“Sleep is the golden chain that ties health and our bodies together” Thomas Dekke
What happens when you stop breathing? The oxygen that your body continually needs gets shut off and within minutes or seconds your brain cells start to die. Now what if you stopped breathing and didn't even realize it? This can happen when you sleep if your throat muscles relax too much and obstruct your airway. Luckily, your body has a way of catching this and wakes you up briefly to clear the airway and breathe.
Hour after hour during sleep if this keeps happening, sleep cycles are disturbed and Obstructive Sleep Apnea can make your health go downhill while you barely realize it. We all need good quality sleep, especially the most restorative, deep sleep called REM sleep that produces dreams and helps cognitive function throughout the day. Without deep sleep, we may end up with only the lightest, least productive sleep in the sleep cycle. The health consequences take time to develop, but they can be catastrophic.
I learned about all this last year when I was diagnosed with sleep apnea. I noticed that I was tired during the day, taking naps frequently, and experiencing headaches. After going to a sleep lab I found that I was stopping breathing up to 10 times an hour and had no idea that was happening. Snoring is a sign of possible sleep apnea, and I had been snoring a lot, but only a test could tell if I definitely had it.
I've since discovered that sleep apnea is thought to affect one in four adults from age 30 and up. It predominantly affects men, senior citizens, and people who are overweight. Only 20-30% of people who suffer from sleep apnea are diagnosed because of the lack of information out there. My doctor had never asked about my sleep other than was I getting enough, and I thought I had since I slept soundly for 7 or 8 hours as near as I could tell.
In addition to the symptoms in the infographic above like daytime sleepiness, there are more serious symptoms down the line from poor sleep quality. High blood pressure, heart damage, and cardiac arrests are more likely for those with untreated sleep apnea. I discovered that my A1C score went down from prediabetic to not after doing the prescribed treatment. There have even been cases of microsleeps when people have died in cars or using heavy equipment on poor sleep. I'm surprised that this hasn't been stressed more.
When I first got diagnosed, miraculously my social media feeds were filled with "cures" for sleep apnea that aren't prescribed by doctors. Things like mouth tape, nasal strips, special pillows, and even sleeping pills are on the market to help folks sleep better. And for some they probably work for those with simpler sleep issues. But for something as dangerous as sleep apnea, there are only two major options.
The option of choice for most insurers is the CPAP machine, that blows air down your nose and keeps the airway open all night while you sleep. It sounds great, but many don't like the hoses and noisy machine that they have to be hooked up to every night. It takes a lot of getting used to. I started on a CPAP machine and so far it has gone well. I'm getting much better sleep and feeling more energetic during the day. The other option, generally NOT covered by insurance, is a dental appliance that you put in your mouth at night that physically forces your airway open. Both options work and are preferable to sleep-walking through life.
I take sleep very seriously. I have written about it before discussing an excellent book on sleep. I wish it had covered sleep apnea more thoroughly for those of us who are unaware of it. Had my family not said something, I probably wouldn't have gotten diagnosed. For those who live alone, there are phone apps and Apple Watch functions that help look for issues with sleep. I recommend to anyone reading this who feels sleepy all day long even after a good night's sleep to look into this further and discuss with your doctor. It could save your life and keep you from tiny micro-deaths every night.
Pleasant dreams everyone.
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