This is a complete guide to sleep apnea: causes, symptoms, and treatment. You’ll learn what sleep apnea is, warning signs to look out for, how it affects your health, and proven treatment options that work.
Contents
- What Is Sleep Apnea?
- Warning Signs You Shouldn’t Ignore
- Why Sleep Apnea Is So Dangerous
- Common Causes and Risk Factors
- Effective Sleep Apnea Treatment Options
- The Bottom Line
- Final Thoughts
What Is Sleep Apnea?
Sleep apnea is a sleep syndrome in which your breathing repeatedly halts and starts during sleep. You may not know when it’s happening to you, and the only way to be sure is by being tested.
Your airway becomes blocked (or your brain forgets to tell your breathing muscles to work) and you stop living for short periods of time while sleeping. These pauses in breathing can happen dozens of times, or even hundreds of times, per night.
There are three types of sleep apnea:
- Obstructive sleep apnea (OSA): this is the most common type of apnea in which the throat muscles relax, causing blockage of the airway.
- Central sleep apnea (CSA): in this form of apnea, your brain doesn’t send proper signals to your breathing muscles.
- Complex sleep apnea: which is a mixture of together disruptive and central sleep apnea.
The vast mainstream of sleep apnea cases are of the obstructive type, and the problem is getting worse year after year.
Warning Signs You Shouldn’t Ignore
Do you think you may have sleep apnea? Here are the common symptoms to be aware of:
During Sleep
- Loud snoring (especially with choking or gasping sounds)
- Pauses in breathing that are noticed by a bed partner
- Restless sleep or waking up frequently
During The Day
- Excessive sleepiness during the day
- Morning headaches
- Difficulty concentrating
- Mood changes or irritability
As you can see, most symptoms occur while you are asleep. For this reason, you may not even realize you have sleep apnea. Your bed partner is often the first to notice.
If any of the above symptoms sound familiar to you, talk to a doctor about testing for sleep apnea.
Why Sleep Apnea Is So Dangerous
Sleep apnea is not just an annoyance to have in your life; it’s downright dangerous.
Every time your breathing pauses, the oxygen in your blood drops. Your brain then has to wake you up (often without you even realizing it) to restart your breathing. This process repeats itself many times during the night.
This results in long-term health risks such as:
- High blood pressure
- Heart disease and heart attacks
- Strokes
- Type 2 diabetes
- Depression and anxiety
Studies have found that giving sleep apnea can significantly reduce your risk of cardiovascular issues. In one study, sleep apnea treatment was found to reduce risk of mortality by nearly 50% over five years.
Common Causes and Risk Factors
So, what exactly causes sleep apnea?
Physical factors contribute significantly to the development of sleep apnea, including:
- Excess weight (being overweight or overweight is a major risk factor for OSA)
- Large neck circumference
- Narrow airway
- Age (older adults are more probable to have sleep apnea)
Other risk factors include:
- Being male (men are 2-3x more likely to develop OSA)
- Family history of sleep apnea
- Smoking and alcohol use
- Nasal congestion or allergies
By understanding your danger factors, you can take preemptive measures to reduce your chances of developing sleep apnea.
Effective Sleep Apnea Treatment Options
The good news is that slumber apnea is highly treatable. There are a diversity of effective treatment options available, depending on the harshness of your condition.
CPAP Therapy
Continuous Positive Airway Weight (CPAP) therapy is the gold normal treatment for moderate to severe sleep apnea. Here’s how it works.
A CPAP machine delivers a stable stream of pressurized air delivered through a mask that you wear while sleeping. The air pressure keeps your airway open, preventing pauses in breathing from occurring.
The benefits of CPAP therapy are life-changing for many patients, with most reporting significant improvements in energy levels, concentration, mood, and quality of life.
CPAP treatment is often the first recommended option for peoples with moderate to severe sleep apnea. Home Sleep Center sleep apnea treatment options are now available for convenient, hassle-free treatment.
The big challenge with CPAP is compliance. It’s easy to stop using the CPAP machine because of the inconvenience. Studies show only 30-60% of people continue with CPAP treatment long term. But the newer machines are much quieter and more comfortable.
Oral Appliances
Custom-fitted oral appliances are an effective treatment for mild to moderate sleep apnea.
These devices (similar to sports mouthguards) hold your jaw and tongue in place to keep your airway open during sleep. Oral appliances are comfortable, portable, and a good travel option when compared to CPAP machines.
Lifestyle Changes
Sometimes lifestyle vicissitudes can make a big difference for sleep apnea.
Simple steps you can take include:
- Weight loss (even losing 10% of your body weight can make a significant improvement)
- Sleeping on your side (instead of your back)
- Avoiding alcohol before bed
- Quitting smoking
- Regular exercise
Lifestyle changes work best in mild cases or in conjunction with other treatments.
Surgical Options
In severe cases, when other treatments are not effective, surgery may be an option. Common procedures include removing excess tissue in the throat, repositioning the jaw, or implanting an upper airway stimulation device.
Surgery is considered a last resort after other options have been tried.
Getting Diagnosed Is The First Step
If you think you may have sleep apnea, the first step is to get a proper diagnosis.
Your doctor will likely indorse you undergo a sleep study, which can be done in a sleep lab or in the comfort of your own home with portable monitoring equipment.
Home sleep tests are flattering more popular because they’re:
- More convenient (sleep in your own bed)
- Less expensive
- Just as accurate for many patients
Once you have been diagnosed, your doctor will work with you to determine the right treatment approach based on the harshness of your condition and other individual factors.
The Bottom Line
Sleep apnea is a common disorder that touches millions of persons in America. But with a proper diagnosis and the right treatment, you can reclaim your health and finally start getting a good night’s sleep again.
Don’t ignore the warning signs if you are experiencing loud snoring, daytime fatigue, and other symptoms. Talk to your doctor about getting tested, as soon as possible. The sooner you start treatment for sleep apnea, the sooner you can start feeling better.
Final Thoughts
Sleep apnea treatment has come a long way in recent years. Treatment options are more comfortable and effective than ever before. There’s a good chance that you will find an effective treatment option that you can use in the long term, whether that’s CPAP therapy, an oral appliance, or lifestyle changes.
Get tested, find the right treatment, and start sleeping better tonight.
