What triggered your apnea??

[sleeplessntenn]

I am absolutely convinced that either the welbutrin I took to quit smoking or quitting after 20+ years triggered my apnea. I never felt tired before and I have quit and started and used the welbutrin again and every time I do, my apnea worsens.....was just curious if anyone else had this issue and maybe hadn't made the connection. Or, maybe I am just a freak of nature.

[JimH]

I think smoking, working late and gaining wait contributed to mine. Generally not taking care of myself and burning the candle at both ends.

[woodland123]

Sorry I can't help here but will anxiously watch for other replies to see if it gives me a clue to my cause. I just blamed it on my weight gain...blame everything on that (hbp, diabetes, snoring,carpel tunnel, arthritic knees, etc.

I was diagnosed 10 years ago but I was so busy as a caregiver that I just did not use my cpap and never went back for follow up with the sleep doctor. It was only when I recently went to a neurologist about my worsening memory and finding nothing wrong that that doctor told me I should follow up with a sleep test - that my problem was likely because of my untreated sleep apnea!(My internist had been telling me that was the cause of my fatigue - but the worsening memory got my attention. Just got my new bi-pap flex and am going to stick with it this time.

(If I had known I was going to live this long, I would have taken better care of myself!)

[Guest]

Thanks, guys, I was thinking I may have had it mildly before, but it could be attributed to several things but the welbutrin and stop smoking are the trigger more than any I can identify. I drove a truck over the road for seven years then quit driving and quit smoking and gained about twenty pounds and suddenly I had severe apnea that was totally debilitating to the point I actually contemplated suicide as an alternative to living like that. Then I got the cpap and felt better for a while, started smoking, used welbutrin to quit and my apnea got to where the cpap would not work so I opted for surgery, Tonsils, adenoids, uvulapharyngypalatoplasty, turbinectomy. Anyway, I was doing better, like an idiot, started smoking and like a real idiot, used the welbutrin to quit, for three months now, so that's great, but, lo and behold, i feel crappy again so it's off to the sleep doctor again to see about getting an apap for a month or whatever to reset my cpap pressure. It's funny that I can connect this to the apnea so certainly, yet not one person or doctor I talk to about it believes the connection is possible or has not experienced it themselves.

[Guest]

My better half.
Had she not told me I stopped breathing, I'll still be undiagnosed.

Now she and I sleep through the night.

[skjansen]

I have two theories on what caused my sleep apnea. First, I had a severe case of strep throat when I was in college. From that day forward my tonsils remained HUGE and cover the majority of my throat. Second, about 15 years ago I was in an accident that resulted in the curvacure of my cervical (neck) spine to go from the normal 26 degree curve to just 5 degrees. Basically the curve in my neck was no longer a curve...it was now almost straight. I believe that also contributed to the reduced airways I now have. I think I went undiagnosed for almost 20 years so those are the two factors that I believe contribute to my apnea. These are just therories on my part as I have never been told this by a doctor.

I am now slightly overweight but I used to be slim so I don't think my apnea can totally be attributed to weight.

[Julie]

Maybe you don't realize it (have never been told) but when you first quit smoking (been there!) you will be very sleepy for a while (week or so), but don't attribute it to apnea, it's just a withdrawal thing, just as getting cold symptoms is, and headaches for some people, etc.

[Needsdecaf]

Weight gain. I am 100% convinced of this. Based on two things:

One, snoring and apnea symptoms were never present when I was fit. As I have slowly gained weight over the last 9 years (60 pounds in 9 years, think that's an average of less than 7 / year) things have gotten worse. I have fallen into the "downward spiral".

Two, my ENT has told me that I have no nasal issues, throat, mouth or windpipe issues that would contribute to apnea. At most, they would cause mild snoring. I have a minor deviated septum that causes chronic stuffiness that has been solved with regular saline nasal rinses.

Now that I am on CPAP and have energy to exercise, we'll see how it goes!!

[new-to-BiPAP]

Wellbutrin has been tied to Limb movement disorder (that can affect sleep quality) and insomnia. I haven't heard it be linked to apnea...but that doesn't mean anything. Any antidepressant can make your sleep worse (usually the quality). I'm not sure if they have even looked at WHY the quality is worsened. Also, other meds like muscle relaxants can make sleep apnea worse and allergies and things like that also.

I have no idea what caused mine (I have UARS and RLS but no apnea). Anemia or low ferritin levels has been connected to RLS) I am not overweight so it's not that. Dunno *shrug* Haven't really thought about it.

[Guest]

My husband had always compalined about my snoring and told me that i grooned in my sleep. I wish i had ask a doctor about it then but i just never though about it. After he passed away i was on a trip with my mother and sister and we were all sleeping in the same room. When i woke up the next moring they said i had stopped breathing in my sleep and they were awake all night afraid i would not start breathing again. So i went to the dr as soon as we got back and found about my apena. I have been on cpap for 3 years now and fealing much better!!!!!!

[Slinky]

I never had a sleep problem UNTIL a car accident, whiplash and cervical bone chip. I don't give a rip what any doctor does or doesn't say about neck position no one will convince me that that whiplash didn't cause the start of my sleep apnea.

HOWEVER, I was also a smoker. And I now have COPD and THAT aggravates the situation. I can't say what caused YOUR sleep apnea but I would be willing to bet that your smoking adds to the problem.

Have you ever had a pulmonary function test? Or a spirometry or arterial blood gases?

And by the way: I am 60+ years old, 5'4", 13" neck circumference and have weighed 110-115 lbs since the age of 13. Occasionally 105 lbs. Only more than 115 lbs when pregnant.

[Sleeprider]

Let's see what came first? I was heavier than I wanted to be so I lost a bunch of weight using Atkins. I resumed an old smoking habit at that time. In 2003, I quit smoking cold turkey (no drugs, patches), and started to regain weight. I went from 195 lbs to 240 lbs in 2-years then held steady. By 05-06, complaints about my snoring, and getting hit at night to shut up seem to have started about that time, along with a total loss of energy and stoke to do the things I used to enjoy. Last winter my snoring got so bad the wife moved out of the bedroom and I finally talked to my doctor about it. That was January. In April I was diagnosed with severe OSA, and I have just completed my second night of therapy after getting equipment.

Smoking and weight gain are killers for apnea. Getting older doesn't help. Maybe knowing the cause is less important than seeking and sticking to a solution. My hope is to improve my health and fitness moving forward and hopefully not repeat mistakes of the past.

[jaxdaddy]

I think after listening to my father rattle the rafters for years, my apnea was lovingly passed to me.

I also was having this unexplained brusing on my ribs after my dw had a less than restful night

Was not really convinced until I saw the results of my night in the sleep lab. We all sleep better now and my bruising has stopped

[Wrenna]

I think after listening to my father rattle the rafters for years, my apnea was lovingly passed to me.

I also was having this unexplained brusing on my ribs after my dw had a less than restful night

Was not really convinced until I saw the results of my night in the sleep lab. We all sleep better now and my bruising has stopped

Now that you mention it, my mysterious bruising has disappeared as well!


I have the feeling that I've always had sleep apnea. According to my parents and sister, I've been snoring horribly ever since I was 3 years old. ... come to think of it, that's the same age I had my tonsils and adnoids out! Hmmm. Anyway, after my sleep test I called my parents and they were like "I thought the pauses in the snores followed by snorting sound was just how kids snore!" oy.

[Guest]

Going through menopause definitely caused mine......or made it much worse.