Sleep Debt...

I tend to think that the concept of "sleep debt" is a bit overstated. Certainly, if one misses a lot of sleep for several days, we need to catch up on "z"s.

However, for longer term (months, years) sleep deprivation and chronic intermittent hypoxia due to OSA, I suspect that we are looking more at physiological damage, primarily from oxidative and inflammatory processes.

The tissue damage (and resulting swelling, irritation, sleepiness, and feeling yucky) comes from local (like around the upper airway) and systemic (all over, every cell) inflammation. And, OSA is a prize-winner at causing inflammation. Among the messenger chemicals leading to inflammation and also the marker chemicals showing inflammation are TNF-[alpha], leukotrienes, reactive oxygen compounds, interleukin-6, and C-reactive protein. There are more.

So, when you treat the OSA with xPAP, you remove (many or most) of the inflammation causes, and after a while, much of the inflammation can subside.

Thus, I don't view xPAP therapy as repaying a debt; rather I look at it as removing a long list of chemical insults that our bodies produce as a result of endless bouts of near-suffocation. Once these stressors are removed, some things snap back right away, others take more time. Cellular damage takes some time to repair (and, hopefully, the repairs are eventually fairly complete.)

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IMHO, or maybe not so humble sometimes, very well said Captain_Midnight!

While I don't know the technical medical aspects, I agree about the recovery from the assault of untreated sleep apnea. I think the reason why the concept of sleep debt is scoffed at by some is twofold. For one thing, what's gone is gone, and while we can get extra sleep to where we no longer feel deficient, it's not a lost-an-hour so pay-an-hour deal. (Is this a case of it's just semantics?)

Also, the line is blurry between what we call catching up or repaying sleep debt and the recovery period Captain Midnight speaks of. Maybe we would have less disappointment if we looked at paying back sleep debt as the period until the inordinate desire for excessive sleep resolves. Then maybe the variability and longevity of following recovery period could be easier accepted.

I don't know - just thinking out loud. Well, actually not. Just typing some thoughts.

Hey All,

New to this site, but have browsed it here and there and it seems like a great community of people!

I love the explanation Captain_Midnight gave regarding tissue damage and recovery. How immediate we feel the affects of treating OSA varies for all, but keep with it and the rewards are there.

Regarding Sleep Debt, I don't see it as something you aim to recover from in the long term, but as a way to monitor your sleep habits from a week to week basis. If you consider that adults should have 7-8 hours of sleep a night (let's make it 7.5 hours for example sake) then a healthy amount of sleep for adults is 52h 30 minutes per week. Track how much sleep you actually get on a nightly basis for that week and the difference between that figure and 52h 30m is how close/far you are away from the suggested amount.

I don't know how many of you keep sleep journals, but it's nice to have a figure to work towards.

I will add my two cents on this topic. I have been on CPAP now 6 weeks. I am now just beginning to wake before my alarm clock. Up until a week ago I was craving more and more sleep. Now I am sleeping better and sleeping less...as well as waking up ready to go.

So I do believe I was sleep bankrupt! Now if I can only create a nice little rest nest egg life would be grand.