Is It Possible to Have Apnea While Awake?

General Discussion on any topic relating to CPAP and/or Sleep Apnea.
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sharon1965
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Post by sharon1965 » Sun Jul 01, 2007 10:11 am

I also need to ask him about my deviated septum. I was told years ago that I have one. Also, enlarged tonsils. What is y'alls experience with that. Should I consider surgery for this or not? Didn't think it was a big deal years ago, but....maybe so?????? Do I need to schedule a trip to the ENT do y'all think????
YES!!! in terms of the deviated septum, anyway...best thing i ever did...i used to take otc allergy meds every day, have since i was 11, and since cpap i found my sinuses were clearer, but with septoplasty i'm breathing normally all the time and haven't taken one single allergy pill...the surgery is unpleasant enough, but after two weeks of real discomfort, i was fine and breathing through both nostrils for the first time in my life...no longer a mouth breather!

sharon


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split_city
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Post by split_city » Sun Jul 01, 2007 6:28 pm

DawnTCB wrote: It would also seem to me that daytime "apneas" while you are awake would not be as damaging as true sleep apneas, because (a) you are not losing your restorative sleep which causes all the long-term effects, and (b) it is not possible to hold your breath until you die.

Dawn
This is not true for true apneas either. An arousal is triggered before you die


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DawnTCB
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Post by DawnTCB » Sun Jul 01, 2007 7:29 pm

split_city wrote:
This is not true for true apneas either. An arousal is triggered before you die.
I am interested in this... my doctor produced a bunch of documented cases where someone with apnea "went to sleep and never woke up"... are you saying that has never happened?

I truly would like to know if it is possible.

Dawn


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split_city
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Post by split_city » Sun Jul 01, 2007 9:20 pm

DawnTCB wrote:
split_city wrote:
This is not true for true apneas either. An arousal is triggered before you die.
I am interested in this... my doctor produced a bunch of documented cases where someone with apnea "went to sleep and never woke up"... are you saying that has never happened?

I truly would like to know if it is possible.

Dawn
I'm not aware of anyone dying directly from an apnoea episode i.e. dying from "holding your breath" while asleep. However, sleep apnea can cause a lot of other problems which puts stress on the body e.g. increased activation of the heart, increased blood pressure, increased production of inflammatory markers. Furthermore, there is acute periods of hypoxia. It's generally these outcomes which are likely to contribute to death, not the actual "collapsed airway event."
Last edited by split_city on Sun Jul 01, 2007 9:38 pm, edited 1 time in total.

Vonon
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Post by Vonon » Sun Jul 01, 2007 9:33 pm

I have the same situation. While watching TV,using the computer, etc. my O2 level drops into the mid 80s. Several deep breaths brings it back up to low 90s. BTW, I live at 7,000 ft. elevation and am planning to move lower (below 2,000) so I can feel better.

split_city
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Post by split_city » Sun Jul 01, 2007 9:39 pm

Vonon wrote:I have the same situation. While watching TV,using the computer, etc. my O2 level drops into the mid 80s. Several deep breaths brings it back up to low 90s. BTW, I live at 7,000 ft. elevation and am planning to move lower (below 2,000) so I can feel better.
Do you know whether you happened to "nod" off? OSA generally occurs at the wake-sleep transition.

Vonon
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Post by Vonon » Sun Jul 01, 2007 9:47 pm

No, I don't nod off. In fact I sort of become aware that I'm not breathing much and reach for the pulse ox to check. I also get O2 desaturated when working around the house. Hummm. Maybe I know the cure for that one

split_city
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Post by split_city » Sun Jul 01, 2007 9:50 pm

hhhmm, interesting. You would have to hold your breath for quite a while when you're awake to drop you sats that low...unless you have some underlying respiratory problem

So your normal O2 sats is around the low 90s? I guess a drop of 6% isn't that much. I haven't held me breath recently to see how low I can drop my O2 levels

Vonon
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Post by Vonon » Sun Jul 01, 2007 10:01 pm

I'm a shallow breather. Guess that may be the problem. When I spend time at low altitudes, my O2 level stays 95 and above. Same body, same breathing pattern.

