The Symptoms Of Sleep Apnea May Often Be Difficult To Spot

Sleep apnea is a very commonly seen sleep disorder that affects over 12,000,000 Americans and is now as common as adult diabetes.

The commonest form of sleep apnea is obstructive sleep apnea which, as the name implies, is caused by an obstruction to your airways that produces difficulties with breathing. Additionally, there is another form of sleep apnea called central sleep apnea, in which your brain fails to adequately control your breathing during sleep. Finally, a number of people suffer from mixed sleep apnea, which is a mixture of obstructive and central forms of the condition.

Sleep apnea symptoms can arise at any time and, although they are most often seen in overweight men who are over the age of forty, they can be seen in men and women of all ages and are increasingly being seen now in children.

The most noticeable symptom of sleep apnea is snoring which is of course a difficult symptom to spot yourself and normally has to be pointed out to you by your sleeping partner. There can be a number of reasons for snoring and snoring is not by itself a sign that you have sleep apnea. It is the case however that most sufferers will snore.

The second most noticeable sleep apnea symptom is unusual daytime tiredness. With sleep apnea you stop breathing regularly throughout the night and your body's instinctive reaction to this is to arouse you just enough for you to start breathing again, but not enough so that you are aware of the fact that you are being awakened. The result of this is that your sleep is extremely light and continually interrupted and you do not get the deep sleep which the body needs to recharge its batteries. Consequently, in time, you find yourself getting more and more tired and sleepy during the day.

Left untreated, the affects of sleep apnea will start to become more and more evident and a range of further symptoms will start to appear. These may include headaches (particularly first thing in the morning), touchiness and possibly depression. You might also notice yourself starting to put on weight.

One of the less obvious symptoms of sleep apnea is a rise in blood pressure which can produce several cardiovascular difficulties. This will be spotted if you are one of the increasing number of people who now monitor their own blood pressure regularly at home but will not otherwise be seen until you have a routine physical exam at your doctor's office.

Another symptom is that of learning difficulties and difficultues with memory. Once more this is not easy to see yourself but others might well notice that you are no longer as quick on the uptake as you once were.

Finally, some people with sleep apnea will notice a fall in sexual function and this can ultimately lead to impotency.

As is the case with with many medical conditions individual symptoms by themselves could well be a sign of just about anything. But, if you start to see these symptoms coming together then you ought to think about talking to your physician and possibly consider having yourself tested for sleep apnea.

A word of warning. Testing for sleep apnea will usually involve referral to a sleep specialist, preferably a specialist certified by the American Board of Sleep Medicine (ABSM), and could involve being subjected to overnight sleep testing either in a sleep laboratory or at home. These tests can often cost in excess of $1,000 and you may wish to check with your insurer before committing yourself to a program of sleep apnea testing.

Help-Me-To-Sleep.com offers information and advice on a range of different sleep disorders including sleep apnea and looks at the causes of sleep apnea amongst other things. We also look in detail at finding a natural insomnia cure