Sleep Disorder

Sleep apnea refers to a sleep disorder characterized by the interruption of breathing during sleep, such that respiration stops for ten or more seconds, cutting off valuable oxygen supplies to the brain. This interruption of the body's breathing cycle can recur hundreds of times each night, with potentially fatal results. Even more alarming, sleep apnea, the most dangerous of all sleep disorders, also represents one of the most commonly identified sleep disorders, affecting as many as eighteen million Americans each year.

This condition can be divided into two primary categories. "Central sleep apnea", caused by a neurological malfunction in which the brain somehow disrupts the normal signal to breathe and "Obstructive sleep apnea", characterized by the excessive relaxation or the collapse of muscles around the windpipe, which in turn causes windpipe obstruction. Both forms involve the frequent cessation of breathing and the temporary suspension of the oxygen supply to the brain, putting sleep apnea sufferers at a significantly greater risk of high blood pressure, heart attack and stroke.

Diagnosing sleep apnea can be difficult. Snoring, one of the most common symptoms associated with sleep apnea (resulting in many people referring to this as "the snoring disease"), often leads to an erroneous diagnosis of the condition. In fact, snoring can be associated with a variety of other sleep disorders and conditions unrelated to sleep apnea.

When the brain senses a lack of oxygen, as a result of an obstructed windpipe, it reacts by waking the suffer sufficiently to start breathing again, often causing snoring or sometimes coughing. As a result, sleep apnea suffers enjoy a very poor quality of sleep and wake up feeling even more tired than before they went to bed.

Feelings of exhaustion, fatigue and an overwhelming desire to sleep during the day, known as excessive daytime sleepiness, characterize sleep apnea; especially if seen in conjunction with other symptoms such as morning headaches, noticeable lethargy, loss of interest in sex, forgetfulness and difficulty concentrating.

The ongoing exhaustion and physical fatigue brought on by undiagnosed or untreated sleep apnea can also lead to the onset of serious psychological symptoms such as depression, irritability and changes in mood and behavior.

If you suspect that you are suffering from sleep apnea, you should seek immediate medical guidance