Sleep Apnea Symptoms May Sometimes Be Hard To Recognize

Sleep apnea is an extremely commonly seen sleep disorder that affects more than 12 million US citizens and today is as common as adult diabetes.

The commonest type of sleep apnea is obstructive sleep apnea which, as its name implies, is caused by an obstruction to your airways that interferes with breathing. In addition, there is another type of sleep apnea called central sleep apnea, in which your brain is unable to adequately control your breathing during sleep. Many people also suffer from mixed sleep apnea, which is a combination of both obstructive and central forms of this sleep disorder.

The symptoms of sleep apnea can appear at any time and, although they are most commonly seen in overweight men who are over forty, they can be found in both men and women at any age and are increasingly being seen nowadays in children.

The most obvious symptom of sleep apnea is snoring which is unfortunately a hard symptom to spot yourself and frequently has got to be pointed out to you by a sleeping partner. There can be a variety of causes for snoring and snoring is not in itself an indication that you have sleep apnea. It is true however that the majority of individuals with sleep apnea will snore.

The second most obvious sleep apnea symptom is abnormal daytime tiredness. With sleep apnea you sleep apnea you stop breathing regularly during sleep and your body’s instinctive reaction to this is to arouse you just sufficiently for you to start breathing again, but not sufficiently for you to be aware that you are being awakened. The result is that your sleep is continually interrupted and very light and you cannot get the deep sleep which the body needs to recharge its batteries. Consequently, over time, you find that you are becoming more and more tired and sleepy during the day.

Left untreated, the affects of sleep apnea will begin to become more and more evident and additional symptoms will begin to appear. These could include headaches (particularly early in the morning), irritability and perhaps depression. You might also notice that you are beginning to gain weight.

One of the not quite so obvious symptoms of sleep apnea is a rise in blood pressure which can lead to various cardiovascular problems. This will be seen if you are one of the increasing number of people who now monitor their blood pressure regularly at home but will not otherwise be seen until you have a routine physical exam with your physician.

Yet another increasingly seen symptom is that of learning difficulties and problems with memory retention. Once more this is not easy to see yourself but others could well notice that you are no longer as quick on the uptake as you used to be.

Some individuals with sleep apnea will notice a decline in sexual function and this could result in impotency.

As is the case with the majority of conditions individual symptoms could well be a sign of practically anything. However, when you begin to notice these symptoms coming together then you ought to think about consulting your physician and possibly consider having yourself tested for sleep apnea.

Sleep apnea is simply one of several sleep disorders which can or cannot be connected including insomnia, jet lag, narcolepsy and restless leg syndrome.