Simplifying Sleep Apnea
Understanding sleep apnea is not difficult if you know all the facts about the disorder. It is defined as one or more pauses in breathing while you sleep. These pauses generally last from a few seconds to a few minutes and can occur up to 30 times in an hour. Normal breathing is resumed shortly after these non-breathing episodes and generally are accompanied by a gasping sound. If you have breathing difficulties more than three nights each week, then you probably have chronic sleep apnea. You more than likely experience tiredness upon awakening and you feel sleeping throughout the day.
Sleep apnea is often not diagnosed because there is no specific test that can be done on routine trips to your doctor. It also isn’t recognized unless you have a sleep partner. It occurs when your airways are somehow obstructed or have collapsed. This condition causes you to pause in your breathing. Then, when you then try to breathe, you may snore loudly. Central sleep apnea is a less-common form of the disease and it is triggered when your brain doesn’t send the correct signals to your breathing muscles. It often occurs with Obstructive sleep apnea but is normally not accompanied by snoring.
Obstructive sleep apnea needs to be treated because it can lead to high blood pressure, heart disease, stroke, diabetes and obesity. If you have it, you are at risk for developing cardiac failure and irregular heartbeats. You also are more prone to accidents because when you awake you are tired and confused. Sleep apnea means that you likely will have to make some major lifestyle changes in order for it to be treated successfully. You also may need to try other treatment options such as mouthpieces, surgery and breathing devices.
Your sleep apnea treatment will be ongoing and will require you to follow-up with your doctor regularly. Let your doctor know if you are experiencing any side effects that are unmanageable. If you are using CPAP (continuous positive airway pressure), report any difficulties that you might be having to your doctor. He or she may be able to prescribe something different for you to use. You may also be able to get additional treatment to control any CPAP side effects.