Detecting The Symptoms Of Sleep Apnea While You Are Awake

Most of us think that snoring is something that can be disregarded unless it is disruptive to our sleep or causes disturbance to our roommate. Unknown to us, loud snoring may be one of the symptoms of sleep apnea, a sleep disorder characterized by repeated reduction or pauses in breathing. Although the condition can be treated, it is often ignored and mistaken as an indication of deep sleep.

Sleep apnea is called as such because it usually occurs when the affected person is asleep. It is also called obstructive sleep apnea because during episodes, the airflow is blocked by the collapsed muscle in the throat leading to the reduction of oxygen level in the blood. The brain jolts the person to wake up gasping for breath. These brief awakenings can happen many times but may not be remembered by the person when he is fully awake. This accounts for the reason why the condition is discounted because it transpires during unconscious state. However, other glaring symptoms of sleep apnea can warn those who are afflicted with it.

The Obvious Symptoms of Sleep Apnea

• Loud Snoring – Although not everyone who snores has sleep apnea, loud snoring is one of its main manifestations. A person suffering from obstructive sleep apnea begins to snore loudly immediately after falling asleep. Snoring becomes louder until it pauses for a long period of silence that means the person is not breathing. After a while, he suddenly grunts, snorts or gasps in his attempt to breathe. A normal breathing pattern follows, but several episodes of sleep apnea often occur during a sleeping period. Because the person with sleep apnea continues to sleep, most of the symptoms are visible only to his bed or room companion. These may include restlessness typified by frequent tossing and turning in bed.

• Excessive Daytime Sleepiness (EDS) – The afflicted person may also notice some signs indicative of sleep apnea. He may feel sleepy during the day because the lack of oxygen during sleep worsened the quality of his sleep during the night. He may involuntarily fall asleep in the middle of performing daytime tasks such as eating, working on the computer and even while driving. This symptom is considered a threat to health, safety and performance because it weakens one’s reflexes and reduces competence.

• Fatigue during the Day – Because of the low quality of sleep, a person with obstructive sleep apnea may feel tired as if he has not slept at all. This condition can lead to problems in concentrating, difficulty in learning, and poor memory. The person is bound to become irritable and moody.

• Depression – A person with sleep apnea is more prone to develop depression. The ailment may become an aggravating factor for those who are already suffering from depression.

• Headache – Without a good sleep, sleep apnea sufferers often wake up with mild to severe headaches not only during the day, but also at night.

• Other Symptoms – Sleep apnea is blamed for frequent trips to the bathroom to urinate. It can also cause profuse sweating while the person sleeps. There are also complaints of sore throat and dry mouth upon waking up. Sexual dysfunction is also a common experience for people with sleep apnea.

Any or a combination of these symptoms of sleep apnea are enough to warn the person about the intensity of his condition. Experts say that the more of these signs are present, the more serious obstructive sleep apnea is. However, because the afflicted person is usually unconscious during bouts of sleep apnea, his roommate is the best person to advise him to consult a doctor and undergo treatment for it.