Lets talk about sleep apnea

What is sleep apnea?

I'm one of the thousands of people who suffered from sleep apnea and require a Constant Positive Airway Pressure (CPAP) machine to keep my airway open while I sleep. But, if you're like me, you might wonder exactly it is. Simply put, it can be caused by: 1) interruption of breathing due to lack of effort known as central sleep apnea; 2) interruption of breathing due to a physical blockage despite respiratory effort known as obstructive sleep apnea; or 3 a combination of the two known as mixed sleep apnea.

Sleep apnea is a condition where a person is a sleep disorder that is characterized by abnormal pauses in breathing and/or instance of abnormally low breathing during sleep. Each of the pauses is known as an apnea which can last anywhere from a few seconds to several minutes and can occur anywhere from five (5) times to thirty (30) times (or more) an hour. In most cases the person suffering from the apnea(s) or hypopnea (low breathing) is rarely aware of it. The symptoms associated with sleep apnea can continue for years - or possibly even decades - without being identified. As a result, a person suffering from the condition becomes accustomed to the daytime sleepiness and fatigue that result from the sleep loss.

My situation

For years, I had been getting up in the morning feeling almost as tired as when I went to bed six to eight hours earlier. I finally got tired of being tired and asked my doctor to refer me to a Pulmonologist who could assess my situation and refer me for a sleep study - known as a polysomnogram - if he thought it was needed. It wasn't until after Dr. Akbik (my pulmonologist) referred me for the initial study that I realized just how bad my apnea was.  I stop breathing - on average - 38.5 times an hour and kick my legs - due to restless leg syndrome -  an average of 24 times an hour. No wonder I stayed tired all of the time!

Armed with this knowledge, Dr. Akbik knew my treatment would involve two phases: 1) treating the restless leg syndrome; and 2) having me titrated (Explanation of titration) for a C-PAP machine that would prevent me from having apneas when I slept. The difference it would make was obvious the night of the second sleep study. That night, when I used a C-PAP for the first time, I had no episodes of apnea and my oxygen saturation remained at a healthy 96 percent!

In conclusion, if you snore, I encourage you to speak to your doctor and see if he/she thinks you could be suffering from sleep apnea. You'll be glad that you did!

-- WL