Shari
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Post by Shari » Sun Jul 01, 2007 10:08 pm

When I am relaxing my breathing will become very shallow and slow. It becomes so slow and shallow that an observer would say that I have stopped breathing. I once startled a massage therapist. I had become so relaxed during the massage she thought I had stopped breathing.

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christinequilts
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Post by christinequilts » Mon Jul 02, 2007 3:28 pm

split_city wrote: I'm not aware of anyone dying directly from an apnoea episode i.e. dying from "holding your breath" while asleep.
Maybe not from "holding your breath", but elderly persons or some with advanced certain neurodegenerative disorders, people can die from central apnea in their sleep without being aroused first. Its the lack of arousal that leads to their death, as you can have very severe CSA and have fairly normal nocturnal O2 readings- as long as your bodies backup systems can start your breathing quickly enough when centrals happen.
Aim to grow old and die peacefully in your sleep? Be careful what you wish for. A new UCLA study suggests that some people die in their sleep because they stop breathing due to a cumulative loss of cells in the brain's breathing command post...."We wanted to reveal the mechanism behind central sleep apnea, which most commonly affects people after age 65, Unlike obstructive sleep apnea — in which a person stops breathing when their airway collapses — central sleep apnea is triggered by something going awry in the brain's breathing center."...the researchers studied the role of the preBötC neurons in generating breathing during sleep, and what would happen if these [preBötC] brain cells were destroyed...When elderly but otherwise healthy people die during sleep, physicians commonly record the cause of death as heart failure. The UCLA team believes that the loss of preBötC neurons sparks central sleep apnea, causing elderly people whose lungs and heart are already weaker due to age, to stop breathing and succumb to death in their sleep. Their true cause of death goes undetected....The scientists suspect central sleep apnea also strikes people suffering the late stages of neurodegenerative disorders, such as Parkinson's disease, Lou Gehrig's disease and multiple system atrophy, all serious conditions that lead to movement problems. "People with these diseases breathe normally when they are awake, but many of them have breathing difficulties during sleep. When central sleep apnea strikes, they are already very ill and their sleep disordered breathing may go unnoticed. As the patients grow sicker, their nighttime threshold for wakefulness rises. Eventually, their bodies reach a point when they are unable to rouse themselves from sleep when they stop breathing, and they die from lack of oxygen."
UCLA Study Links Nighttime Dying to Sleep Apnea From Brain Cell Loss, August 8, 2005

split_city
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Post by split_city » Mon Jul 02, 2007 5:15 pm

Hmmm....Interesting finding there.

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Post by Guest » Thu Sep 06, 2007 9:18 am

ok i heard somthing somwhere the other day dont remember where . If you hold your breath during your sleep you could be slowley killing yourself. i have the same problem as all of you holding my breath during sleep during day. i thinkk i caoused my own i used to smoke alot of pot holding it in and all that now that ive stoped i find myself holding my breath all the time. it wakes me in my sleep i wake up in a sweat covers are soked and i keep temperature of house at 74 degrees just writing this just now i held my breath not on purpose for about 1 minute i have never seen a doctor . though i am glad to see im not the only one. from what i get the pot smoking allows over time for your body to use less o2 so now that i quit my body is still trying to use less o2 just opinion , how severe are your cases mines prety bad im guestimating im only breathing on avrege 2/3 of an hr. thats why i started to look this forgeting to breath thing up. anyone find somthing truely helpfull please email me jesse_r_morrison@yahoo.com

Guest

Post by Guest » Thu Sep 06, 2007 10:03 am

split_city wrote:You would never have an obstructive event while awake. Muscles around the airway keep the airway open when you're awake, even in severe sleep apnea patients.
I think this could be broken down into shades of grey as well... I often hear myself snore when I am very drowsey yet still technically awake. When that happens I can also "feel" the vibration in the upper back of my throat. Now, I realize that is not an apnea event, but obviously while still conscious you can relax enough for the obstruction to begin... It is rather odd hearing yourself snore by the way - I wonder how many can claim to have done that?

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Post by Guest » Thu Sep 06, 2007 12:11 pm

I often "snore" myself awake with my eyes open in the early morning. I have also felt myself "choking" while trying to breathe while very tired and relaxed, but awake. It took several seconds to draw breath the last time that happened. I don't know what to call that but an obstructive event. It felt like my windpipe had been crushed.