Nearly one billion adults around the world suffer from sleep apnea.
So if you’re having trouble getting a good night’s sleep or wake up a lot during the night, it may not be all that coffee you drink. These might be symptoms of sleep apnea
In sleep apnea, your oxygen saturation might drop. Consult a physician if this happens frequently. Further, if it happens regularly then you can go for continuous flow oxygen concentrators. To have a backup option you can keep a home oxygen concentrator as a source of supplemental oxygen. A stationary/home oxygen concentrator is specially designed to cater to the need for oxygen therapy at home. The device is the most appropriate for patients as it can deliver oxygen in a continuous high flow.
It is the most dependable and convenient source of supplemental oxygen therapy. You can buy an oxygen concentrator or even a CPAP/BiPAP machine online from Oxygen Times, India’s largest online medical equipment e-commerce portal.
Further, there are three types of sleep apnea that are obstructive, central, and mixed. In obstructive sleep apnea, the airway becomes physically blocked.
In central sleep apnea, the brain has trouble controlling your breathing muscles. Mixed sleep apnea is a combination of both.
While the causes of each type of sleep apnea are different, their symptoms are the same. It’s vital to know them so you can give an accurate report to your doctor and get treatment.
So if you resonate with any of these problems, keep reading. Here are 8 symptoms of sleep apnea to watch out for.
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Feeling Sleepy During the Day
Feeling sleepy during the day is one of the most common symptoms of sleep apnea. If you constantly feel like you need a nap or find yourself dozing off at your desk, it may be time to see a doctor.
Sleep apnea can cause extreme fatigue during the day because you’re not getting the quality sleep you need. This can happen even if you think you’re getting quality sleep. This is because waking up so often during the night disrupts the stages of sleep you need to go through to get proper rest.
This symptom can be very dangerous, as it can lead to car accidents and other workplace mishaps.
If you experience excessive daytime sleepiness, make an appointment with your doctor right away. If you have sleep apnea, it’s important to get diagnosed and treated before it causes further problems.
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Waking up by Choking or Gasping
Waking up in such a distressing way is one of the telltale sleep apnea signs.
This symptom means that your breathing has been interrupted during sleep.
You will gasp or choke awake when your brain notices that your body does not have enough oxygen. This can happen when your breathing is obstructed as it is with obstructive sleep apnea.
And when you gasp awake, your brain wakes your body up to restore proper oxygen flow.
This can be a very dangerous symptom that can even lead to loss of consciousness.
If you experience this symptom, see your doctor right away for diagnosis and treatment. Your doctor may send you for sleep tests or suggest treatments like this sleep apnea treatment.
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Difficulty Focusing
One of the effects of sleep deprivation is losing mental sharpness. And since sleep apnea causes you to lose out on restful sleep, you’ll feel the mental effects throughout the day.
When you’re sleep-deprived, it’s tough to focus on anything. This is because your brain isn’t getting the rest it needs through REM sleep. You may also find it difficult to remember things like appointments or where you put your keys.
If you’re having trouble staying focused and concentrating at work or school, there’s a high chance you’re not sleeping well. This could be caused by sleep apnea, even if you don’t notice that you wake up during the night.
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Constant Snoring
Snoring every night can be caused by many different things, from allergies to medications like muscle relaxers.
But one of the most common causes of snoring is sleep apnea, especially if you snore every night. This happens because air is being forced through your blocked airway. The tissues in your windpipe vibrate and cause the sound of snoring.
Snoring can also lead to interrupted breathing and waking up frequently during the night. This is why it’s important not to ignore it and get help.
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Headaches in the Morning
If you’re waking up with headaches every morning, it’s a sign that you may have sleep apnea. Unlike regular headaches, which can happen at any time of the day, sleep apnea headaches usually happen in the morning.
Scientists aren’t sure why sleep apnea causes these headaches. They think it could be due to the lack of oxygen created by these breathing problems.
The headaches may also happen because you’re not sleeping well. On top of headaches, you may also get dizzy in the mornings because your body didn’t have enough oxygen during the night.
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Waking up With a Dry Mouth or Sore Throat
Another common symptom of sleep apnea is if you’re always waking up with a dry mouth or sore throat.
Of course, if you wake up with a sore throat only sometimes, it could be an infection or a cold. And unlike the dry mouth caused by other health conditions, sleep apnea’s dry mouth would only happen in the morning.
If you’re constantly waking up like this, then you may have obstructed breathing during the night.
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Restless Sleep or Insomnia
If you’ve been working on improving sleep quality to no avail, then your restless sleep may be caused by sleep apnea.
This can include waking up multiple times a night or not being able to fall asleep at all.
Untreated sleep apnea can lead to many health problems like high blood pressure, stroke, heart attack, and heart disease. This is because the lack of oxygen flow in the body gets disrupted and unbalanced.
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Irritability
One of the most frustrating symptoms of sleep deprivation is irritability. This symptom can cause a lot of arguments and stress if you live with other people.
You may also feel moody all the time without being able to figure out why. This is because you’re more likely to be angry or cranky when you’re constantly exhausted.
Watch Out for These Symptoms of Sleep Apnea
If you have any of these symptoms of sleep apnea, make sure to talk to your doctor right away. They will help diagnose you and send you to any required testing.
Once you get an accurate diagnosis, you can get the right help with treating sleep apnea. These treatments may include a CPAP machine, supplemental oxygen, or even surgery.
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