Did you know, that according to the American Sleep Apnea Association, more than 18 million American suffer from sleep apnea? While this sleep disorder is fairly common, in fact just as common as type two diabetes, many people are unaware of what it really is, who it affects, and what health risks it poses. To help better understand what this sleep disorder is all about, Glacier Headache & Sleep Medicine, Kalispell, Montana’s leading sleep medicine center helps break down everything you need to know about sleep apnea.
Sleep apnea was named after the Greek word, “apnea”, which means “without breath”. People who suffer from sleep apnea involuntarily stop breathing while asleep, and these episodes of non-breathing can occur several, even hundreds of times during a single sleep
…show more content…
Central Sleep Apnea: In central sleep apnea, the airway is not blocked, however, the brain does not properly signal your muscles to breathe.
Mixed Sleep Apnea: Mixed sleep apnea is a combination of both obstructive and central sleep apnea, and usually causes extremely poor sleep among patient who are diagnosed with this type of the condition.
Sleep apnea is more commonly diagnosed among men than women, and even more so in those of African-American and Hispanic descent. Additionally, it’s more commonly seen in people who are overweight or obese. Sleep apnea presents itself in a number of ways, however the most common and obvious symptom of the condition is extremely loud and excessive snoring. Usually, this symptom is noticed more so by a spouse sharing the same bed with the patient rather than the patient themselves. Other red flags of sleep apnea include persistent daytime sleepiness, insomnia, episodes of waking from sleep short of breath, or headache and dry mouth upon waking