19 years old with sleep apnea symptoms

[random898989]

I am 19 years old. Female. 5'5. 130 lbs.
For about 2 and a half years I have been experiencing dryness of the nose and mouth and throat, sore throats when waking up, and not sleeping well. Sometimes I wake up during the night and I notice I am not breathing, but I don't gasp for air or anything. It is really peaceful (and therefore not anxiety like some people have suggested in the past).

I also feel fatigue during the day. Sometimes it is better and sometimes worse.

I notice the feelings of dryness usually start in the evening, and then are way worse in the morning, so it is hard to determine the cause. I have cut out all kinds of foods from my diet to see if anything was causing it. I went to an allergist and my only allergies are things like propylene glycol and cobalt.

I suspected mould or dust or something but these things change. My symptoms seem the same or slightly worse.

[random898989]

Also, I meant to add that I am diagnosed with hypothyroidism and on medication for it. The medication hasn't seemed to change anything and the dryness has remained. There is a potential it is an Autoimmune disorder that is causing this, but I tested negative to 3 tests for AI so the doctor isn't so sure it makes sense to do more tests.

[LSAT]

I believe I have read that Thyroid medication (levothyroxine) dries out nose and mouth.

[Random898989]

Thanks for your response. The medicine has changed nothing. I only began it in February and this has gone on for over two years. It also isn't levothyroxine but rather natural dessicated thyroid extract.

[Julie]

I would ask for a referral to a rheumatologist who can do a very quick/easy test for autimmune problems. You may have something called Sjogren's syndrome... and I'll leave it to you to Google that!

[D.H.]

Don't rule out Sleep Disordered Breathing. It certainly is a possiblity.

Note that there's no such thing as too young, too thin, or the wrong gender for SDB.

[Random898989]

I've had lots of blood tests before. Can anyone tell me what I'd need done to rule out causes of my symptoms?

A few autoimmune ones.
Iron
Glucose
Creatinine
Cortisol
B12
Thyroid tests
Kidney function tests
Vitamin A
Some others as well.

[Soothest Sleep]

Have you had a sleep study done? It seems to me that would be the best way to determine whether your symptoms are indeed apnea.
Have you discussed the possibility with your doctor? That person is in the best position to advise you, as we on the forum are patients, not medical professionals.

Jean

[Julie]

There's one, it's a 3 letter abbrev. thing starting with R (no, not RNA) that is what I referred to re the rheumatologist and he/she will immed. know what I'm talking about - I just can't remember the rest of it now. It's very basic and definitive.

[Captain_Midnight]

Hi Random!

My pulmonologist confirmed (retrospectively) that I had OSA since childhood, although it was diagnosed in my 50s. I was, and remain, of normal weight. It's a throat architecture thing, and can occur at young ages.

I had symptoms, many similar to yours, but had no idea what was causing them. They have resolved since diagnosis and xpap treatment.

Nobody can say what the true cause of your symptoms might be. That takes a sleep study. It is not unusual for OSA and hypothyroidism to appear together, and last I checked, it's still up-in-the-air about which might cause which.

Good luck isolating the cause of your symptoms.

[Rainmom17]

You said you tested iron, but do you know if you tested ferritin, which is iron storage? Very common deficiency for women and can leave you very run-down, and also interfere with sleep.

[Random898989]

You said you tested iron, but do you know if you tested ferritin, which is iron storage? Very common deficiency for women and can leave you very run-down, and also interfere with sleep.

Yes. My ferritin was extremely low. 13. That was about 7-8 months ago. My diet changed drastically around the same time. If it's iron it must be way higher now, since it usually takes months to build up, but no improvement in how I feel at all.

[Rainmom17]

My 15-year old daughter's level was also 13. Her doctor believes it's the cause of her legs twitching at night, which disrupts her sleep, and also the cause of her problems with focus and attention. She is always tired. It's hard for us women to build it up quickly since we lose iron every month. My doctor told me it could take up to a year of supplementation to have a decent level. I finally got mine to 30, which is kind of the minimum of okay, and it took a very long time.
Vitamin D is also a good one to work on, as I'm sure you know.

[Goofproof]

The good thing is since you are young, you can't brag you had sleep apnea for twenty years, many of us can. You have a chance to get healthier before too much damage has been done. Jim