Awakening after an hour or two because of hunger

Bizzaro · Post by **Bizzaro** » Fri May 09, 2008 5:20 am

Has anyone experienced this before? I mentioned this to my doctor and sleep doc but they didnt have an answer. After an hour or so after I fall asleep, I wake up very hunger. It makes no difference what time I go bed or when I have eaten. It always seems to happen around the 1 to 2 hour mark after falling asleep.

I had my thyroid checked and they say it"s normal but I wasnt given the values. I read somewhere that even though thyroid tests may come back as normal, they can be "low normal" and many doctors quickly dismiss this and ignore their patients when they may have a thyroid condition.

Any ideas?

ozij · Post by **ozij** » Fri May 09, 2008 5:35 am

Is this with cpap?

O.

kteague · Post by **kteague** » Fri May 09, 2008 6:00 am

Are you on any bedtime meds that could be causing this sensation? I have meds that cause a gnawing feeling in my stomach similar to hunger.

Not sure of your sleeping habits, but nighttime eating can be a sign of inadequate or ineffective sleep. When my sleep disorders were at their worst, I ate all night long, sometimes even cooking 2 or 3 times a night. Now with them under relative control, I don't even think about food at night.

zorrro13 · Post by **zorrro13** » Fri May 09, 2008 6:18 am

How long have you been doing this? Its habit forming and can be hard to break the cycle.

RonS · Post by **RonS** » Fri May 09, 2008 8:40 am

I had this exact problem until I started CPAP therapy. I don't think it's been long enough to call it cured yet, but so far so good.

A whole host of endocrine problems go along with sleep apnea, some of them may cause hunger.

Is your CPAP therapy otherwise working?

sleepngo · Post by **sleepngo** » Fri May 09, 2008 12:40 pm

Your blood sugar is probably dropping too fast the first few hours, try eating a couple hand fulls of nuts, almonds preferably, a hour or two before going to bed. They will help to maintain a steady glucose level without raising your blood sugar too fast, thereby allowing you to sleep better.

Dan

Goofproof · Post by **Goofproof** » Fri May 09, 2008 2:02 pm

I can't sleep sound without food before bed, and I know that's the worst time for it. So I eat, then I take insulin, and worry if I got the amount correct. Usually I error on too much food, it gets scarry to wake up with low blood sugar. If the blood sugar goes low you have to eat, and the rolley coaster begins with high numbers to be delt with the next day. Life's a Ride! Jim

Julie · Post by **Julie** » Fri May 09, 2008 3:34 pm

I wonder if you're not interpreting a problem with GERD (gastroesophageal reflux disease - basically too much acid in your stomach that rises into your esophagus when you lie down, which is very common in people with OSA) as 'hunger', because it can feel similar if you're unfamiliar with it. I suggest you try raising the head of the bed by just a few inches (on bricks, whatever), plus sleep on your side rather than back, plus avoid having any food or drink (coffee, alcohol, tomato sauce, garlic, etc.) that could aggravate the problem, for as many hours prior to bedtime as possible. Plus try just a half tab of Tums (too much will backfire) right before bed, with some water. Do this for a few days and see if you feel any better (and let us know).

Bizzaro · Post by **Bizzaro** » Sat May 10, 2008 2:42 pm

Thanks, for the tips.
No, I have been checked for GERD and I don't have it; however I do have colitis so eating nuts is not a good idea for me because it's hard on my gut.

In the past, starting about 5 years ago, I would get up in the middle of night, say 2:30 AM or around there. I mentioned it to my GP at the time but he had no comment, except that "sleep is a funny thing". There was minimal hunger associated with it.

Over the last few years though, there is hunger associated with it. Maybe I should buy one of the glucose meters and check my blood sugar when I get up?

Bizzaro · Post by **Bizzaro** » Sat May 10, 2008 2:45 pm

RonS wrote:I had this exact problem until I started CPAP therapy. I don't think it's been long enough to call it cured yet, but so far so good.

A whole host of endocrine problems go along with sleep apnea, some of them may cause hunger.

Is your CPAP therapy otherwise working?

Yes, my cpap is working but I still don't feel rested despite decent numbers around the 4 AHI range.

Julie · Post by **Julie** » Sat May 10, 2008 3:09 pm

A hungry feeling is also associated with ulcers, so you might want to think about that - though I'd imagine you'd have other symptoms eventually.

LavenderMist · Post by **LavenderMist** » Sat May 10, 2008 4:15 pm

Since you can't eat nuts you may want to consider eating complex carbs (whole grain cereal, brown rice or something similar) or lean protein that will stay with you longer. If your blood sugar is dropping and triggering hunger that may just do the trick.

Good luck,
Mist

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