Sleep apnea is a sleeping disorder that includes abnormal pauses in breathing or periods of abnormally low breathing during sleep. Often undetected by the person suffering from the condition, this sleep disorder occurs in three variations; obstructive, central and a combination of the two. OSA, obstructive sleep apnea, is the most common form and if not treated properly can lead to more dangerous medical conditions including cardiovascular disease, stroke, high blood pressure, arrhythmia and diabetes. Because sleep apnea causes daytime fatigue in the patient there is also the risk for accidents while driving or at work. Recognizing the symptoms of this disorder is essential to effectively treating this condition.
Though it is very hard for someone who suffers from sleep apnea to diagnose their own condition, especially if they do not share a bed with a partner, there are several signs or symptoms that will alert someone to the presence of the sleep disorder. Some of the more common symptoms of sleep apnea include excessive daytime fatigue, morning or night headaches, swelling of the legs, heartburn at night, sweating and chest pain while sleeping, nighttime choking or gasping spells and loud snoring. Again, many of these symptoms will go unnoticed by the person suffering from the disorder so it is important to pay close attention to episodes of drowsiness and rare headaches as these may be a sign of a sleep apnea condition.
If you do have a bed partner they will have a much easier time detecting symptoms of sleep apnea and should be on the lookout for episodes of not breathing which can occur between 5 and 50 times in an hour, restless tossing and turning during sleep, loud snoring and nighttime choking. The sooner a bed partner recognizes these symptoms the better chance you have to visit a doctor before the condition worsens. If excessive and loud snoring continues for several nights in a row that is a sign that something is not right.
Though this is a serious medical condition it can be treated fairly quickly in a number of ways including lifestyle changes that involve quitting smoking and exercising regularly, using a continuous positive airway pressure machine, oral appliances such as an anti-snoring mouthpiece and having specific surgery such as a Tracheostomy. Most mild cases of this sleep disorder can be treated with natural remedies while it is only under severe circumstances that surgery is required. But the sooner you recognize sleep apnea symptoms the better chance you have to properly treat and cure this sleep disorder.
If you have a snoring problem and are looking for affordable and effective treatments such as anti-snoring mouthpieces and nasal breathing aids visit No Snore Zone today.
No comments:
Post a Comment