Hi. Did your SLEEP APNEA start with menopause? Had a scary

Posted , 7 users are following.

night last night, woke up bolt upright in bed, gasping for air, even hubby woke up with a start cause normally its not that bad! 

DID SLEEP APENEA OR WAKING UP SHORT OF BREATH START WITH PERI OR MENOPUSE FOR ANY OF YOU LADIES PLEASE?

I NEED to know now, if hormones are involved cause im afraid this is a burden on my heart...

Im not overweight, i dont "think" i snore, my heart/blood pressure etc has always been normal, i dont think my SIBO plays into it at all.

The ONLY thing might be sinus's - i get VERY blocked at night.. and/or are fluctuating hormones doing this? Either way im over it, it doesnt happen often but when it does im TRUELY afraid i might not wake up from one of these episodes soon.... 

 

1 like, 13 replies

13 Replies

  • Posted

    Wow hadn't thought of that connection. I was diagnosed with apnea 6 years ago but I'd been having sleep issues years before that. In 2006 I started getting anxiety. I wonder if my peri started then. That would be nice then I'm at the 10 year mark. But it's in this past 11 months that it's really incapacitated me. Only thing I do is Drs visits and groceries. It's so sad.

    I get really blocked at night too. Makes cpap hard to use.

    I remember before cpap waking up and needing to breath deeply like I didn't get air while sleeping.

    You can do a sleep study to see if it really is apnea and severity.

    • Posted

      THanks CC. Yeh i did do a sleep study but i know there were inconsistencies at the time as i just COULDNT sleep with the device on and when it did spike showing irregularlities i know that was when i was wriggling around and it came loose. I can do it again however, with that said if blocked sinus's affect the cpap machine then i dont know if it would help me..

      But i do hope you've reached your 10 year mark, might mean things are going to normalise for you soon smile

    • Posted

      It may be wishful thinking on my part regarding 10 years. But who knows.

      I use Afrin when I'm all stuffed up when I go to sleep. It's s nasal spray. Are you in the UK? I don't know if they have it there.

      Before getting cpap I had septum straightening and turbinate shrinking surgery to clear the passageway. It helped because I was a mouth breather before that.

    • Posted

      well i think you may be onto something there with the sinus link.. funnily enough this morning i "sound" blocked up like i have a cold and it was last night i had the episode.. plus i had to use peppermint oil before i went to sleep to clear me up. i know theres no obstructions there because i can be perfectly clear during the day.. I wonder if theres a contaminent in my room thats causing me to become congested through the night. Theres alot of dust cause we have wood polished floors in the bedroom. My mattress is allergy free . Thanks CC i think you've given me something to look into
  • Posted

    I have the feeling that somehow I'm squashing my heart and the thudding in my chest wakes me and I have to stretch out to give my heart room to beat and to breathe.
  • Posted

    Hi Ellacraig,  I am not sure about the connection, but you might want to ask your doctor.  My husband has sleep apnea, and can not use the cpap machine.  I don't sleep well because I have to make sure he does not sleep on his back, as soon as he rolls onto his back, I make his roll onto his side, and he stops.  The doctor told me if I had a hard time keeping off of his back, to attach a tennis ball to the back of his pajamas so when he rolls onto his back, it will irritate him enough to make him stay on his side.  I used to lay there at night and hear him stop breathing, and it scared me half to death, I would hit him to wake him so he would breath!!  It's not something to mess with.  I think you should give the sleep test another try.  I never used to snore, but all of a sudden I have also started snoring, so much that I have woken myself up!!  I don't have the sleep apnea, but it is scary.  I think I am sleeping so hard sometime, due to my sleeping being so broken, or so few hours, I am just exhausted.  I consider myself lucky if I get 4 hours a night.  Plus, the night sweats, jumpy legs, jumy heart...and the list goes on!  LOL  Such a joy!  Good luck to you Dear!  I really would give the doctor a call, see what they have to say.
    • Posted

      Is he just not tolerating the mask? It takes awhile to get used to. Has he tried the dental appliance?
    • Posted

      Hi CC, No he is very claustrophobic, or I should say, Extremely!  He can't stand anything on his face, and he would not use the dental appliance.  Actually, that tennis ball works pretty darn good!  I just usually give him a poke with the elbow!  He has lost quite a bit of weight, and that has helped a LOT!  And I bought him a new pillow, which holds his head differently. It's one of those that is for both, side and back sleepers, he really likes it, and the nights are much more restful for both of us now!  biggrin  I wish I would have bought one of these sooner!
    • Posted

      Hi would you mind telling me where and what kind of pillow you brought for him? You would likely have to private message me if it's a link. Thank you
    • Posted

      Hi Ella, If you are in the U.S., I bought it at Bed, Bath and Beyond, and it's called the "U-Sleep Side and Back Sleeper Pillow" and it was the first one I tried.  He seems to really like it, says it is comfortable.  They have a few others there too.  It was $39,99, but I had a 20% off coupon, so I thought it was a great price!  I have paid so much more for the ones I have paid for myself, as I have an awful time with my neck, I may just try one for myself.  I bought it for hime just about 2 months ago now.  I was there last week, and they still have them.
  • Posted

    Dear ellacraig

    I cant remember when i started getting this but I have woke up before in the night and it is almost like i have forgotten how to breath and it takes a few seconds to breath, it almost feels more like a panic attack on waking! I would say they are few and far between but were getting them running up to menopause.

    • Posted

      Hi.

      That is how i feel exactly.

      But thanks for previous comments too and the suggestion for sleeping on my side so im doing that now and trying to keep my nasal passages clear. 

      But yes back to having no contributing risk factors for Sleep A i just had to wonder if it was hormones sad

      Im still considering buying a cpap or other snoring device (not that i snore.. at least i think i dont)

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