FAQ

Unfortunately, the Sleep Health Foundation operates only as a health promotion charity. Health services should be sought directly through a healthcare professional. If you're unfamiliar with the process of booking a sleep study, we recommend you first speak with your GP about your sleep and any concerns you have, who can then refer you to an appropriate sleep specialist within your area.

The Sleep Health Foundation invites all individuals and organisations to help spread the word about the importance of sleep health. Download and distribution of our fact sheets is freely available for non commercial purposes (via download link at the bottom of each webpage), including their use as free handouts at doctors' offices, in schools, and at workplaces. Resources must not be modified in any way, and must credit the Sleep Health Foundation. If you're unsure if your usage is considered "non commercial" or if you would like to use our fact sheets for another purpose, please reach out to us directly via admin@sleephealthfoundation.org.au.

Melatonin is the most consumed supplement in the world for children and adults but this doesn’t mean it’s not without its risks.

We all have our own natural internal source of melatonin and our internal naturally occurring melatonin plays a vital role in the sleep-wake cycle.

Sometimes people are recommended to use a tablet or liquid form of melatonin if shiftwork or jetlag is interfering with their levels and timing of melatonin. It is not really designed to able to help all sleep difficulties. It is generally thought to be a safe drug but research on the safety and efficacy of melatonin use in children is limited, so caregivers should not administer melatonin supplements to children unless a doctor has advised them to do so. Supplemental melatonin may be appropriate for children and adolescents with behavioural, developmental and sleep disorders but only after non-drug approaches have been tried.

The Sleep Health Foundation does not sell or distribute CPAP devices, however a secondhand service is available through Sleep Disorders Australia. Visit their website here for more information.

The Sleep Health Foundation encourages membership as a great way for revenue generation to implement our mission and build strength in numbers as we work together towards the wider mission to improve lives through better sleep. We have individual membership available for the low fee of $75 per annum (+GST).

Benefits of being a member include:

• Opportunity to develop new skills by participating on committees and in projects.
• Being paid to present workshops to community groups, schools, government and business organisations.
• Advertising your research projects on our website during recruitment of volunteers through promotion on SHF social media channels.
• Advertisement of job vacancies on the SHF website and social media platforms.
• Opportunity to become a media spokesperson for the Sleep Health Foundation.

Get in touch with us via email for a presentation (or a series of presentations) tailored to your needs and we'll find the best speaker to align with your enquiry.  It's helpful to have some information about the topic(s) you're interested in, the demographic of your audience, any dates and times you're investigating, and where you're looking to host your presentation (in-person or online) to help facilitate the booking process. We have a wide network of speakers across Australia with a range of expertise.

We hope that with funding and resources we could offer programs and a helpline in the future, however the Sleep Health Foundation does not currently have established support services. Below we have linked to some groups, services and helplines that may be helpful and have been established for some time. You will need to make contact directly with them as we are not connected.

• Sleep Disorders Australia
• Hypersomnolence Australia
• Narcolepsy & Overwhelming Daytime Sleepiness Society (NODSS)
• Perinatal Anxiety & Depression Australia (PANDA) 1300 726 306
• Gidget Foundation 1300 851 758
• Beyond Blue 1300 22 4636
• Lifeline 13 11 14

This will depend on what you’ve been prescribed and the reasons for your sleeping difficulties. We encourage you to have clear discussions with the prescribing doctor about how long you should be on the medication. Sleeping difficulties are often best addressed via lifestyle changes, and via Cognitive Behavioural Therapy for Insomnia (CBT-i). Most medications prescribed for sleep (especially if it’s insomnia) are meant to be short term and need to be reviewed after one month.

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Unfortunately, there is no universal offering for subsidies or rebates for sleep related aids in Australia. These vary in criteria and availability from state to state and are subject to change. Please check with your state health departments about what is available. Sleep Disorders Australia have a some useful information on health funds and other rebates for PAP machines here.

The Sleep Health Foundation is not involved with administering any subsidies or grants.

Although there is no requirement for you to have a prescription from a sleep physician to purchase a CPAP machine, treating sleep apnoea is complex, so it’s best to have your treatment supervised by a doctor.

Your doctor will organise a sleep test and assess your need for treatment with nasal CPAP. They will also work out the optimal equipment and settings to control your sleep apnoea, and be as comfortable as possible. If there are issues with CPAP, the doctor can adjust the settings to make sure that the CPAP and settings are optimal for you and controlling your sleep apnoea. The doctor can also discuss alternative sleep apnoea treatments if necessary.

If you're having trouble with your PAP machine or the device is faulty/needs repair, you should contact the supplier (where you purchased the machine) or manufacturer of your device (the company that makes your device). Some general information about care and maintenance of your machine is available via our fact sheet here.

The Sleep Health Foundation does not manufacture, supply or repair CPAP devices.

Have a look at the fact sheets available under Sleep Disorders and Sleep Topics on our website and you will find some more information. Please remember that our fact sheets should be considered general in nature and cannot substitute professional advice. It is best to speak to your GP if you’ve had trouble with your sleep for more than a few months, and self-help hasn’t led to improvements. You can discuss the nature of your sleeping difficulties and they will be able to either refer you to a sleep specialist or talk to you about the potential causes of your sleeping difficulties, and work through some solutions with you.