Uncover The 7 Silent Signs Of Sleep Apnea You Might Be Missing
Obstructive sleep apnea is a common sleep-breathing disorder characterized by repeated pauses in breathing during sleep, leading to disrupted rest. Did you know it can also cause psychiatric problems Today I'm going to talk about seven signs that are common with sleep apnea. Obstructive sleep apnea is a condition where your airway is obstructed or blocked, causing low oxygen levels in your bloodstream, this state is also called hypoxia. When your oxygen level drops too low, your nerves send a signal to your brain to stimulate breathing so you can take in more air. This trigger to breathe is involuntary and happens while you sleep. You're awakened to breathe, but since it happens so quickly and is very brief, you are always aware that you woke up, and you fall right back asleep.
This can happen multiple times during the night such that you end up having very choppy sleep with very little deep sleep, and the sleep is not restorative because you don't follow the normal sleep architecture pattern.
Another thing that can increase the risk is smoking and having nasal obstructions like a deviated septum, enlarged turbinates inside of your nose, or nasal polyps. People with small chins or large overbites can also be at a higher risk of having sleep apnea. Some people with sleep apnea don't have obvious symptoms other than
Sleep apnea is also associated with anxiety, especially panic attacks. It also causes reversible cognitive decline or can become permanent if it goes on too long untreated. I've had patients who told me, "They couldn't believe how much their thinking cleared up and their memory improved after they were treated for sleep apnea." The most common treatment is continuous positive airway pressure. It's a mask that you wear at night that looks like an oxygen mask, and it helps keep your airways open. It's not a sexy look, but it works as long as you can keep the mask on your face. There are other interventions like a dental device to keep your airway open or removing your uvula in the back of your throat to create more space. If you already have depression or anxiety that won't get better with medication or therapy, and your thinking is kind of fuzzy, and you're tired all the time, take a look at some of these other symptoms to see if you have them.
If you do, write down your symptoms and any observations from people who've watched you sleep, and take that list to your primary care doctor for an evaluation to see if you should get a sleep study.
This can happen multiple times during the night such that you end up having very choppy sleep with very little deep sleep, and the sleep is not restorative because you don't follow the normal sleep architecture pattern.
Here's one system for measuring the severity of sleep apnea.
- Mild sleep apnea: is when you have 5 to 15 hypoxic events every hour.
- Moderate: When sleep apnea is 16 to 30 events.
- Severe: when you have more than 30 hypoxic events every hour.
What causes obstructive sleep apnea?
The most common cause is excess weight and the accumulation of fatty tissue around your neck, making your airway collapse during sleep. Even if you're not overweight, some people have thicker necks or excess soft tissue in the throat and neck area, making them more prone to their tissues collapsing during sleep.Another thing that can increase the risk is smoking and having nasal obstructions like a deviated septum, enlarged turbinates inside of your nose, or nasal polyps. People with small chins or large overbites can also be at a higher risk of having sleep apnea. Some people with sleep apnea don't have obvious symptoms other than
Diagnose Yourself: 7 Quick Ways To Check For Sleep Apnea For Any Age
- Not feeling rested in the morning, and can be the case if you don't have that many events during the night, but there are other signs that you may not recognize as being caused by sleep apnea. One that you've probably heard about is
- Persistent snoring, but this isn't a per or a low rumble., it's louder than talking or can be heard through a closed door. Another sign is morning headaches.
- Excessive daytime sleepiness. You get your seven to eight hours of sleep, but you're still nodding off the day. You may be falling asleep during meetings or phone calls, or worse, at traffic lights.
- Waking up more than two times a night to urinate, is called nocturia. Nocturia can happen for other reasons, but it's also common with obstructive sleep apnea because the awakenings trigger a release of certain hormones that affect urine production.
- Erectile dysfunction because sleep apnea can cause decreased testosterone levels and medications like Viagra can worsen the oxygen level, so you don't want to try and fix the problem with just Viagra.
- Waking up most mornings with a dry or sore throat, and this would come from mouth breathing. And then the last sign that you may have obstructive sleep apnea
- Having choking episodes during the night. It may be a big enough gasp to wake you up, or it may be that your bed partner notices that you snore, then it gets quiet, and then there's a loud gasp or choking sound.
Sleep apnea is also associated with anxiety, especially panic attacks. It also causes reversible cognitive decline or can become permanent if it goes on too long untreated. I've had patients who told me, "They couldn't believe how much their thinking cleared up and their memory improved after they were treated for sleep apnea." The most common treatment is continuous positive airway pressure. It's a mask that you wear at night that looks like an oxygen mask, and it helps keep your airways open. It's not a sexy look, but it works as long as you can keep the mask on your face. There are other interventions like a dental device to keep your airway open or removing your uvula in the back of your throat to create more space. If you already have depression or anxiety that won't get better with medication or therapy, and your thinking is kind of fuzzy, and you're tired all the time, take a look at some of these other symptoms to see if you have them.
If you do, write down your symptoms and any observations from people who've watched you sleep, and take that list to your primary care doctor for an evaluation to see if you should get a sleep study.