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Sleep Apnea, is it really a problem?

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Sleep Apnea. Is it really a problem?

The American Sleep Foundation reports that sleep deprivation, not cancer or coronary illness, now constitutes the number one killer in the Western World.

I was diagnosed with the condition of Severe Obstructive Sleep Apnea two years ago and figured out I had better look into it a bit deeper to understand what it was that I had.

WHAT IS SLEEP APNEA?
The medical condition called "Sleep Apnea" is a condition that while sleeping, sufferers repeatedly stop breathing for extended periods of time. The clinical definition of Sleep Apnea is a cessation of breath that lasts for at least 10 seconds.

Sleep Apnea is a relatively common disorder, nearly as common as adult diabetes. It is thought that one in twenty-five middle-aged men and one in every fifty middle-aged women may have Sleep Apnea and of these less than half are likely to have been diagnosed or be aware of their condition.

There are three types of Sleep Apnea, these being Central Sleep Apnea, Obstructive Sleep Apnea and Mixed Apnea.

SLEEP APNEA DIAGNOSIS
There is no blood or other post event test for determining Sleep Apnea, and as such Sleep Apnea is normally diagnosed as a result of comments or complaints from sleeping partners or family who have noticed the gaps in breathing or the excessive snoring, or both as per my case.

Sleep Apnea can be a life threatening condition with the frequent drops in the blood oxygen levels, and the reduced sleep quality triggering the release of stress hormones. These hormones raise your heart rate and increase your risk of high blood pressure and other cardiovascular diseases as well as potentially causing memory problems, weight gain, impotency and headaches. Other signs and symptoms of Sleep Apnea may include a morning headache, memory lapses, depression or irritable mood swings or personality charges as well as a dry throat when you wake up.

The broken sleep pattern that comes with Sleep Apnea usually leads to increased tiredness and decreased awareness in waking hours, with some sufferers experiencing periods of momentary sleep events at times throughout the day.

Factors that are known to increase the risk for Sleep Apnea include a family history of sleep apnea, a large neck, a recessed chin, being male, abnormalities in the structure of the upper airway, smoking, alcohol use, age and excess weight.

TREATMENT ALTERNATIVES
All Sleep Apnea treatments are intended to prevent the airway from becoming obstructed during sleeping. Treatment can be addressed in a number of ways and for some minor cases may only require lifestyle changes such as weight loss and avoidance of alcohol and sedatives prior to sleeping. In more severe cases treatment may involve surgical procedures, the use of a CPAP machine or a combination of all three of these.

Once diagnosed, Sleep Apnea can be treated and managed. The risks associated with failure to act are too great to ignore and Sleep Apnea should not be taken lightly. If you believe, or are told by your partner that you could have the condition you should seek advice from a professionally qualified sleep specialist.

I now sleep with the CPAP nearly every night (depending on where I am) and have found it to make major improvement to how I feel in the morning. I can't say that that I'm 100% better, like others that use CPAP have claimed, but the change in how I feel the next day between when I sleep with the CPAP and when I don't is significant. And as suggested, rather diplomatically by my sleep specialist, I'm also working on reducing my weight down to a more reasonable level and that has also helped my general feeling of well being.

If interested in more detailed information then try this Sleep Apnea website or these Amazon Reference Books.

Contents at a Glance

Sleep Apnea
Sleep Deprivation - Now No1 Killer
Great Amazon Reference Information
Sleep Apnea News - for more information...
Youtube Sleep Apnea Vids
New Links Voting (Plexo)

News Feeds on Sleep Apnea

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Sleep Deprivation - Now No1 Killer

Dead Tired - A Must See Sleep Deprivation Documentary

After watching this documentary on SBS in Australia my attitude to using my CPAP changed radically. This really brings home the dangers of Sleep Apnea.

The American Sleep Foundation reports that sleep deprivation, not cancer or coronary illness, now constitutes the number one killer in the Western World.

Tiredness is now believed by many scientists to be potentially the biggest health problem facing humanity. Recent medical studies have revealed that sleep deprivation can trigger and exacerbate heart disease, obesity, diabetes and even depression

The problem is that on average we are now getting 90 minutes less sleep than our ancestors did 100 years ago and our sleep-dependent bodies are failing to cope.

So today one-third of us are dangerously sleep deprived by such conditions as sleep apnea with a further third of us having insomnia.

Experts claim that sleepiness is "the smoking gun of the modern age" and unless we radically shift our attitude towards sleep we are heading for a medical meltdown.

Dead Tired Documentary
A documentary series, titled "Dead Tired", Produced and Directed by Paul Scott, is the first to feature the cutting edge science behind why most of us are sleep deprived and the dramatic effect this is having on both our bodies and our lives. It details the frightening reality that tiredness is now a sinister killer that's spreading like a pandemic through today's 24/7 activity-driven Society.

Episode 1 - Awake is the New Sleep
Episode 1 details how sleep deprivation can cause sickness and death by investigating and profiling cutting edge science that proves that tiredness impairs performance, affects our mind and damages the body.

The main story observes, in real time, what happens to a healthy 25-year old when he cuts back his sleep from 8 to 3 hours a night for one week. He becomes psychotic, dreams whilst awake and drives a car while fast asleep!

Episode 2 - Planet Insomnia
This episode investigates the causes, consequences and cures for INSOMNIA. The episode features 4 personal stories.
1) It tells the story of how an innovative American trucking company cured the sleep problems of its 675 drivers,
2) How one Australian woman cured her insomnia with yoga alone.
3) How a sleep doctor goes about curing the insomnia and depression of a suicidal teenager, and
4) How an Australian woman acted bizarrely after taking a sleeping pill. She faces 7 years in jail unless her lawyer can convinced the judge that the sleeping pill was to blame..

To get more information and find out where to get a copy of the DVD's use this link to check out the "Dead Tired Page "on my website.

Great Amazon Reference Information

Reference books and information applicable to Sleep Apnea

Sleep Apnea News - for more information on sleep apnea

Sleep apnea, types, treatment, CPAP and background information.

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Youtube Sleep Apnea Vids

Severe Obstructive Sleep Apnea.

New Links Voting (Plexo)

Additional sites for Voting

Sleep Apnea, is it really a problem?