Hey docs! I have a question regarding sleep apnea, and what my doctor has said to me, Just asking for an opinion. I’m a 20 year old male, and im not sure if sleep apnea can be genetic or what not, but it seems it is a terrible thing that happens to all the males in my family. I’ve been observed constantly snoring & having periods where I stop breathing in my sleep. On top of that, I always wake up feeling unrested & tired. I went and visited my doctor the other day, and he basically told me that I probably don’t need a sleep study & there is no way I was going to be the first 20 year old to need a cpap of some sort. What he told me is to go see my dentist and ask them to get me one of those mouth-pieces that brings the lower jaw forward when I sleep, which is supposed to help with my sleep apnea. I was wondering what your thoughts were on this recommendation. In the store I went and picked up this 40$ snore-guard mouthpiece that is supposed to do the same thing, I thought i’d try it first just for the hell of it. Seems that i’m not having much luck with it. Not sure what to do at this point. Thanks!
It sounds to me like you should get a sleep study.
I am 35 and also have severe sleep apnea (59 apneatic episodes per hour). I am recently diagnosed and just wanted to share my story so that people can understand how severe of a situation sleep apnea can be.
I am not overweight. I am currently 5’9" and 175 lbs (BMI has that as overweight, but I’m an athlete with a decent amount of muscle), and a lifetime competitive swimmer who has swam at a high enough level to qualify for Olympic Trials. I have always been nutritionally conscious and have exercised my entire life. I have always slept well, and have never felt tired during the day. My wife has said that I snore from time to time, but never really complained. In short, I did not present any symptoms of sleep apnea and certainly didn’t fit the profile of the typical sleep apnea patient.
In May of this year I went in to the Doctor for a check up and found my blood pressure to be 240/135. I was immediately referred to a BP specialist (who was also a kidney specialist), and he sent me in for a sleep study. As a result of the high blood pressure (caused by years of undiagnosed sleep apnea), I had lost 75% of my kidney function and was told to prepare for dialysis and kidney transplant. I started CPAP therapy in July, and now love it. It’s kind of a pain in the ass to have the hose and mask sitting by my bed, but I have zero complaints about the quality of sleep. My BP has improved with the help of medicine, but I hope that over time the CPAP will allow me to come off some if not all of the medication. I have had to drastically change my diet to try and improve kidney function, and will probably have to continue a low sodium diet (less than 1500 mg/day) for the rest of my life. I have regained some kidney function and am no longer looking at dialysis/transplant in the near future, but it is something that is still a very real possibility in the next few decades.
All because of undiagnosed sleep apnea.