Blame The Apnoea?

[JockLitt2]

It all started back in primary school. Mrs Hare, the terror of many a '50's child, would chuck the chalk at me for not listening to her - mind you, she chucked it at everyone else who got up her nose, but I seem to remember being picked on, so I don't know if it was just me or if it happened at a particular time of the month. At secondary school, my report cards usually included comments like, ..."must apply himself more," "can do better," etc etc., but I always managed to get by, (7 O Levels and 2 A Levels). At technical college, I battled to grasp the more advanced stuff, but still managed to get by ...just, (membership of a professional institution).

My career has been good, with its normal ups and downs. Like most other jobs, most of what I do is sort of repetative, but I've got to apply my mind on a daily basis - and this is the crux of the matter - applying one's mind.

Like most of us I guess, I couldn't put a finger on when the sleep apnoea started - I only know that I reached the point where I had a permanent claw gripping me across the forehead, I was falling asleep in the office, at meetings, at the doctors and what eventually caused me to insist to my GP that this was a problem he couldn't deal with - at the steering wheel.

I've been on cpap for a year now and I obviously feel better than I did pre-cpap, although I still have a short term memory problem and sometimes have difficulty finding explicit words. I have good and bad days, and sometimes when I'm relaxing - like now, I often sit and wonder if there is a person type who has a pre-disposition to sleep apnoea, and if so, would it create problems for us as far back as primary school - was my lack of scholastic application a pre-cursor to this condition

[JohnBFisher]

... I've been on cpap for a year now and I obviously feel better than I did pre-cpap, although I still have a short term memory problem and sometimes have difficulty finding explicit words. I have good and bad days, and sometimes when I'm relaxing - like now, I often sit and wonder if there is a person type who has a pre-disposition to sleep apnoea, and if so, would it create problems for us as far back as primary school - was my lack of scholastic application a pre-cursor to this condition

Yup and Yup !!

Sleep apn[o]ea tends to run in families. I am 99% certain that my maternal grandfather had obstructive sleep apnea. He almost certainly died of heart related problems. He died in his sleep. Let that be a cautionary tale for those who don't think it is important to treat sleep apnea!

And there are numerous studies that show that sleep apnea can and does occur during childhood. It often triggers poor attention and problems with short term memory.

[harry33]

you might have had apnea as a child, enlarged tonsils is a possible cause

you might now need another sleep studty with perhaps a pressure increase

Ive long had a poor memory which CPAP use hasnt improved

[kteague]

Hard to know in retrospect how far back the OSA started, though there seem to be lots of reports on here of those who recognize symptoms are quite long standing. Also seems to be a boon in recognition of children with sleep apnea and its effect on their performance and even conduct.

As far as your current symptoms, before accepting them as your norm, I'd want to #1 be certain the current treatment is effective, and #2 determine if there are other contributing factors needing treatment. You may find there are gains yet to be had.

Kathy

[roster]

.....I often sit and wonder if there is a person type who has a pre-disposition to sleep apnoea, ...

If you are talking about obstructive sleep apnea, there sure is. It's a person who has a poorly developed jaw - narrow and/or short in depth and/or poor mandibular advancement.

It's our diet during childhood. We intake sufficient (often more than sufficient) calories with very little chewing required. Some of our ancestors chewed a lot during their developmental years. Tough meats, raw vegetables and fruits, nuts, even hard breads, require much chewing. This stimulates the jaw skeleton to grow. These ancestors had a full mouth of straight teeth including all four wisdom teeth. They also had good mandibular advancement.

Don't chew much as a child and you often end up with a smallish jaw which results in crooked teeth (requiring braces) and not enough room for the wisdom teeth (so we extract them today). The smallish jaw also means problems when you sleep. The tongue and soft palate muscles naturally relax when you sleep. They clog up the small jaw and block your airway.

So back to your question, I would say there are very lucky people who have a naturally wide and deep jaw despite very little chewing. They are lucky to have a predisposition away from obstructive sleep apnea.

[Phillysnooze]

I first heard of Sleep Apnea when my older brother was telling me he was diagnosed with it. He's a college professor from Florida in his 50's and he was describing the daytime sleepiness, falling asleep at the wheel of his car, frequent trips to the bathroom overnight, loud snoring, etc - all the classic symptoms and I thought to myself "Oh my God! I have those symptoms too!" Honestly I never even heard of Sleep Apnea or OSA until then.

This was back around 2007. I tried to tell my primary doctor about my fears, but the doctor just dismissed them. Then, one day, a ... ahem ... overnight sleep partner (I am not married) informed me the next morning that I would stop breathing regularly during the course of the night. That was it. I demanded the doctor arrange a sleep study for me. The rest is history - it turned out I have very severe sleep apnea with an AHI of near 100.

More recently Big Bro informed me that he seriously believes our dear beloved Dad - who died in his sleep of a "stroke" at age 72 - was in fact a victim of undiagnosed sleep apnea. I had no idea this is something that can run in families.

[roster]

I had no idea this is something that can run in families.

Don't look for a gene that causes sleep-disordered breathing (SDB). Most cases are due to underdeveloped jaws. These days we take in plenty of calories during childhood with very little chewing. Without exercise the skeletal structure of the jaw is underdeveloped.

One of the main reasons why sleep apnea is so common these days is that modern human's facial skeleton and jaws are much smaller than what they used to be hundreds of years ago. Dentists are saying that people didn't get impacted molars hundreds of years ago, since they had much more room inside their mouths. Dr. Weston Price, in his classic book, Nutrition and Physical Degeneration, describes how due to a radical change in our diets from natural, organic foods to highly processed and sugary foods, our jaws are getting smaller and smaller.
Full article: http://doctorstevenpark.com/sleep-apnea ... l-wrinkles

I personally believe more than more than 50% of the population has or will develop SDB at a level of severity that should be treated. If I am correct, almost everyone will find many cases in their family tree.

Of course there are likely families that have the genes for very wide, well-advanced jaws, even without exercise. Lucky for them - no CPAP needed.