Do you find you are exhausted after what seemed like a good night’s sleep? You spend seven or eight hours in bed every night, but you’re sleepy all day, and you struggle to concentrate. If this sounds familiar, you may be suffering from sleep apnea, a sleep disorder that affects millions of Americans.
What is Sleep Apnea?
Sleep apnea causes breathing to stop and start at intervals while you sleep. When you stop breathing, respiration uses up the oxygen in your blood, making carbon dioxide as a byproduct. Your brain notices that something has gone wrong, and it partially wakes you up so that you start breathing again. This cycle can happen hundreds of times a night, and it prevents you from getting the high-quality sleep your body and brain need.
People who suffer from sleep apnea experience daytime fatigue, but lack of sleep causes many other symptoms. Sleep apnea sufferers are often loud snorers, for reasons we will discuss in the next section. They are more likely to experience depression, anxiety, and irritability. Long-term poor sleep is connected to heart disease, high blood pressure, and increased stroke risk.
People with sleep apnea are often unaware. They know they feel tired during the day and struggle to stay awake while relaxing, working, or even driving. But they don’t know that they wake many times during the night, although anyone they sleep with probably does—sleep apnea often results in loud snoring with intermittent gasping, snorting, or choking.
You should consider that you might have sleep apnea if you find that you are snoring more loudly than usual, that you are more tired than usual during waking hours, that you need to nap frequently, and that you have trouble concentrating,
What Are the 3 Types of Sleep Apnea?
Sleep scientists categorize sleep apnea into three main types, depending on the underlying cause.
- Obstructive sleep apnea is the most common. Breathing is interrupted when the airways in the throat are blocked. When you fall asleep, the muscles in your throat relax, and your tongue and the fatty tissues that line your throat collapse inwards to partially or fully block the airway. The result is often loud snoring. If oxygen levels drop too low, you wake up and struggle to take a deep breath, after which you fall back asleep, starting another cycle.
- Central sleep apnea happens when the brain doesn’t send the right signals to the muscles that control breathing. Because your brain doesn’t tell you to breathe, you stop until a different part of the brain wakes you up and forces you to start again. Central sleep apnea is caused by factors that affect your brain stem. They include diseases such as Parkinson’s and strokes as well as some medications and narcotics.
- Mixed sleep apnea is a combination of obstructive and central sleep apnea. They can occur together, and in some cases, obstructive sleep apnea becomes central sleep apnea following treatment.
More than 80% of people with sleep apnea have the obstructive variety. In either case, you should consult a medical professional. They will be able to diagnose the cause and suggest an appropriate treatment program.
What Triggers Obstructive Sleep Apnea?
Anyone can suffer from obstructive sleep apnea. It is rare in younger people, but as we age, our muscles weaken, and the amount of fatty tissue around our throat increases. Obesity is the most common cause of worsening obstructive sleep apnea, and weight loss is one of the most effective remedies.
How Can You Prevent Obstructive Sleep Apnea?
A medical professional will be able to provide a treatment program tailored to your unique situation, but you can expect them to suggest the following:
- Lose weight. Obesity makes obstructive sleep apnea worse. Losing weight can significantly reduce symptoms.
- Use a CPAP machine. Continuous positive airway pressure (CPAP) machines are air pumps fitted with a mask worn over the mouth and nose. They send pressurized air into the airways to prevent them from closing. CPAP machines are used to relieve the symptoms of both obstructive and central sleep apnea.
- Adjust your sleeping position. When you sleep flat on your back, it is easier for your tongue and throat tissue to block your throat. This is why people tend to snore more when they sleep on their backs. Elevating your upper body helps to prevent airway blockages. An adjustable bed can reduce sleep apnea symptoms by making it easier to raise your upper body into a comfortable elevated sleeping position.
Learn more about how home hospital beds reduce sleep apnea symptoms with Adjustable Hospital Beds for Sleep Apnea or contact an adjustable bed expert today.
