to keep notes of events, called a “sleep diary,” Those notes will display psychological and social issues and your own thoughts and feeling regarding your sleep problem. This diary may be very important for your doctor. It will enable you to reconstruct specific bad nights of sleep, as well as the events of the day before. The sleep diary could help you in understanding particular events, which affect your sleep.

For more information please click here:

Before going to sleep practitioner you need to make certain preparation, one of them being a questionnaire you take with you. An example of this questionnaire, as well as additional links are shown on the bottom of this page:

Indicate you present knowledge of Sleep Disorders (beginner/average/advanced): _____

and return the copy of this questionnaire to your physician.